North American Orangutan Population

I'm a little surprised that this is just now being discovered, 5 years after the Tapanuli Orangutan was confirmed to be a different species, but to be honest I'm unfamiliar with how long these things can take. Unfortunately I think it's quite unlikely that there are any pure Tapanuli orangutans left in the population.

 

I wouldn’t expect there to be any purebred Tapanuli orangutans left in the population considering there’s no wild bred founders. For a purebred Tapanuli orangutan to exist, the numbers of purebred founders and first generation pairings to achieve this would make it improbable.

Zoos had enough trouble sustaining purebred Bornean versus Sumatran lines in the decades that preceeded the acknowledgment they were seperate species, without the odds of the Tapanuli species remaining intact.

This is a good thing as although it’d be exciting to see a purebred Tapanuli orangutan, the region is working hard to phase out hybrids and the discovery of multiple young hybrids would be a huge setback, especially considering this species can live 60 years.

 

In the studbook, there's a few instances where pairs of orangutans seem to have been caught from the wild on the same day and moved to the same zoo, and have produced offspring. I think it could be possible that if they were caught from the same location, and if they were Tapanuli, then there could be purebred offspring still alive today. The article says a report on this will be published soon, I hope there aren't too many hybrid orangutans discovered. I still personally think there's may be undetected Bornean/Sumatran hybrids too, so hopefully this research will clear everything up.

 

It's definitely a possibility, though when you get to second, third, fourth generation pairings, the odds of maintaining a purebred line by accident are more than slim.

I'm fascinated to hear what further research throws up. The idea our orangutan population could be reduced to a fraction of what we have now via elimination of hybrids is an undesirable concept, but fortunately one we're unlikely to face on a major scale. In any case, it's good to be certain.

I hope othet regions are as proactive now we know this is an issue.

 

Does this mean that hybrids that were labeled as "Sumatran" will no longer be allowed to breed in the program? Or will they continue to breed them as Sumatran Orangutans?

 

I'm not too sure but I think it'll depend on how many hybrids are discovered. If only a small amount of hybrids are found (there's 5 from what I know, but possibly more), then they'll probably not be allowed to breed. But if it turns out that the majority of Sumatrans are actually hybrids, they might just continue to breed, just like the Bornean population who may be a mix of the three subspecies. It would be a shame if so many had to be excluded from breeding, but I'd understand why.

Just thought I'd add the currently known Tapanuli x Sumatran hybrids:
- Benny, M, (Zoo Atlanta)
- Oliver, M, (Birmingham Zoo)
- Nairi/Nadira F, (Birmingham Zoo)
- Pongo, M, (Zoo Atlanta)
- Bella, F, (Louisville zoo)
- Rocky, M (Indianapolis Zoo) (is a Bornean x Sumatran x Tapanuli hybrid)

 

0.1 hybrid orangutan, Amanda, at Como Zoo was euthanized on Saturday. Como has 1.2 Sumatran orangutans remaining (breeding pair, Jambu and Markisa, and their daughter Kemala).

Source: Instagram

 

(1.0) hybrid orangutan Rudi Valentino has passed away at age 45 at the Houston Zoo due to advanced heart disease.

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Sad news to start off the new year!

Daisy, at Sedgwick County, was euthanized this morning due to kidney and heart failure. She leaves behind her 11-year-old son, Kinali, and 4-year-old daughter, Lily.

 

Horrible news.
I'll hopefully be posting the 2022 list of orangutans soon.

 

As noted in the Brookfield thread, 44-year-old Bornean male, "Ben", was euthanized yesterday at Brookfield Zoo

He leaves behind four offspring (two of which, "Kekasih", and "Heidi" still live at Brookfield), four grand offspring, and one great-grand offspring.

 

The Naples Zoo has announced on there facebook that they are getting orangutan officially. They are currently constructing the netted habitat on the site of the former coyote exhibit. The exhibit will be 55 feet tall as well.

In the comments the zoo has also confirmed the orangutans will be coming from Zoo Tampa. Given the pictures they may be be getting a youngster alongside adults.

 

The orangutans will probably be:

0.1 Deedee (1980) and her two daughters; 0.1 Randee (2008) and 0.1 Dira (2018)

 

ZooTampa at Lowry Park - Tampa, Florida - 3.6.0
0.1, Deedee - January 8, 1980 - Dennis x Dolly
0.1, Josie - April 3, 1985 - Louis x Rosie
1.0, Goyang - June 21, 1999 - Gimpy x Ember
0.1, Hadiah - September 12, 2005 - Rango x Josie
0.1, RanDee - August 3, 2008 - Rango x Deedee
1.0, GoJo - December 20, 2015 - Goyang x Josie
0.1, Topi - February 17, 2016 - Goyang x Hadiah
0.1, Dira - January 6, 2018 - Goyang x Deedee
1.0, Riplee - November 15, 2020 - Goyang x RanDee
1.0 Sulu February 6th 2022 Goyang & Hadiah

 

Denver - 15 year old Eirina is pregnant and due with her first infant this summer! The sire could be either Berani or Jaya as she was recommended to breed with both.

What’s New at the Zoo? - Denver Zoo

 

(0.1) Bornean orangutan named Kalijon will be transferred from the Kansas City Zoo in Missouri to the Topeka Zoo in Kansas.

Kansas City Zoo

 

Sacramento - a male infant was born on May 1st to first time parents, Makan and Indah. He is currently being handreared as Indah had trouble nursing him but the zoo is hoping to reintroduce him to Indah as soon as possible.

 

Kansas City - a male Bornean infant was born on May 8th to second-time mom, Josie. The sire is presumably Berani as he was the sire of her previous infant.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CsOil4RMylE/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

 

Naples Zoo's website has confirmed the 4 orangutans moving.

"We are excited for you to meet the family of four Borneo Orangutans that will be coming to Naples Zoo from Zoo Tampa. DeeDee is the oldest member of the group at 41 years old. She is the mother of 14-year-old, RanDee, and 4-year-old, Dira. DeeDee is also a grandmother to RanDee’s son, 2-year-old, Ripley."

Borneo Orangutan

 

Gladys Porter - 0.1 Dodie gave birth to a healthy female infant on July 19th. The sire is 1.0 Mango, and this is his first infant and Dodie’s fourth.