Protecting Great Apes and Their Habitats

Protecting Great Apes and Their Habitats : Despite the fact that humans belong to the Great Ape family, this page focuses on non-human species, their threats, and the efforts being made to preserve and protect these amazing animals. Our closest animal relatives are chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, and orangutans, all of whom display sophisticated social behaviors and great cognitive capacities. Come along as we examine their distinctive characteristics, discover more about their habitats, and consider the obstacles to their ongoing survival.

Meet the Great Apes

Chimpanzees: With almost 95% of our DNA in common, chimpanzees and humans are the closest living relatives. They have unique civilizations, intricate social structures, and high levels of intelligence.

Chimpanzees can create and use tools such as sponges formed from leaves, fishing branches to fish for algae, stone and wood tools to crack open nuts, and stick tools for extracting ants, termites, and honey. Here are a few more fascinating chimp facts:

They’re highly social, living in communities of up to 150 individuals.

Social hierarchies are present for both males and females.

Chimps have a wide range of complex expressions, postures, and vocalizations for communication.

Tactile communication, such as social grooming, occurs to reconcile conflicts, ease stress, and grow and maintain bonds between individuals.
Female chimps typically give birth to one infant.

Young chimps become independent at about six to nine years old.
Chimps inhabit rainforests, grasslands, and savannahs.

Males will assert their dominance through displays of aggression.
Chimps are omnivorous, feeding on a mixture of vegetation, bird’s eggs, insects, and small mammals.

Chimpanzees typically construct nests out of branches and leaves and sleep in the trees at night.

Chimps appear to use certain plants medicinally to cure diseases and expel intestinal parasites.

In the wild, chimps live for approximately 45 years, whereas in captivity, they live for 58 years.

There are four subspecies of chimpanzee – the western chimpanzee found in West Africa, the Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee, found only in Nigeria and Cameroon, the central chimpanzee, found in Cameroon and Congo Basin, and the eastern chimpanzee, found in Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Bonobos: Once thought to be a subspecies of chimpanzee, the bonobo monkey is still sometimes referred to as the Pygmy chimp, but differs in many ways from its great ape relative.

Sharing around 98.5% of the same DNA as humans, bonobos are the only great ape society led by females, with a sophisticated social structure that encourages cooperation and peace. Spindle neurons in the brain, which seem to be in charge of empathy, are an odd characteristic that humans and bonobos have in common. Here are a few more fascinating bonobo facts:

Bonobos can leap up to 27.5 inches in the air, higher than humans, which can jump up to 16-24 inches.

Males derive their status in the group from the status of their mothers.

Male bonobos will form a lifetime bond with their mothers and stay with her troop for life.

When male bonobos become violent or rowdy, females will form a group to control them.

There have been reports of bonobos treating parasites with a plant they don’t often consume.

A matriarchal group can consist of up to 100 members.

Being omnivores, bonobos eat a variety of foods, including fruit, plants, insects, bats, flying squirrels, and even small antelope.

When a female reaches sexual maturity, she will join another group, ensuring genetic diversity.

Bonobos engage in sexual behavior for a variety of reasons, including to form bonds, to neutralize tense situations, to express excitement, to greet one another, to encourage sharing and compassion, and obviously to produce young.

Gorillas: The eastern and western gorillas are the two primary species found in the wild. There are four subspecies of these species: the mountain and eastern lowland subspecies are found in eastern gorillas, while the Cross River and western lowland subspecies are found in western gorillas.

Eastern gorillas tend to be larger than western gorillas, which is the main distinction between them.

Cross River Gorilla: These gorillas are extremely endangered because there are only 200–300 of them left in the wild. Cross River gorillas live in the forests and rainforests of Nigeria and Cameroon.

Mountain Gorilla: The mountain gorilla’s thick fur helps it stay warm in colder climates, and it lives in forests at high elevations. They can be found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Virunga Mountains, Rwanda, and Uganda.

The most common subspecies of gorilla is the Western Lowland Gorilla, which is smaller than the others, has a brown-gray coat, a wider cranium, and smaller ears. In the forest, a family of Eastern Lowland Gorillas (Gorilla beringei graueri) is lounging. The group is hanging around Silverback, the head of the family.
Gorillas are amazing creatures that share almost 97% of our DNA, making them the most similar primates to us after chimps and bonobos.