Bornean Orang-utan
The Bornean Orangutan is Endangered in the wild. Habitat loss through the rapid expansion of oil palm plantations is the most significant threat to these Great Apes.
Our Bornean Orangutans are part of a European Endangered Species Breeding Programme.
Martha has been at Chester Zoo since 1966 and is the oldest orangutan in the UK! Martha lives with her daughters Sarikei and Leia and their offspring, Iznee and Latifah. Tuan, our adult male, arrived in 2007 and is the father to both Iznee and Latifah.
Bornean Orangutans are relatively solitary compared to other Great Apes and adult males only meet with females for breeding. Therefore, we generally keep Tuan separate from the other orangutans; re-introducing him back to the females from time to time. Tuan is content in his own company and like all our orangutans, spends lots of time investigating the various enrichment devices provided by our Keepers.
Through our Realm of the Red Ape Conservation Programme, we’re working to conserve Bornean and Sumatran Orangutans in the wild. Here in the Zoo, we’re aiming to minimise our use of products containing palm oil and we’re pleased to say that none of the bon-bon sweets or branded chocolate you can buy in our retail outlets contains palm oil.
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Species Information
Where they live: Island of Borneo, Southeast Asia
Habitat: Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests in the lowlands as well as mountainous areas up to an elevation of 1500m.
Size: Up to 1.4m tall.
Weight: Up to 100kg
Conservation status: IUCN Red List: Endangered
Threats: Widespread habitat loss for agricultural development, particularly for palm plantations. Habitat destruction and fragmentation caused by logging. Severe droughts and loss of habitat to forests fires due to increasing incidence of the El Niño climatic event. Hunting for the bushmeat trade, traditional medicine, or the pet trade