Chimpanzee
Pan troglodytes
Endangered
IUCN Red List status · Population decreasing as of 2023 · Est. 170,000 individuals
About the Chimpanzee
Our closest living relative sharing 98.7% of our DNA, chimpanzees are highly intelligent tool-users, social learners, and even wagers of complex warfare. They are critically endangered by deforestation, bushmeat hunting, and disease, including outbreaks of Ebola virus which have killed entire communities.
Chimpanzees have rich cultures — different chimp communities across Africa have developed unique tool-use traditions, social practices, and even "languages" of calls. They grieve their dead, feel empathy, and form lifelong friendships. Yet in just the past century, their population has plummeted from over 1 million to under 170,000 individuals.
Region
West Africa
Population
170,000
Trend
Data Year
2023
Key Facts
Threats to Survival
Bushmeat trade
Chimpanzees are hunted for food across Central and West Africa, with infants captured for the illegal pet trade.
Deforestation
Industrial logging, palm oil, and cocoa farming destroy and fragment chimpanzee habitat.
Disease
Ebola outbreaks and respiratory diseases transmitted from humans have devastated entire chimp populations.
Ecosystem Role
Tool innovators
Chimps use stone tools to crack nuts, sticks to fish termites, and leaves as sponges — traditions passed between generations like human culture.
Seed dispersers
Chimps disperse seeds of over 200 plant species, making them irreplaceable architects of tropical forest structure.
Habitat Types
Found In
Why Africa's Wildlife Matters
Africa's megafauna are not just iconic — they are ecosystem engineers. The loss of a single keystone species can trigger cascading collapses across entire biomes. Elephants create waterholes, lions regulate prey, and predators maintain the biodiversity that keeps Africa's grasslands and forests functioning.
20%
of Earth's bird species in Africa
25%
of mammals found in Africa
3,000+
endemic plant species at risk
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Quick Stats