Orangutans are very easy to spot because of the reddish-brown hair that covers their bodies, but if you want to spot them in the wild you’ll have to go a long way from home, because orangutans only live in Asia! The name “orangutan” means “man of the forest,” and this is a great description of what orangutans are.
While orangutans join chimpanzees and gorillas as the smartest of all animals (and as the closest relatives to people!), orangutans are different from these other two animals in that they mostly like to live alone. They spend most of their time looking for food, and most of this food is fruit. In fact, more than half of the orangutan’s diet is fruit! The rest of the time, they eat things like insects, leaves, and tree bark. (No wonder they usually stick with fruit!)
Scientists have found that orangutans are able to learn sign language to communicate with people, and they are usually very friendly. Orangutans might not be human, but they’re about as close as animals get!
Online lessons for kids: dinolingo.com
