Link to bioRxiv paper: http://biorxiv.org/cgi/content/short/2020.08.11.246058v1?rss=1 Authors: Meijaard, E., Ni'matullah, S., Dennis, R., Hadisiswoyo, P., Sherman, J., O., O., Wich, S. A. Abstract: The Tapanuli orangutan ( Pongo tapanuliensis ) is the most threatened great ape species in the world. It is restricted to an area of about 1,000 km 2 of mostly hill forest where fewer than 800 animals survive in three declining subpopulations. Through a historical ecology approach involving analysis of colonial-era and other literature, we demonstrate that historically the Tapanuli orangutan lived in a much larger area, and across a much wider range of habitat types compared to now. Its current range is about 10-20% of the range it had some 150-200 years ago. A combination of historic fragmentation of forest habitats, mostly for small-scale agriculture, and unsustainable hunting likely drove various populations to the south, east and west of the current population to extinction prior to the industrial-scale forest conversion that started in the 1970s. Our findings indicate how sensitive orangutans are to the combined effects of habitat fragmentation and unsustainable mortality or rescue and translocation rates. Saving this species will require prevention of any further fragmentation and any killings or other removal of animals from the remaining population. Without concerted action to achieve this, the remaining populations of Tapanuli orangutan are doomed to become extinct within the foreseeable future. Copy rights belong to original authors. Visit the link for more info