How does hunting contribute to the decline of Bornean orangutans?

Hunting is a significant driver of the decline of the Bornean orangutan, contributing to a population decrease of more than 50 percent since the early 1970s. Between 1971 and 2011, it is estimated that hunters killed between 2,000 and 3,000 individuals annually.12

This hunting pressure, often categorized as poaching, acts in tandem with habitat loss—primarily driven by the conversion of tropical forests for oil palm cultivation—to threaten the species with potential extinction by the middle of the 21st century. Because orangutans have a very slow reproductive rate, with females giving birth only once every eight years on average, the removal of even a small number of individuals through hunting can have a catastrophic impact on the ability of a population to sustain itself.213

Ethically, the protection of such critically endangered species is a moral imperative, as their survival is essential to the integrity of their ecosystems and the preservation of global biodiversity.24