Chimpanzee

Scientific Name:

Pan troglodytes . Genus name comes from Greek Mythology, named for "god of pastures," forest and flocks. Belonging to the Ape and Pongidae family.

Common Name:

Chimpanzee, Chimp

Physical Descriptors:

The male chimpanzee weighs between 135 and 150 lbs. and stands approximately four to five feet tall. The female is somewhat smaller in size. Their arms, when extended have a span half again as long as the body height. The soles of their feet are broad and toes short. Their coat is dark, and face, palms, and soles are bare. The upper jaw has sixteen teeth of which two are canine, four are incisor and the back are molars. The bottom jaw also has sixteen teeth consisting of two canine, four incisor and the back molars.

Geography:

Native to the tropical regions of West Africa from French Guiana and Western Uganda to the Congo River.

Habitat:

Rain forest and mountains, thick with leafy trees and brush. This is also known as the Parkland or Park Savanna. Big game lands of the world are here, consisting of large animals particularly, ungulates and carnivores.

Food:

Chimpanzees are diurnal and omnivorous, eating about 200 kinds of leaves and fruit; termites, ants, honey, and birds' eggs; and birds and small mammals.

Population Structure:

Chimpanzees range in group size up to 50 individuals on large home ranges, where they remain for years. As they move about, they break up into smaller bands and reform. Their groups consist of adult males, females and their young. The male chimpanzee is the most dominant.

Reproductive Strategy:

Female chimpanzees come into estrus once a month. They have a 35-day menstrual cycle and can breed at anytime of the year. The gestation period is more than seven months long, and a single offspring is produced. The baby offspring is totally dependent upon its mother up until the age of four or five. The baby chimpanzee will grasp to its mothers' chest and hold on while traveling. As it matures it will ride on its mothers' back. Life expectancy is approximately 50 years old.

Current Conditions:

The chimpanzee populations has been reduced to about 200,000 animals scattered in twenty-one nations. Only three countries - Zaire, Gabon, and Cote d' Ivoire count populations of more than 10,000 each. Trading, poaching, and disease have caused these numbers to exist. Gombe National Park in Tanzania, Africa, has become a wildlife preserve for these animals.

References

Jane Goodall, Through A Window (Houghton Mifflin, Boston, 1990) 32.

"Chimpanzees," Colliers Book Encyclopedia 1967, Volume 6, Pg. 267.

"Chimpanzees," Internet, Stephen Sedler.

"A Curious Kinship" National Geographic March, 1992, Pg. 13-22.

"Chimpanzee" Microsoft (R) Encarta, Copyright (c) 1993 Microsoft Corporation, Copyright (c) 1993 Funk & Wagnall's Corporation.

Jane Goodall Institute, GSN Home Page, Copyright 1994.

Study Series of Chimpanzees, Jane Goodall. National Geographic

1. Into To Chimpanzee Behavior

2. Study Of Chimpanzee Hierarchy And The Alpha Male

3. Feeding And Sharing

4. Infant Development

5. Tool Using

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