Genomes reveal marked differences in the adaptive evolution between orangutan species

Integrating demography and adaptive evolution is pivotal to understanding the evolutionary history and conservation of great apes. However, little is known about the adaptive evolution of our closest relatives, in particular if and to what extent adaptions to environmental differences have occurred. Here, we used whole-genome sequencing data from critically endangered orangutans from North Sumatra (Pongo abelii) and Borneo (P. pygmaeus) to investigate adaptive responses of each species to environmental differences during the Pleistocene.