Chimpanzees

Chimpanzees are the most abundant of the Great Apes, both in number and geographic range. The four subspecies have a combined population of 172,000-300,000 individuals left in the wild, which occupy a geographic range of 2.5 million km²! Even though there may not be considerable physical differences between the different subspecies, primatologists have identified the four subspecies based on genetic variance between different populations. As with any wild animal taxonomical research, future data may increase or decrease the number of formally recognized subspecies.

Within the Primatology world, much still remains unknown about Chimpanzee subspecies taxonomy and how these genetic differences manifest in broader physical and behavioral traits. Certain ‘cultural’ differences between varying groups of chimpanzees have been identified, ranging from particularities with food foraging, nest building, tool use, ‘language’ and much more.

Chimpanzees across the board face the same general threats: habitat fragmentation and destruction, poaching and the illegal pet trade, and disease transmission as they come in more frequent contact with humans. Of course, each population group has their own specific risks and perils, for example the impact of country wide unrest on the Eastern Chimpanzees living in D.R.Congo. For this reason, subspecies and regionally specific plans must be enacted in each case to ensure the survival of each population by mitigating local hazards.

Due to the increasing amount of deforestation and subsequent habitat fragmentation, it’s likely that subspecies populations will become more isolated from each other. This would lead to distinctions between these groups being magnified, making each subspecies more idiosyncratic and unique. You can read more about these distinctions with our recent blog post here.