Chimpanzees

Sharing 98% of our genes

Common Name		Chimpanzees, common chimpanzees, robust chimpanzees; Chimpanzés (Fr); Chimpancé (Sp)
Scientific Name		Pan troglodytes
Status		IUCN: Endangered (EN A3cd)
Population		172,700 to 299,700

Background

This information has been reviewed.

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.

What is WWF doing for chimpanzees?
Urgent measures are needed to conserve remaining chimpanzee populations, especially in West Africa. Here, WWF is working to develop and strengthen protected areas in Nigeria and Côte D'Ivoire. In Central Africa, we are helping establish and manage protected forest areas in Gabon, the Central African Republic, Cameroon and several other countries.

WWF is also working towards stopping illegal killing of apes in logging concessions and looking for solutions to stop the impact of the bushmeat trade on endangered species such as apes.

» Find out about the WWF African Great Apes Programme

Physical Description and Behaviour

Chimpanzees share an estimated 98% 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.

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 more than a kilometre. 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.

There is a wide range of behavioural differences between groups from different regions, so the loss of any one group represents a loss of cultural as well as biological heritage.

Size
When erect, chimps height is about 1.0-1.7 meters. In the wild, the weight can reach 34-70 kg for males and 26-50 kg for females.

Colour
Adults have bare, black faces, and fur colour ranging from deep black to brown. Young indviduals have pinkish ears, nose, hands, and feet, and a white patch close to the rump.

Habitat

Biogeographic realm
Afrotropical

Range States
Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, United Republic of Tanzania,Togo, Uganda

Ecological Region
Guinean Moist Forests, Congolian Coastal Forests, Cameroon Highlands Forests, Northeastern Congo Basin Moist Forests, Central Congo Basin Moist Forests, Western Congo Basin Moist Forests, Albertine Rift Montane Forests

Interesting Facts

Chimpanzees have been observed to soak up water with leaves.