The Chimpanzees

chimpCommon Name: Chimpanzees, common chimpanzees, robust chimpanzees; Chimpanzés (Fr); Chimpancé (Sp)

Scientific Name: Pan troglodytes

Population: 172,700 to 299,700

Chimpanzees usually move on the ground, although during the day they mostly stay in trees, where they also sleep in makeshift nests made with vegetation. This species walks "on all four", but individuals can also walk on their legs for almost a mile. Young individuals sometimes swing from branch to branch. Chimpanzees eat with their hands, which they also use to throw objects at enemies and to create tools. Notably, they will poke a stick into a termite mound to feed on the insects, and crack nuts open.

They forage during the day for 6-8 hours, with peaks of activity in the early morning and late afternoon. Depending on the fruiting times of the plants they feed on, activities may shift seasonally.

§Chimpanzees once inhabited 25 African countries. Now, they are extinct in 3 or 4 and nearing extinction in many others. Deforestation and commercial hunting for bushmeat are taking a terrible toll on most populations.

All four subspecies of chimpanzee - eastern chimpanzee, western chimpanzee, Nigerian chimpanzee, and central chimpanzee - are Endangered, with western and Nigerian chimpanzees having the smallest populations and being the most threatened.
Physical Description and Behavior

§Chimpanzees share an estimated 98 percent of their genes with humans. Four subspecies have been identified, based on differences in appearance and distribution: western chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus), central chimpanzee (P. t. troglodytes), eastern chimpanzee (P. t. schweinfurthii), and the Nigeria chimpanzee (P. t. vellerosus).

Their characteristic shape includes arms that extend beyond the knees, opposable thumbs, and a prominent mouth. The skin on their face, ears, palms, and soles of the feet is bare, and the rest of the body is covered with brown to black hair.

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