The Sumatran orangutan is a critically endangered species of great ape.
Sumatran orangutans can be distinguished by their lighter orange-colored hair and long facial hair compared to the other two orangutan species. Researchers also believe that the Sumatran orangutans have closer social bonds compared to the other two species.
Genetically, there is more diversity in Sumatran orangutans than in Bornean orangutans, which means that the Sumatran genome is older. We can conclude from this that the Sumatran orangutan is the original modern orangutan.
There are approximately 14,000 Sumatran orangutans currently living in the wild.
Sumatran orangutans used to live throughout all of Sumatra and even into Java. However, they are now only found north of the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. Their habitat consists of the Northern Leuser Ecosystem, Aceh southern limit at the Simpang Kanan River and tributaries West Coast Asahan River East Coast.
