Pongo weidenreichi (SciiFii)

The Chinese orangutan (Pongo weidenreichi or Pongo pygmaeus weidenreichi), also known as the Thailand orangutan, is a species of orangutan that originally lived in China and possibly Thailand during the Early to the Middle Pleistocene and was once extinct, but has since been brought back from extinction by SciiFii and reintroduced throughout the modern rainforests, wetlands, forests, and open woodlands across China and Thailand to help boost biodiversity. The Chinese orangutan is one of the largest living species of orangutan, with the average weight of a male being around 204 kilograms (450 lbs), however, the males can grow slightly larger. The Chinese orangutan has a distinctive body shape with very long arms that may reach up to 1.5 metres in length. It has grey skin, a coarse, shaggy, reddish coat and prehensile, grasping hands and feet. Its coat does not cover its face like other orangutan species, although Chinese orangutans do have some hair on their faces including a beard and mustache. It also has large, fatty cheek pads known as flanges as well as a pendulous throat sac. Chinese orangutans are highly sexually dimorphic and have several features that differ between males and females. Males have much larger cheek pads, or flanges, that are composed of muscle and large amounts of fat. In females, the flanges are mostly composed of muscle. Males have relatively larger canines and premolars. Males have a more pronounced beard and mustache. The throat sac in males is also considerably larger. There are two body types for sexually mature males: smaller or larger. Larger males are more dominant but smaller males still breed successfully. There is little sexual dimorphism at birth. The Chinese orangutan diet is composed of over 400 types of food, including wild figs, durians, leaves, seeds, bird eggs, flowers, sap, vines, honey, fungi, spider webs, insects, and, to a lesser extent, bark. They have also been known to consume the inner shoots of plants and vines. They will also occasionally eat nutrient rich soil. They get the necessary quantities of water from both fruit and from tree holes. The Chinese orangutan exhibits nest-building behavior. Nests are built for use at night or during the day. Young orangutans learn by observing their mother's nest-building behaviour. This skill is practiced by juvenile orangutans. Nests may be elaborate and involve a foundation and mattress made by intertwining leaves and branches and adding broken leafy branches. Additional features such as shade, waterproof roof, "pillow", and "blanket", all of which are made from branches, twigs and leaves, may also be added. Nest-building in primates is considered as an example of tool use and not animal architecture. Chinese orangutan are about as solitary as their Bornean relatives. Two or three orangutans with overlapping territories may interact, but only for short periods of time. Although orangutans are not territorial, adult males will display threatening behaviors upon meeting other males, and only socialize with females to mate. Males are considered the most solitary of the orangutans. The Chinese orangutan has a lifespan of 35–45 years in the wild; in captivity it can live to be about 60. The conservation status of the Chinese orangutan is Endangered due to habitat loss and historic poaching, however, thanks to the conservationists, the Chinese orangutans are a protected species and are making a comeback.
Category:Animals
Category:Species
Category:SciiFii