A population of 200 orangutans previously unknown to conservationists has been found on the island of Borneo, Live Science reported yesterday.
The subspecies Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus is the most endangered of all Orangutans, with about 3000 to 4500 individuals still in existence. A large chunk of that population, 2000 individuals, live in the Malaysian state of Sarawak in Batang Ai National Park and Lanjak-Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary. The new population was found in an area covering 54 square miles near Batang park.
Locals were aware of the orangutans, but until a survey in February conservationists were unaware of their existence. The survey found 995 orangutan nests. Orangutans craft their nests by bending and interweaving branches, and they tend to nest in large crooks of trees. The apes tend to reuse their nests, but will also make new ones on a regular basis. The survey found freshly made nests, suggesting orangutans had been in the area recently.
Officials in the Sarawak state government are now considering how to go about protecting the endangered apes. It is possible they may try to open a new national park in order to protect the endangered orangutans from human incursion.
The subspecies Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus is the most endangered of all Orangutans, with about 3000 to 4500 individuals still in existence. A large chunk of that population, 2000 individuals, live in the Malaysian state of Sarawak in Batang Ai National Park and Lanjak-Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary. The new population was found in an area covering 54 square miles near Batang park.
Locals were aware of the orangutans, but until a survey in February conservationists were unaware of their existence. The survey found 995 orangutan nests. Orangutans craft their nests by bending and interweaving branches, and they tend to nest in large crooks of trees. The apes tend to reuse their nests, but will also make new ones on a regular basis. The survey found freshly made nests, suggesting orangutans had been in the area recently.
Officials in the Sarawak state government are now considering how to go about protecting the endangered apes. It is possible they may try to open a new national park in order to protect the endangered orangutans from human incursion.
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