White Handed Gibbon

Kingdom Order Family Genus Species
Animalia Primates Hylobatidae Hylobates Hylobates lar
Lar Gibbon
IUCN Status: Endangered
  • Common Names: Lar Gibbon, White-handed Gibbon
  • Taxonomy Classification Year: 1771
  • Monkey Size: 42.0 to 58.4 cm (16.54 to 22.99 in)
  • Skin Color(s): Gray, black, brown
  • Habitat: Forest, rainforest
  • Diet: Omnivorous
  • Native Countries: Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand

Lar Gibbon Distribution

Lar Gibbon Characteristics

White Handed Gibbon

The lar gibbon[1] (Hylobates lar), also called the white-handed gibbon, is another endangered mammal in the gibbon family, Hylobatidae.

  • It is among the best-known gibbons and is occasionally kept in captivity. Lar gibbons have a two-tone coat.
  • They sport a dark coat that ranges from gray to black to tan or a light coat from light cream to tan.
  • The bare face is encircled by a very short white or light-colored fur ring, and the hands and feet are white.
  • Their elongated forelimbs, feet, and hands are used in their unique brachiation adaptations, which is their primary mode of locomotion through the treetops.
  • Lar gibbons do not have a tail. Male species measure 43.5 to 58.4 cm, and female species 42 to 58 cm. Males weigh from 5 to 7.6 kg and females from 4.4 to 6.8 kg.

What Do Lar Gibbons Eat?

What Do White Handed Gibbons Eat?

Being omnivorous, the Lar Gibbon consumes these plant sources[¶]:

  • Weeping Fig (Ficus benjamina).
  • Council Tree (Ficus altissima).
  • Monkey Jack (Artocarpus rigidus).
  • Pulasan (Nephelium lappaceum)
  • Clustertree (Ficus racemosa)
  • Oriental Trema (Trema orientalis).
  • Cowa Fruit (Garcinia cowa).
  • Myrobalan (Terminalia bellirica)
  • Javanese Treebine (Cissus nodosa).
  • Brown-Woolly Fig (Ficus drupacea).
  • Argus Pheasant Tree (Dracontomelon dao).
  • Fig (Ficus)
  • Ilang-Ilang (Cananga odorata)
  • Bishopwood (Bischofia javanica)
  • Jacareuba (Calophyllum brasiliense)
  • Langsat (Lansium domesticum)

Lar Gibbon Facts

White Handed Gibbon Black

  • Home territories are defended in encounters between groups and areas where domains overlap.
  • Lar gibbons use vocalization for intra-specific communication. Normal duets are based on territoriality, signaling nearby groups that pose a threat.
  • These gibbons are auto- and allo-grooming animals. On average, they spend 10 hours per day allo-grooming.
  • Lar gibbons communicate with conceptual songs, which are combinations of solos and/or duets performed by closely related pairs.
  • Although this species is very mobile, it does not gain security during this fixed period as it may fall asleep and not wake up until a predator is upon them.

White Handed Gibbon Brown

Suggested Reading: All Apes

Cite This Page

APA7MLA8Chicago
BioExplorer.net. (2024, March 28). Lar Gibbon. Bio Explorer. https://www.bioexplorer.net/animals/mammals/apes/lar-gibbon/.
BioExplorer.net. "Lar Gibbon" Bio Explorer, 28 March 2024, https://www.bioexplorer.net/animals/mammals/apes/lar-gibbon/.
BioExplorer.net. "Lar Gibbon" Bio Explorer, March 28 2024. https://www.bioexplorer.net/animals/mammals/apes/lar-gibbon/.
Key References
  • [1]“ADW: Hylobates lar: INFORMATION”. Accessed October 23, 2022. Link.
  • [¶] – Fricke, E.C., Svenning, J. Accelerating homogenization of the global plant-frugivore meta-network. Nature 585, 74-78 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2640-y.
  • [¶] – fgabriel1891/Plant-Frugivore-Interactions-SouthEastAsiaAlbert A. Hambuckers A. Culot, L. Savini, T. Huynen, M.C. 2013. Frugivory and Seed Dispersal by Northen Pigtailed Macaques (Macaca leonina), in Thailand. Int. J. Primatology 34:170-193
  • [¶] – fgabriel1891/Plant-Frugivore-Interactions-SouthEastAsia10.3759/tropics.14.345

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here