What do we eat.

Well today let our baby orangutan, KoKo to tell us what do they usually eat =D

R : Hi KoKo =D

KoKo : hello =3

R : Ok I am not going to have a long boring introduction here, but I heard that you are excited in sharing with us what kind of food you all eat right?

KoKo: Yayaya (nod nod nod)

R : Well let's get it start now =D So what do you all eat?

KoKo : UhUh, Fruits!!!It made up 65–90% of the our diet.Loves those which are sugary or fatty pulp especially ficus fruit.Let me show you what is it.


Tadaa~ Ficus fruit =D

R: But why not others fruit?

KoKo: Well it is because because they are easy to harvest and digest. Lowland Dipterocarp forests are preferred by us because of their plentiful fruit; the same forests provide excellent timber for the logging industry and good soil conditions for palm oil plantations.

R : Sounds interesting,tell us more about it.

KoKo: One of our family member, the Bornean orangutans consume at least 317 different food items that include: young leaves, shoots, seeds, bark, insects, honey, and bird eggs.

R: Wow, that's alot =O

KoKo : Ya. but if we do not have any choice, tree bark will be our last option. But fruits are always preferred.

R: Is there anything else that orangutans eat?

KoKo:Orangutans are thought to be the sole fruit disperser for some plant species including the climber species contains some sort of toxic.

R: Does it bring any side effect?

KoKo: It does not appear to have any effect on orangutans except for excessive saliva production.

R: I have heard that you orangutans also eat other stuffs like soil or rock. What is this for?

KoKo: There are three main reasons for this dietary behavior:

1.For the addition of minerals nutrients to their diet

2.For the ingestion of clay minerals that can absorb toxic substances
3.To treat a disorder such as diarrhea.

R :I didn't know that eating such thing helps in treating diarrhea, that is quite surprising.

KoKo :We also use plants of the genus Commelina as an anti-inflammatory balm.

R: What is Commelina?

KoKo: Commelina is a genus of approximately 170 species commonly called dayflowers due to the short lives of their flowers. This is the picture.


R: Is that all we have today?

KoKo:Yes.

R: Thanks KoKo.

KoKo: Most welcomed =D


In short:

Fruit makes up 65–90 percent of the orangutan diet. Fruits with sugary or fatty pulp are favored. Ficus fruits are commonly eaten, because they are easy to harvest and digest.

Lowland Dipterocarp forests are preferred by orangutans because of their plentiful fruit; the same forests provide excellent timber for the logging industry and good soil conditions for palm oil plantations.

Bornean orangutans consume at least 317 different food items that include: young leaves, shoots, seeds, bark, insects, honey, and bird eggs.

Orangutans are opportunistic foragers, and their diets vary markedly from month to month.Bark is consumed as a last resort in times of food scarcity; fruits are always preferred.

Orangutans are thought to be the sole fruit disperser for some plant species including the climber species Strychnos ignatii which contains the toxic alkaloid strychnine. It does not appear to have any effect on orangutans except for excessive saliva production.

Geophagy, the practice of eating soil or rock, has been observed in orangutans. There are three main reasons for this dietary behavior; for the addition of minerals nutrients to their diet; for the ingestion of clay minerals that can absorb toxic substances; or to treat a disorder such as diarrhea.Orangutans use plants of the genus Commelina as an anti-inflammatory balm.