The orangutan, Pongo pygmaeus, is an ape that is found in the moist, coastal rainforests of Sumatra and Borneo which consists of Indonesia’s Kalimantan provinces, Malaysia’s Sabath and Sarawak, and the kingdom of Brunei Darussalam. Orangutans live in tropical rainforests and are arboreal primates meaning that they are tree dwelling. Orangutans construct nests in the tree branches for the night in which they will curl up and sleep. These nests are made out of leaves and branches and they will sometimes use a leaf as a roof to protect themselves from the rain. Orangutans are omnivores, which means they eat a variety of meat and plants. They primarily eat fruit, leaves and small animals. However, 70% of a wild orangutan diet is fruit (Napier, 1988). The durian fruit is a juicy but smelly, cantaloupe-like substance that is among one of the orangutan’s favorites. They also eat flowers, bark, nuts and small insects such as termites and butterfly larva (DeBoer, 1982). Adult orangutans are primarily solitary, except for mother-offspring pairs. However, weaned juveniles will sometimes flock in small groups. Orangutans are active during the day, or as (DeBoer, 1982) said diurnal. They live alone in large territories. This is probably due to their eating habits; they need a large area in order to get enough food and too many orangutans in one area might lead to starvation. The only long-lasting orangutan social group is the mother and offspring, who live together for about 7 years. When mating, the male and female orangutans stay together for only a few days. Males are aggressive toward each other and often fight over females. They also will stake out areas in which they claim as their territory and fight other males if necessary (Galdikas, 1992). The dominance hierarchy is the ranking system among the Primates. The hierarchy among orangutans is the Noayu, which is where there is a solitary male. There is marked sexu...
