Bornean Orangutan
Little resilience in the face of logging and fire
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Common Name: Bornean orangutan; Orangoutan de Borneo(Fr); Orangután de Borneo(Sp)
Scientific Name: Pongo pygmaeus
Habitat: Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Location: Borneo
Population: Central Bornean = 38,000; NW Bornean = 3,000
Background
© WWF - Canon / Terry DOMICO
The Bornean orangutan is now recognized as a different species from its Sumatra relative. Three subspecies are recognized: Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus, P.p. morio, and P. p. wurmbii, the most common Bornean subspecies. Although extensive, the latter's habitat is increasingly fragmented in the remaining swamp and lowland dipterocarp forests of Central and West Kalimantan.
It is estimated that about one third of Borneo's orangutan populations were lost during the 1997/98 forest fires. On the Indonesian side of Borneo, populations of this subspecies are not faring well either.
Although some populations live inside protected areas, illegal logging still takes place within these area and hence remains a major threat to the survival of this species.
Habitat
Major habitat type
Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Biogeographic realm
Indo-Malayan
Range States
Indonesia, Malaysia
Geographical Location
Borneo
Ecological Region
Borneo Lowland and Montane Forests
Endemism
Borneo.
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