theSIGNAL ENVIRONMENT
12 June 2026
"In nature there are neither rewards nor punishments — there are consequences."
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Environment

One Storm Killed 7% of Earth's Rarest Ape

A single climate-fuelled landslide event in Sumatra has wiped out dozens of Tapanuli orangutans, exposing how catastrophic weather can now tip a species toward extinction.

In four days during November 2025, more than 1,000 millimetres of rain fell on North Sumatra's Batang Toru forest — roughly the same volume that London receives in an entire year. When the slopes gave way, scientists estimate that 58 Tapanuli orangutans perished in the resulting landslides. Because the global population of this species, Pongo tapanuliensis, stood at only around 800 individuals, a single meteorological event had eliminated 7 percent of every living member of the world's rarest great ape. The findings, published in the journal Current Biology, make for stark reading.

The study, co-authored by Professor Serge Wich of Liverpool John Moores University and Professor Jatna Supriatna of Universitas Indonesia, combined satellite imagery with ape-density modelling to reconstruct the disaster. Their analysis revealed that approximately 8,300 hectares — nearly 12 percent — of the species' primary forest habitat in the Batang Toru West Block was destroyed by landslides. Critically, the researchers calculated that human-induced climate change had amplified the rainfall intensity by as much as 50 percent, making the event far more destructive than it would otherwise have been. The Tapanuli orangutan, which was only formally identified as a distinct species in 2017, already faced serious pressure before Cyclone Senyar arrived.

Mining licences, palm oil expansion, and a large hydropower project have each eaten into the fragmented pockets of forest that the apes depend on.

Photo: Simone Millward / Unsplash
Tapanuli orangutans cling to survival in North Sumatra's fragmented Batang Toru forest ecosystem.
Discuss
  • Why might a species with only 800 members be especially vulnerable to a single weather event?
  • The study found climate change increased rainfall intensity by up to 50%. What does that figure tell us about cause and effect?
  • Should international governments be legally required to fund biodiversity recovery in other countries? Why or why not?
  • How might the overlap of mining, palm oil, and hydropower projects make a climate disaster worse for wildlife?
  • If a temporary industrial pause is granted, what conditions would need to be met before it becomes permanent?
Science

UK Approves First Wegovy Weight-Loss Pill

Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has approved a tablet form of semaglutide — sold as Wegovy — making the UK the third country to do so, after the United States and the United Arab Emirates, and the first in Europe. Clinical trials showed that patients on the highest 25mg daily dose lost 14–17% of their body weight over 64 weeks. …
  • Will cheaper pill access widen obesity treatment gaps between rich and poor countries?
Environment

Antarctic Winter Smashes Heat Record by 2°C

On 6 June, Argentina's Esperanza base on the Antarctic Peninsula recorded 15.4°C — roughly 20°C above the seasonal norm and 2°C beyond the previous winter record, set at the same station in 1998. Ecuadorian climate scientist Raúl Cordero, based at the University of Groningen, called the anomaly "absolutely crazy." …
  • Does one record-breaking event change how urgently governments should act on climate?
"
The loss of an estimated 58 Tapanuli orangutans to a single climate-induced landslide event is a devastating demographic shock to the world's rarest great ape.
Prof Jatna Supriatna, Conservation Biologist, Universitas Indonesia
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theSIGNAL IN THE LAB
1VOCABULARY
perishedmoratorium
amplifiedanomalytrajectory
fragmentedtipping points
2GRAMMAR FOCUS
Cleft sentences — It was X that / What + clause + is/was
Cleft sentences split one idea into two clauses to emphasise a particular element. 'It was X that...' highlights a specific noun or phrase, while 'What...' fronts a clause to stress the key information.
It was · What · that · which · destroyed · caused · scientists · warned
  1. human-induced climate change ___ amplified the rainfall intensity by as much as 50 percent.
  2. the researchers found was that approximately 8,300 hectares of primary forest had been destroyed.
  3. It was a single meteorological event eliminated 7 percent of the entire Tapanuli orangutan population.
  4. concerns researchers most is that annual losses of just 1 percent can push the species toward extinction.
  5. It was Cyclone Senyar delivered losses more than seven times the critical threshold in less than a week.
  6. the Argentine base at Esperanza recorded was a temperature roughly 20°C above the seasonal norm.
  7. It was the UK became the first country in Europe to approve the tablet form of semaglutide.
3DEPENDENT PREPOSITIONS
Complete each phrase with the correct preposition. All from today's articles.
  1. The species was already ___ serious pressure before the cyclone arrived.
  2. Scientists combined satellite imagery ___ ape-density modelling.
  3. The losses set the species ___ a trajectory toward extinction.
  4. The pill is approved ___ adults with a BMI above 27.
  5. The UK is the first country in Europe to approve the drug, ___ the United States and UAE.
  6. Researchers are calling ___ a permanent moratorium on habitat-degrading activities.
4CRITICAL THINKING
The Tapanuli orangutan was only formally recognised as a distinct species in 2017 — just eight years before losing 7% of its population in a single storm. Does the recency of a species' scientific discovery affect how much political and financial attention it receives, and could that delay have already cost it critical protection time?
5CREATIVE · HEADLINES
Write a headline for the top story in each of the following styles. One line each, no explanation:
  • TABLOID NEWSPAPER
  • LUXURY MAGAZINE
  • ACTIVIST BLOG
6WRITING
A glaciologist finds rain falling on a glacier; a climate scientist calls an Antarctic reading 'absolutely crazy'; a weight-loss pill quietly receives regulatory approval. Choose one of these three moments and write a short diary entry from the perspective of the scientist or official who witnessed it first-hand.
7DEGREES OF EXTREMITY
Complete each ladder from mild to strong.
  • unusual→→
  • concerned→→
  • reduced→→
  • setback→→
  • pause→→
  • warm spell→→
  • noticeable→→
8SPEAKING
  1. What responsibilities do zoos have toward critically endangered wild species?
  2. How should scientists communicate catastrophic wildlife loss to the public?
  3. Can Antarctic temperature records alone shift national energy policies?
  4. Who should ultimately decide which patients receive subsidised weight-loss drugs?
  5. Is a 64-week clinical trial long enough to approve a daily medication?