Zoo database

Gibbons

Hylobates spp.

Natural diet Gibbons

Fruits
Leaves

Gibbons are herbivorous primates that primarily eat fruits as their main source of nutrition. They also consume a variety of leaves, flowers, and young shoots. In addition, some species of gibbons opportunistically eat insects and small vertebrates, although this fraction is negligible.

Feeding advice Gibbons

Feed quantity per day

10-15% of body weight

Sample percentage calculation

If an animal weighs 6 kg and eats 10% of its body weight, it will get

6 x 0.1 = 0.6 kg feed in total per day

Feed composition

10% Concentrates
49% Leafy and cabbage vegetables
30% Other vegetables
10% Browse
1% Other

Proportions (fresh product)

0.1 x 0.6 kg = 60 g concentrates
0.49 x 0.6 kg = 294 g leafy and cabbage vegetables
0.3 x 0.6 kg = 180 g other vegetables
0.1 x 0.6 kg = 60 g browse
0.01 x 0.6 kg = 6 g other

Diet suggestions

In moderation

Nuts and seeds

Starchy/ sweet vegetables

Not recommended

Fruits

Additional advice

Divide the “Feed quantity per day” over at least three feeding moments per day.
Supplement a diverse selection of vegetables (read more about differences between vegetables).
Although present in their natural diets, feeding fruits might lead to gastro-intestinal disturbances because of the high sugar level and low fiber level in cultivated fruits compared to wild fruits (read more about nutritional values of (wild) fruits and vegetables).
Provide less palatable food in the morning, when hunger is greatest.
Feeding in bowls is not recommended.
Stimulate foraging behaviour by hiding, stacking or hanging the feed. Examples can be feeding puzzles, tubes, hanging boxes and/ or scatter feeding (read more about feed enrichment and foraging behaviour).

Common diseases

An unbalanced diet may result in one of these more commonly occurring diseases/conditions:

Metabolic bone disease
Obesity

Species within this group

White-browed gibbon
Dark-handed gibbon
Kloss’s gibbon
White-handed gibbon
Capped gibbon
Golden-cheeked gibbon
Chinese white-cheeked gibbon
Silvery Javan gibbon
Mueller’s Bornean gibbon
Black gibbon

Feed quantity per day

Sample percentage calculation

Feed composition

Proportions (fresh product)

DK Leaf-eater Basic

Primate diet GO 2 Glutenfree

DK Leaf-eater S

DK Maintenance Hi-Fibre (Primate)

Birch leaves - 10-20 kg bag

Marloes van Steendelaar

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