A thunderous boom and a group of people run out of the chimpanzee viewing cave at Zoo Miami. The thud was so strong I felt it in my chest. The cause was a male chimpanzee posturing and scaring the viewing crowd. I ran towards the cave to get a look, but he had taken off to cause some additional commotion in another area of his enclosure. With the male gone, a female quietly appropriated his corner by the glass to keep out of the hot sun. She is seen in this photograph resembling the thinker and seemingly contemplating life.
There are two species, the common chimpanzee and the bonobos which are the closest relatives to humans sharing 99% of our DNA. These intelligent apes can use tools, cooperate in hunting, are capable of deception, manipulation, use symbols, understand some human language, plan future events and display behaviors associated with emotions.
Conservation Status: Endangered
Habitat: Moist and dry forests of the Congo Basin
Threats: Poaching for bushmeat, diseases such as Ebola, illegal wildlife trade and habitat loss. Chimpanzees have already disappeared completely from four African countries.
Watch a chimpanzee use a tool to take down a drone and take a selfie: https://youtu.be/DDbyl_Q5-oE
Some more chimp antics from the Jane Goodall Institute: https://vimeo.com/janegoodallinst/chimp-outtakes
Sources:
http://news.sciencemag.org/plants-animals/2012/06/bonobos-join-chimps-closest-human-relatives
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chimpanzee
https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/chimpanzee
http://www.janegoodall.org/chimpanzees/fast-facts
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