Cyclone Senyar wiped out 7% of Tapanuli orangutans, pushing world’s rarest great ape closer to extinction
Cyclone Senyar-triggered landslides in Sumatra killed over 1,000 people and wiped out around 7% of the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan population, raising extinction concerns.
The Tapanuli orangutan was named as a distinct species in 2017 and is also critically endangered (Photo source: Wikipedia Commons)
Four days of intensive rainfall and landslides caused by Cyclone Senyar that struck Sumatra in late November 2025 killed more than a thousand people across Southeast Asia, causing a catastrophic blow to the most endangered animals, the great ape. A recent study published in Current Biology estimated that 58 Tapanuli orangutans were killed, which is roughly 7 per cent of the entire species, reported the BBC.
Why it matters
The Tapanuli orangutan was named as a distinct species in 2017 and is also critically endangered. Scientists are warning that if we lose more than 1 per cent of its population annually, the species will become extinct. Cyclone Senyar exceeded that threshold sevenfold in a single event. The death figure excludes the losses from canopy damage and reduced food availability in the aftermath.
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