Cyclone Senyar Poses Extinction-Level Threat to Tapanuli Orangutans

On 12^th December 2025, scientists warned that Cyclone Senyar may have caused catastrophic losses to the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan, raising fears of an extinction-level threat following massive flooding and landslides in northern Sumatra.

• The Tapanuli orangutan is a critically endangered great ape, formally recognised as a distinct species in 2017.
• With an estimated fewer than 800 individuals remaining in the wild, it is regarded as the rarest great ape on the planet.
• Occurs exclusively within the Batang Toru Ecosystem across three Tapanuli districts in North Sumatra, Indonesia.
• Confined to highly fragmented upland and sub-montane rainforests south of Lake Toba, now occupying less than ....