About Chimpanzees
The chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) are apes found in Africa. Chimpanzees share more than 98 percent of our genetic blueprint. They live in rainforests, woodlands, bamboo forests, dry savannah and grasslands. Chimps have long arms, short legs and no tail. They have opposable thumbs and toes that helps them grasp objects easily. Chimps are very intelligent and can be trained to perform a variety of tasks. Unfortunately, the number of chimps in the wild is decreasing. Habitat destruction is one of the greatest threat of the chimpanzee.
Interesting Facts about Chimpanzees
- Chimpanzees are one of four types of great apes, which also include gorillas, bonobos and orangutans.
- Chimpanzees are our closest relatives, with only 1.6% of our genetic material differing between humans and chimps.
- Chimpanzees are among the noisiest of all wild animals
- A serious threat to Chimpanzees is the loss of the African forest, where they live in the wild.
- A baby chimp stays nearby its mother until it is 5-10 years old.
- Male chimpanzees seldom leave the community into which they were born. Females frequently change communities during adolescence.
- Chimps have been known to live 60 years in captivity, but they rarely live past 50 in the wild.
- Chimpanzees are omnivores, which means that they eat both plants and meat, although meat is usually eaten on rare occasions.
- Male chimpanzees reach maturity at about 7-8 years, while females reach maturity at age 6-10.
- Chimpanzees use sticks to extract termites to eat or crumple up leaves to soak up water to drink. These are examples of tool use.
- Chimpanzees are very social animals.
Behavior
Chimpanzees are very social primates. They live in communities called troops, of 30 to 80 individuals. Chimps use vocalizations, facial expressions, body language, and even kisses to communicate with members of their group. Chimps are both arboreal and terrestrial. They usually sleep in the trees, in nests. Chimpanzees are omnivores. They eat fruits, nuts, seeds, insects, and sometimes meat.
Reproduction
Maturity is reached after 8 to 10 years. The gestation period is about 230-240 days. A single young is born, but sometimes twins do occur. Young chimps stay with their mother for up to 3 years.