Lar gibbon Hylobates lar © Martin Harvey / WWF
Family Hylobatidae | Gibbons Gibbons are widely distributed in the rainforests of Southeast Asia. Gibbons have a throat sac used to amplify their calls, allowing the sound to travel over great distances. The most characteristic call of the gibbon is known as the “great call”, used to advertise territories. The great call is most often led by a female, who is then joined by a male. They live in pairs or family groups composed of an adult male and female and their offspring. They move among the branches in the upper to mid canopies of forests with great speed and agility, spanning gaps between trees as wide as 15 metres and reaching speeds up to 55km per hour. Species in this family are sometimes hunted for meat but more often to harvest their body parts for use in traditional medicine. Loss of tree canopy cover due to deforestation for agriculture and plantation development is the biggest threat facing these entirely arboreal species. 46
