Among Orangutans: Red Apes and the Rise of Human Culture

The local people know him as the "Man of the Forest," who refused to speak for fear of being put to work. And indeed the bear-like Sumatran orangutan, with his moon face, lanky arms, and shaggy red hair, does seem uncannily human; one of our closest relatives in the animal kingdom, the orangutan may have much to tell us about the origins of human intelligence, technology, and culture. In this book one of the world's leading experts on Sumatran orangutans, working in collaboration with nature photographer Perry van Duijnhoven, takes us deep into the disappearing world of these captivating primates.

In a narrative that is part adventure, part field journal, part call to conscience, Carel van Schaik introduces us to the colorful characters and complex lives of the orangutans who inhabit the vanishing forests of Sumatra. In compelling words and pictures, we come to know the personalities and temperaments of our primate cousins as they go about their days: building double-decker tree nests; using leaves as napkins, gloves, rain hats, and blankets, and sticks as backscratchers and probes; nurturing their infants longer and more intensely than any other nonhuman mammal. Here are the births and deaths, the first use of a tool, the defeat of a rival, the gradual loss of influence that, while fascinating to observe, may also help us to reconstruct human evolution.

Customer Reviews:

A Barrel of Pongos

By Giordano Bruno - May 23, 2008

Homo sylvestris (man of the forest) is now placed cladistically at a farther remove from Homo sapiens than chimpanzees or gorillas, having been genetically isolated for 6 to 7 million years, and geographically isolated in two populations for perhaps 150,000 years. Author Carel van Schaik considers these two populations - on Sumatra and on Borneo - as distinct species, and concentrates on the fascinating life-styles of the Sumatran Pongo abelii. The text is based on patient and sometimes perilous field observation of the orangutans in the environment of swampy forest to which they are supremely adapted. Fossils are mentioned, but this is not a book of archaelogy. Thus it's enlivened by stunning photos of living pongids at home, climbing, eating, playing and seemingly having fun, and... using tools! building structures! activities only barely credited to chimps and previously assumed to be human-only behavior.

Is this a book about human evolution, as the subtitle suggests... read more

A wonderful story

By Enjolras - March 25, 2006

This book flows quite beautifully, from the general biology of orangutans and their habitat to theories about the development of their culture. Van Schiak does not try to anthropomorphize the apes, but instead takes a reasoned view of their lives and shows that they do in fact have certain varying traditions and methods of tool use. Through it all, van Schiak explains his methodology and reasoning quite clearly.

It really is truly amazing how similar we are to the apes. Even one difference van Schiak points out, the presence of infanticide in Orangutan groups, bears an uncanny resemblance to our own Shakespearean past (Hamlet, for one). Yet, at the end, van Schiak is sure to point out those traits which are uniquely human.

A great read for ape-lovers or culture behaviorists.

Out of isolation

By Stephen A. Haines - April 11, 2006

About 14 million years ago, an African ape with a penchant for solitude strolled eastwards. Her descendents became the "red apes" of Borneo and Sumatra - the orang utan. Unlike their African cousins, orang utans don't regularly form troops or "gangs". As isolated forest wanderers, they are immensely difficult to study, especially compared to mountain gorillas or chimpanzees. Their isolation has led to more myths than facts about them - until Carel Van Schaik began reporting his findings. This book summarises his work in a stunning presentation of narrative and images. More importantly, it overturns many false ideas of how orang utans fit in the primate lineage. Our lineage.

Spending seven years in a swampy jungle brought van Schaik into intimate contact with orang utans. He discovered novel behaviour and unexpected talents. Among the most surprising revelations was the use of tools. Orang utans are at least as adept as gorillas with tools. There is clear planning... read more