# What Do White-handed Gibbons Eat?

> What white-handed gibbons eat: Frugivore — ripe fruit, leaves, flowers, and insects, foraging style, and seasonal shifts in Tropical rainforests of Thailand, Malaysia, and Sumatra.

- **Species:** White-handed Gibbon (*Hylobates lar*)
- **Conservation status:** Endangered
- **Diet:** Frugivore — ripe fruit, leaves, flowers, and insects
- **Habitat:** Tropical rainforests of Thailand, Malaysia, and Sumatra
- **Lifespan:** 25–30 years in the wild
- **Top speed:** Up to 56 km/h (35 mph) when brachiating
- **Canonical HTML:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/gibbon/what-do-gibbon-eat/
- **Parent profile:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/gibbon/
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-16

## Quick answer

The white-handed gibbon (Hylobates lar) is a small, tailless ape of the rainforest canopy in Thailand, Malaysia, and Sumatra. Weighing only 5 to 7 kg, it swings through the treetops by its long arms and can move at up to 56 km/h. Pairs are famous for their loud, musical duets and can live 25 to 30 years in the wild. The species is listed as Endangered.

## Who should skip this page

Skip this if you need a captive feeding plan from a veterinarian. This page is wild diet, not a pet-care sheet.

## Life in the canopy

White-handed gibbons spend almost their entire lives high in the rainforest canopy, rarely coming down to the ground. Their long arms, hook-like hands, and lightweight bodies of just 5 to 7 kg make them supremely agile among the branches. They are not monkeys but small apes, lacking a tail and instead relying on balance and their powerful shoulders to move. Their fur ranges from cream to dark brown, but the hands and feet are always pale, giving the species its name.

## Help protect the White-handed Gibbon

The white-handed gibbon is listed as Endangered, with habitat loss the leading threat to its future.

[Donate to protect habitat](https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/appeals/habitats/)

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Source: Global Animal Guide (https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/gibbon/what-do-gibbon-eat/). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for non-commercial reuse with attribution.