Storm-Triggered Landslides May Have Killed 58 Rare Orangutans, and Scientists Point to 'Climate Crisis'

Storm-triggered landslides may have killed 58 rare orangutans, and scientists point to 'climate crisis'

Researchers say storm damage in Indonesia may have killed 58 Tapanuli orangutans, about 7% of the species worldwide. According to Mongabay, the event could be an early documented example of rising global temperatures creating an immediate threat to an entire species' survival. The same steep region, prone to floods and landslides, is also home to nearby communities that become more vulnerable when extreme rainfall overwhelms even healthy forests…

Deadly Sumatra floods wipe out 7% of world’s rarest great ape population

Deadly floods and landslides triggered by Cyclone Senyar last November have wiped out at least 7% of the total population of the Tapanuli orangutan, a critically endangered species found only in the forests of northern Sumatra, according to a new report published this month. The joint study, produced by the Brunei-based organisation Borneo Futures, the initiative World Weather Attribution, and Liverpool John Moores University, found that at leas…