Siamang Gibbon dies in a hit and run in Genting Highlands

Recently a viral video of a Siamang  Gibbon and a cub has been making rounds on TikTok. The video shows two gibbons, namely Siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus), an endangered ape (listed on the IUCN red list), with one adult lying dead on the ground and one infant (estimated age approximately one year) clinging to the adult’s body. The gibbon was killed in a hit-and-run indicent in Genting Highlands.

@sivam043♬ original sound – tp360

It’s extremely heart-wrenching when listening to the cries of the baby gibbon when passersby were trying to separate it from its dead parent. This also comes as a cruel reminder that even animals have emotions.

Gibbons have been used as tourist traps in Genting Highlands

According to the Gibbon Conservation Society (GCS), for many years, these gibbons have been employed as a tourist attraction, where they have been fostered to become extremely familiar with roads and cars, as well as unduly trusting of humans. Such activities have unintentionally resulted in this heinous death.

Since the incident, GCS contacted Jabatan Perhilitan Pahang, who stated that the baby Siamang was later returned to its mother and that it was the baby’s father was seen dead in the video. While it is reassuring that the infant has been returned safely to a parent, this story highlights difficulties with human-animal conflict, wildlife feeding, and exploitative tourism.

While most primates rely primarily on their mothers during childhood, gibbons rely equally on both parents, who play vital and distinct roles in rearing a young gibbon. Male gibbons educate their young how to protect themselves, their territory, and how to survive. The father would also defend the family from harm. This fractured family’s future is unlikely to be bright. – Mariani ‘Bam’ Ramli, President of  Gibbon Conservation Society.

Gibbons are the world’s only singing non-human apes, and they are threatened by deforestation, illegal wildlife trade, and human-animal conflicts like this. Siamangs are the largest gibbon species and one of five gibbon species in Malaysia. Gibbon families are extremely similar to human families in that they live in nuclear family groups with only parents and children. Siamangs weigh 10.7-11.9 kg and stand 74-89 cm tall. Their arms are much longer than their legs. Young Siamang gibbons rely on their parents until they are 10 years old.