Siamang

Siamang

Conservation status: Lower risk (nt)

Scientific classification

<tr valign=top><td>Kingdom:</td><td>Animalia
</td></tr><tr valign=top><td>Phylum:</td><td>Chordata
</td></tr><tr valign=top><td>Class:</td><td>Mammalia
</td></tr><tr valign=top><td>Order:</td><td>Primates
</td></tr><tr valign=top><td>Family:</td><td>Hylobatidae
</td></tr><tr valign=top><td>Genus:</td><td>Symphalangus
Gloger, 1841</td></tr><tr valign=top><td>Species:</td><td>S. syndactylus
</td></tr>

Binomial name

</th></tr><tr style="text-align:center;"><td>Symphalangus syndactylus
(Raffles, 1821)</td></tr>

The Siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus) is an arboreal black furred gibbon native to the forests of Malaysia and Sumatra. The largest of the lesser apes, the siamang can be twice the size of other gibbons, reaching 1 m in height, and weighing up to 23 kg. The Siamang is the only species in the genus Symphalangus.

The Siamang is distinctive for two reasons. The first is the fact that two fingers on each hand are fused together (hence the name "syndactylus"). The second is the large "gular sac", a throat pouch which can be inflated to the size of the head, allowing siamangs to make loud resonating calls, or songs.

There are two subspecies of Siamangs: the Sumatran Siamang (S. s. syndactylus) and the Malaysian Siamang (S. s. continentis, in peninsular Malaysia). The Siamang is the only species of gibbons which occurs sympatrically with other gibbons (Agile Gibbons and Lar Gibbons) throughout its entire range.

Siamangs can live up to 20 years in captivity.