There are only about 60,000 of these primates left (compared to 7,293,000,000 humans – and growing daily).
They are relatives of ours. We shared a common ancestor around 15 to 19 million years ago. So we’re quite close.
Despite the fact that they are more distant cousins to us than gorillas and chimpanzees the orang-utans show high intelligence. They show reciprocity, tool making, the ability to learn up to forty signs in sign-language and other complex behaviour.
It has not prevented them from being hunted, butchered and their forest homes stupidly chopped down for a quick buck.
Borneo and Indonesia are suffering wanton destruction of forest as they plant palm oil and strip the land for gold. You can’t eat gold and palm oil does not provide an ecosystem for wild-life.
We are destroying the planet.
You don’t hear about this in the news…
They won’t talk about it…
Reblogged this on Opher's World and commented:
When the trees are gone so are the animals.
Opher – here’s the main character for your book – the survivor.
Hi John – I’ve been musing for months over a novel in my head. It is about the last human being – a woman on the spacestation as a huge asteroid wipes out the Earth. She’s the survivor. How to make it into a readable novel is intriguing me.