Bornean orangutan
Scientific name: Pongo pygmaeus (Linnaeus, 1760)
Overview
The Bornean orangutan is an orangutan species endemic to the island of Borneo. It belongs to the only genus of great apes native to Asia and is the largest of the three Pongo species. It has a coarse, reddish coat and up to 1.5 m long arms. It is sexually dimorphic — males are larger than females and develop large cheek pads (flanges).
From the Wikipedia article “Bornean orangutan”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Critically endangered on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022.2.
Size and lifespan
| Measurement | Value |
|---|---|
| Birth weight | 1.73 kg |
Source: Wikidata, citing “Pongo pygmaeus”, scientific article published on 19 January 1971.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: Southern Asia.
Common names
Also known in English as orangutan.
Names in other languages (12)
- Arabic
- إنسان الغاب البورنيوي
- Bengali
- বোর্নিওবাসী বনমানুষ
- Chinese
- 婆羅洲猩猩
- French
- Orang-outan de Bornéo
- German
- Borneo-Orang-Utan
- Indonesian
- Orangutan kalimantan
- Japanese
- ボルネオオランウータン
- Persian
- اورانگوتان بورنئویی
- Portuguese
- Orangotango-de-bornéu
- Russian
- Борнейский орангутан
- Spanish
- Orangután de Borneo
- Turkish
- Bornea orangutanı
Related animals
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, measurements, names in other languages. Q599672, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “Bornean orangutan”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — Ltshears, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
- Range map — SyntaxTerror, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026