Siamang at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium Asian Forest Sanctuary

Did you know?

Symphalangus syndactylus

The arms of a siamang (say it SIGH-amang) are longer than its legs – up to a five-foot span. Imagine if your arms could reach down to the ground while you were standing up! It makes for good swinging…

Discover Siamangs

Habitat

Wild and Zoo

Siamangs are primates that live in the treetops of tropical rainforests in Sumatra and on the Malay Peninsula. Find ours in the Asian Forest Sanctuary

Asian Forest Sanctuary

Meet the Keeper

(Ask primate questions.)

Keepers in our Asian Forest Sanctuary give a chat daily. Ask questions about each animal, and find out how our zoo team feeds and cares for them.

Zookeeper Life: Sam

Daily Presentations

Meet our siamang

Dudlee

Eating (and predators!)	Siamangs eat leaves, fruit, flowers, birds eggs and insects – things that are abundant in rainforests.	Their main predators are humans and leopards.
Cling to mama (Then it's Dad's turn.)	After a 7-month pregnancy, females give birth to a single baby, who clings to its mother’s belly for the first 3-4 months.	When it’s around one year old, the father takes over daily care.
Sleeping in trees and making noise.	Siamangs live in family units. They wake at sunrise and search for food all day before returning to sleep in their tree.	To defend their territory, mated pairs create unique duets of booms, barks and hoots. Listen out for ours in the early morning!

Protecting Siamangs

Don’t cut down my trees.

THE THREAT: Endangered in the wild, siamangs are losing their habitat to human logging and agriculture. Right now less than 5 per cent of that habitat is protected.

TAKE ACTION: Much of southeast Asia’s rainforest destruction is to make room for palm oil plantations. Check products you use for sustainable palm oil, and encourage companies to make the switch.

Take Action

Asian forest Stories

YEAR OF THE TIGER

Lunar New Year is on February 1. According to the Chinese Zodiac, 2022 is the Year of the Tiger. If you were born in 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998 … Continued