Prehistorically, hundreds of thousands of orang utans lived in an area reaching from southern China throughout southeast Asia. Extensive deforestation, due to logging and agriculture, causes the destruction of their habitat; orang utans are only found today in areas of the forests of Sumatra and Borneo. Today, they are an endangered species, with only about 20,000 left in the world.

 map showing orang habitats

As their habitat is further decimated by drought and forest fires, food supplies are becoming more scarce. Despite being a protected species, adult orang utans are still hunted by humans, to prevent the orangs from competing with people for food supplies.

captive orang utan

The profitable illegal trade in baby orang utans has caused poachers to kill mother orang utans for their babies. The babies are kept or sold as pets, then locked in tiny cages, or abandoned.