Gibbons are rare, small, slender, long-armed, tree-dwelling apes. These very acrobatic primates live in southeast Asia. Gibbons are arboreal; they spend most of their lives in trees. Because they are so dextrous while moving in the trees, almost no predators can catch them. There are nine species of gibbons, including the siamang, which is the largest and darkest gibbon. Because of the rapid deforestation of their habitats, gibbons are an endangered species. Gibbons are very small and lightweight. They have a small, round head, very long arms (the arms are longer than the legs), and a short, slender body. Gibbons have lightweight bones. Like all apes, they have no tail. Like other apes, gibbons groom one another (they clean the hair of a family member).
Ten Facts about Gibbons
- Gibbons have senses very similar to ours, including hearing, sight (including color vision), smell, taste, and touch.
- Male gibbons are slightly larger than the females. Males are about 3 ft (90 cm) long and weigh about 15 pounds (7 kg).
- Gibbons are omnivores (eating plants and meat). They forage for food in the forests during the day, eating fruit (which constitutes about 75% of their diet), leaves, flowers, seeds, tree bark, and tender plant shoots. They also eat insects, spiders, bird eggs, and small birds.
- They live in small, stable family groups consisting of a mated pair (a male and a female who mate for life) and their immature offspring (juveniles, gibbons less than 7 years old).
- Gibbons live about 35-40 years.
- Gibbons live in old growth tropical rain forests in southeast Asia.
- The different species of gibbons live in different parts of southeast Asia, from China to the Malay peninsula, Burma, and North Sumatra.
- They are fully grown and able to reproduce at 12-13 years old. Female gibbons are pregnant for about 7 months and usually have a single baby at a time; twins are rare.
- Young gibbons stay with their mother for about 6 years. The young then venture out (or are forced out by the same-sex parent) to start a new family group of their own.
- There are estimated to be about 79,000 lakh gibbons.
