Orangutans
By merely looking at certain primates, one can see the resemblance between them and humans. They have certain physical characteristics that are similar to those of humans. One type of these certain primates is the orangutan. Up until recently, I had never given a second thought as to what, if any, kinds of similarities orangutans had to humans not only in terms of physical traits, but also in terms of behavior. My trip to the zoo gave some insight on this. At first, I thought I would either research gorillas or orangutans. It was between the two, but in the end I decided to go for the orangutans because they looked more interesting. By studying orangutans, I thought I would find that they were a lot like humans when it came to their social behavior. I thought that they would have a lot of interaction with one another. The results of my observations were very surprising. The orangutan originally came from Asia, now they live in the tropical rain forests in Borneo and Sumatra. They live in trees 90% of the time. (Maynard: 14) They travel tree to tree by swinging and grasping a hold of the next tree with their feet or hands before letting go of the tree. Occasionally they do come down to the ground when they are una
I never would have guessed that orangutans are not sociable animals. I figured that they were like other certain primates that are quite sociable and have many interactions. I also thought that maybe orangutans weren't sociable due to that facts that when they live in the rain forests, it may be hard for them to even find another orangutan to interact with. But observing three orangutans at the Sacramento Zoo proved my theory wrong. Orangutans are omnivores and eat both plants and meat. Their diet consists of about 70% of fruit; they eat mainly figs which mature at different times of the year. They also eat bark, flowers and insects. When there is no fruit available, orangutans munch on leaves and tree bark. Orangutans drink water from holes in trees. They form their hands into the shape of a cup in order to do this. (Redmond: 40, 41)
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Approximate Word count = 2020
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)
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