Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelli)

Hominoidea is a superfamily of primates. Members of this superfamily are called hominoids or apes, and include gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans, gibbons, bonobos, and humans. Hominoidea is one of the six major groups in the order Primates. The majority are found in forests in Southeastern Asia and Equatorial Africa, with the exception of humans, which have spread worldwide to every biome. They range in size from some gibbon species in the genus Nomascus, at 40 cm (16 in), to the eastern gorilla, at 196 cm (77 in), not including limbs. Hominoids primarily eat fruit, leaves, flowers, and insects, though humans are omnivorous. Most hominoids do not have population estimates, but the ones that do range from 10 mature individuals to 47,000, in addition to over 8 billion humans. Nearly every species is categorized as endangered or critically endangered; aside from humans, the only exception is the eastern hoolock gibbon, classified as vulnerable.

The twenty-eight extant species of Hominoidea are divided into two families: Hominidae, containing five gorilla, chimpanzee, and human species divided into three genera in the subfamily Homininae, and three orangutan species in a single genus in the subfamily Ponginae; and Hylobatidae, containing twenty gibbon species divided into four genera. Dozens of extinct prehistoric hominoid species have been discovered, though due to ongoing research and discoveries the exact number and categorization is not fixed.^[1]

Conventions

Conservation status codes listed follow the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Range maps are provided wherever possible; if a range map is not available, a description of the hominoid's range is provided. Ranges are based on the IUCN Red List for that species unless otherwise noted. All extinct genera, species, or subspecies listed alongside extant species went extinct after 1500 CE, and are indicated by a dagger symbol "†".

Classification

Distribution of hominid species

Distribution of hylobatid species

The superfamily Hominoidea consists of two extant families: Hominidae and Hylobatidae. Hominidae is divided into two subfamilies: Homininae, containing five species divided between three genera, and Ponginae, containing three species in a single genus. Hylobatidae contains twenty species in four genera.

Family Hominidae

• Subfamily Homininae
  • Genus Gorilla (gorillas): two species
  • Genus Homo (human): one species
  • Genus Pan (chimpanzees): two species
• Subfamily Ponginae
  • Genus Pongo (orangutans): three species

Family Hylobatidae

• Genus Hoolock (hoolock gibbons): three species
• Genus Hylobates (dwarf gibbons): eight species
• Genus Nomascus (crested gibbons): seven species
• Genus Symphalangus (siamang): one species

Hominoids

The following classification is based on the taxonomy described by the reference work Mammal Species of the World (2005), with augmentation by generally accepted proposals made since using molecular phylogenetic analysis, as supported by both the IUCN and the American Society of Mammalogists.^[3]

Family Hominidae

Main article: Hominidae

Subfamily Homininae

Main article: Homininae

Genus Gorilla – Geoffroy, 1852 – two species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Eastern gorilla	G. beringei Matschie, 1903 Two subspecies G. b. beringei (Mountain gorilla) G. b. graueri (Eastern lowland gorilla)	Central Africa	Size: 160–196 cm (63–77 in) long[4] Habitat: Forest[5] Diet: Roots, leaves, stems, and pith, as well as bark, wood, flowers, fruit, fungi, galls, invertebrates, and gorilla dung[6]	CR  2,600 [5]
Western gorilla	G. gorilla (Savage, 1847) Two subspecies G. g. diehli (Cross River gorilla) G. g. gorilla (Western lowland gorilla)	Western Africa	Size: 130–185 cm (51–73 in) long[7] Habitat: Forest[8] Diet: Leaves, berries, ferns, and fibrous bark[9]	CR  Unknown [8]

Genus Homo – Linnaeus, 1758 – one species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Human	H. sapiens Linnaeus, 1758	Worldwide (population density shown)	Size: 140–210 cm (55–83 in) long, including legs[10] Habitat: Varied Diet: Omnivorous	NE  8 billion

Genus Pan – Oken, 1816 – two species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Bonobo	P. paniscus Schwarz, 1929	Central Africa	Size: 70–83 cm (28–33 in) long[11] Habitat: Forest[12] Diet: Fruits and seeds, as well as leaves, stems, shoots, pith, bark, flowers, truffles, fungus, and honey[12]	EN  Unknown [12]
Chimpanzee	P. troglodytes (Blumenbach, 1775) Four subspecies P. t. ellioti (Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee) P. t. schweinfurthii (Eastern chimpanzee) P. t. troglodytes (Central chimpanzee) P. t. verus (Western chimpanzee)	Central and western Africa	Size: 63–90 cm (25–35 in) long[13] Habitat: Forest and savanna[14] Diet: Fruit, leaves, stems, buds, bark, pith, seeds, and resins, as well as insects, small vertebrates, and eggs[15]	EN  Unknown [14]

Subfamily Ponginae

Main article: Ponginae

Genus Pongo – Lacépède, 1799 – three species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Bornean orangutan	P. pygmaeus (Linnaeus, 1760) Three subspecies P. p. morio (Northeast Bornean orangutan) P. p. pygmaeus (Northwest Bornean orangutan) P. p. wurmbii (Central Bornean orangutan)	Borneo	Size: 78–97 cm (31–38 in) long[16] Habitat: Forest[17] Diet: Fruit, leaves, shoots, as well as insects, sap, vines, spider webs, bird eggs, fungi, flowers, bark, and soil[18]	CR  Unknown [17]
Sumatran orangutan	P. abelii Lesson, 1827	Northern island of Sumatra in Indonesia	Size: 78–97 cm (31–38 in) long[16] Habitat: Forest[19] Diet: Fruit, leaves, flowers, and bark, as well as insects and eggs[20]	CR  Unknown [19]
Tapanuli orangutan	P. tapanuliensis Nurcahyo, Meijaard, Nowak, Fredriksson, Groves, 2017	South Tapanuli in Sumatra	Size: 78–97 cm (31–38 in) long[16][21] Habitat: Forest[22] Diet: Fruit and leaves[23]	CR  Unknown [22]

Family Hylobatidae

Main article: Hylobatidae

Genus Hoolock – Mootnick, Groves, 2005 – three species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Eastern hoolock gibbon	H. leuconedys (Groves, 1967)	Southern Asia	Size: About 55 cm (22 in) long[24] Habitat: Forest[25] Diet: Fruit, as well as leaves and shoots[25]	VU  Unknown [25]
Skywalker hoolock gibbon	H. tianxing Fan, 2017	Southern Asia	Size: About 81 cm (32 in) long[26] Habitat: Forest[27] Diet: Fruit and leaves, as well as invertebrates, bird chicks, and flowers[27]	EN  Unknown [27]
Western hoolock gibbon	H. hoolock (Harlan, 1834)	Southern Asia	Size: 45–65 cm (18–26 in) long[28] Habitat: Forest[29] Diet: Fruit and leaves[29]	EN  Unknown [29]

Genus Hylobates – Illiger, 1811 – eight species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Agile gibbon	H. agilis F. Cuvier, 1821	Southeastern Asia	Size: 45–65 cm (18–26 in) long[30] Habitat: Forest[31] Diet: Fruit, as well as flowers, leaves, and insects[31]	EN  Unknown [31]
Bornean white-bearded gibbon	H. albibarbis Lyon, 1911	Southern Borneo	Size: 45–65 cm (18–26 in) long[30][32] Habitat: Forest[33] Diet: Fruit, as well as leaves, insects, and flowers[33]	EN  Unknown [33]
Eastern grey gibbon	H. funereus I. Geoffroy, 1850	Northern Borneo (in yellow)	Size: 47–49 cm (19–19 in) long[34] Habitat: Forest[35] Diet: Fruit, as well as leaves, flowers, and insects[34]	EN  Unknown [35]
Kloss's gibbon	H. klossii (Miller, 1903)	Mentawai Islands, west of Sumatra	Size: 44–64 cm (17–25 in) long[36] Habitat: Forest[37] Diet: Fruit, as well as flowers, eggs, small vertebrates, and insects[36]	EN  Unknown [37]
Lar gibbon	H. lar (Linnaeus, 1771) Five subspecies H. l. carpenteri (Carpenter's lar gibbon) H. l. entelloides (Central lar gibbon) H. l. lar (Malaysian lar gibbon) H. l. vestitus (Sumatran lar gibbon) H. l. yunnanensis (Yunnan lar gibbon)	Southeastern Asia	Size: 45–60 cm (18–24 in) long[30] Habitat: Forest[38] Diet: Fruit, as well as leafy plants, flowers, and insects[39]	EN  Unknown [38]
Müller's gibbon	H. muelleri Martin, 1841	Southeastern Asia	Size: 44–64 cm (17–25 in) long[40] Habitat: Forest[41] Diet: Fruit, as well as leaves[40]	EN  Unknown [41]
Pileated gibbon	H. pileatus (Gray, 1861)	Southeastern Asia	Size: 45–64 cm (18–25 in) long[42] Habitat: Forest[43] Diet: Fruit, as well as leaves, shoots, insects, eggs, and small vertebrates[42]	EN  47,000 [43]
Silvery gibbon	H. moloch (Audebert, 1798)	Island of Java in Indonesia	Size: 42–64 cm (17–25 in) long[44] Habitat: Forest[45] Diet: Fruit and leaves, as well as flowers and insects[45]	EN  Unknown [45]
Western grey gibbon	H. abbotti Kloss, 1929	Western Borneo	Size: 42–64 cm (17–25 in) long[44] Habitat: Forest[46] Diet: Leaves, fruit, flowers, and insects[46]	EN  30,000–45,000 [46]

Genus Nomascus – Miller, 1933 – seven species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Black crested gibbon	N. concolor (Harlan, 1826) Four subspecies N. c. concolor (Tonkin black crested gibbon) N. c. furvogaster (West Yunnan black crested gibbon) N. c. jingdongensis (Central Yunnan black crested gibbon) N. c. lu (Central Yunnan black crested gibbon)	Southeastern Asia	Size: 43–54 cm (17–21 in) long[47] Habitat: Forest[48] Diet: Leaves and fruit, as well as buds, flowers, insects, eggs, and small vertebrates[47]	CR  1,500 [48]
Eastern black crested gibbon	N. nasutus (Künckel d'Herculais, 1884)	Southeastern Asia	Size: 40–60 cm (16–24 in) long[49] Habitat: Forest[50] Diet: Fruit, leaves, and buds, as well as animals, flowers, and plant parts[50]	CR  45 [50]
Hainan black crested gibbon	N. hainanus (Thomas, 1892)	Island of Hainan in China	Size: 40–60 cm (16–24 in) long[49] Habitat: Forest[51] Diet: Fruit[51]	CR  10 [51]
Northern buffed-cheeked gibbon	N. annamensis Thinh, 2010	Southeastern Asia	Size: 40–60 cm (16–24 in) long[49] Habitat: Forest[52] Diet: Fruit, leaves, shoots, and flowers, as well as small mammals and lizards[52]	EN  Unknown [52]
Northern white-cheeked gibbon	N. leucogenys (Ogilby, 1840)	Southeastern Asia	Size: 45–63 cm (18–25 in) long[53] Habitat: Forest[54] Diet: Fruit, as well as leaves, flowers, and insects[53]	CR  Unknown [54]
Southern white-cheeked gibbon	N. siki (Delacour, 1951)	Southeastern Asia	Size: 47–64 cm (19–25 in) long[55] Habitat: Forest[56] Diet: Fruit[56]	CR  600 [56]
Yellow-cheeked gibbon	N. gabriellae (Thomas, 1909)	Southeastern Asia	Size: 45–50 cm (18–20 in) long[57] Habitat: Forest[58] Diet: Fruit, leaves, and flowers[58]	EN  Unknown [58]

Genus Symphalangus – Gloger, 1841 – one species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Siamang	S. syndactylus (Raffles, 1821)	Southeastern Asia	Size: 71–90 cm (28–35 in) long[59] Habitat: Forest[60] Diet: Fruit and leaves, as well as flowers and insects[60]	EN  Unknown [60]

References

Sources