Personal Information
The orangutans at our Zoo are named Kumang, Dara and Datu. Kumang is the mother of Dara and Datu. Kumang was born in England and came here in 1991. Her daughter, Dara, was born in 1999. Dara was a genetically significant birth because her father, Jiggs, was born in the wild. Datu was born here at the Seneca Park Zoo in 2004.
Status in the Wild
Orangutans are the most endangered of all the apes. Some researchers believe if conservation efforts do not go forward, the species can become extinct by 2015. The Seneca Park Zoo has a part in this important conservation effort for the orangutan, being a participant in the Species Survival Plan for the orangutan. The danger to orangutans is the habitat destruction of their forests caused by land conversion to plantations, logging and poaching.
Habitat
Canopy of lowland forests, swamp forests and in tropical rainforests, orangutans are found on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra and in Kalimantan, Indonesia.
Diet
Various fruits such as mangoes and durian, leaves, seeds, bark, eggs and insects. The diet of an orangutan is very diverse.