Bonobo
Physical Characteristics
Like common chimpanzees, bonobos are closely related to humans, sharing 98.4% of our genetic makeup. Bonobos are distinguished from common chimps by their black faces and red lips, two or three toes are webbed, a tail tuft that persists into adulthood, and forwardly rotated female genitals. The hair on their heads is parted in the middle and long hairs sweep out from the sides of their faces, mostly covering their ears.
The bonobo's similarity to humans has long been recognized by the indigenous people who have resided with bonobos for thousands of years. Their legends tell of a bonobo saving a man's life, how the bonobos showed man what food was available in the forest and how bonobos have tried to become human.
The species is best characterized as female-centered and as one that manages and diffuses tension through sex, making agression less common than with chimpanzees. Whereas in most other species sexual behavior is a fairly distinct category, in the bonobo it is part and parcel of social relations - and not just between males and females. Bonobos engage in sex in virtually every partner combination (although such contact among close family members may be suppressed). And sexual interactions occur more often among bonobos than among other primates. Despite the frequency of sex, the bonobo's rate of reproduction in the wild is about the same as that of the chimpanzee. A female gives birth to a single infant at intervals of between five and six years.
Compared to the chimpanzee, and like humans, bonobos have relatively longer legs, shorter arms, and a narrower trunk. The skull sits upright on the spine, and they have smaller canine teeth. There is sexual dimorphism in the canines where the males' are longer than the canines of the female. They are distinguished from chimpanzees by their black face and red lips from birth, two or three webbed toes, a tail tuft that persists into adulthood and forwardly rotated female genitals. The pelage color is black and may turn more of a grayish color with age. The average body mass for an adult male bonobo is around 85 pounds, and for the female it is around 65 pounds. Compared to chimpanzees, they have slightly smaller head and ears and a smaller brow ridge. The hair on their head is parted in the middle and long hairs sweep out from the sides of their faces, mostly covering their ears.
Habitat
The bonobo is only found in the country of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) between the Congo River, the Lomami River, the Kasai/Sankuru Rivers, and the Lake Tumba/Lac Ndombe region. Bonobo range is presently calculated at no more than 350,000 square kilometers. They spend much of their time in the tall, dense tropical forest canopy, gracefully maneuvering though the trees searching for food. This area is fragmented, and it seems as if bonobo can survive in close proximity to human communities that are willing to co-habitate with this peaceful ape. Recent surveys, however, show that many areas that were known to have lots of bonobo 20 years ago now have none. This region of DRC has been politically unstable for the past 10 years, and this has attributed to bonobo decline.
Behavior
When the bonobo moves on the ground it moves quadrupedally in a special position called knuckle-walking. In a tree this species can also move in a quadrupedal manner. However, it also uses suspensory behavior in the trees to move around within a tree laden with fruit. On the ground the bonobo can also walk bipedally, and it certainly the most human like of apes in that and several other respects.
The bonobo lives in a fission-fusion society dividing and then coming back together on a regular basis. Subgroups are generally multi-male, bisexual groups with strong maternal focused subunits. Bonobo sexual behavior is flexible and they have been observed to resolve conflict through sexual contact. Communities have ranges that overlap with other groups. Males of this species will protect members of the group as well as hunt. Males typically remain in their natal group while females are the ones who will disperse. Most of the grooming bouts and instances of food sharing occur between males and females, which is different from common chimpanzees where it occurs between male. Also the female-female relationship is much stronger in this species than it is for common chimpanzees.
Although they seem very outgoing, bonobos control their emotions when expressing themselves in times of happiness, sorrow, excitement or anger. They are very animated and perform similar gestures as humans when communicating without sound. For example, they will beg by streching out an open hand or foot and will make a whimpering sound if they fail at something.
Groups of bonobos range from about 50 to 100 individuals, although they do break up during the day to form foraging parties. Each night this species makes a sleeping nest made from branches and leaves, usually nesting with the subgroup they travel with.
Females become sexually mature after about 12 years, and may give birth soon thereafter. The young are born with a black face and hands and their ears are concealed behind whiskers. Females have babies in five and six year intervals so population growth can never be rapid. The gestation period is thought to be between 220 and 230 days. Females nurse and carry their young for five years and by the age of seven, the offspring reach adolescence. Females have between five and six offspring in a lifetime. The longevity of bonobos is unknown but researchers have predicted longer than 40 in the wild and age 60 in captivity.
Diet
The bonobo primarily eats fruit, but will also consume shoots, leaves, flowers, seeds, bark, invertebrates, and small vertebrates. This species uses over 113 types of plants, but meat eating appears to be opportunistic rather than stemming from organized hunts.
Predators and Threats
Only a small portion of the bonobo's habitat is protected. Due to war in the DRC, however, even within protected areas, they are threatened by illegal activities such as hunting, and deforestation / habitat loss. Local people depend on wildlife to provide protein in their diet and logging companies supply their employees with bushmeat by employing commercial hunters. Habitat is lost to both traditional slash-and-burn agriculture as well as commercial logging operations. Although the areas where bonobos are traditionally found generally have a very low human population, people are attracted to the bonobos' forested habitat for employment as well as for asylum during the recent conflicts that have ravished the DRC. Some bonobos may also be killed annually for medicinal and magical purposes. Specific body parts of bonobos are believed to increase sexual drive and strength, in the same way as chimpanzees and gorillas are believed to have magical powers.
No one truly knows exactly how many bonobos are left in the wild. Based on field observations, scientists believe that less than 100,000 bonobos remain. Bonobos are highly vulnerable to increasing hunting and habitat loss because they have a low birth rate and a fragmented population.
Physical Characteristics
Like common chimpanzees, bonobos are closely related to humans, sharing 98.4% of our genetic makeup. Bonobos are distinguished from common chimps by their black faces and red lips, two or three toes are webbed, a tail tuft that persists into adulthood, and forwardly rotated female genitals. The hair on their heads is parted in the middle and long hairs sweep out from the sides of their faces, mostly covering their ears.
The bonobo's similarity to humans has long been recognized by the indigenous people who have resided with bonobos for thousands of years. Their legends tell of a bonobo saving a man's life, how the bonobos showed man what food was available in the forest and how bonobos have tried to become human.
The species is best characterized as female-centered and as one that manages and diffuses tension through sex, making agression less common than with chimpanzees. Whereas in most other species sexual behavior is a fairly distinct category, in the bonobo it is part and parcel of social relations - and not just between males and females. Bonobos engage in sex in virtually every partner combination (although such contact among close family members may be suppressed). And sexual interactions occur more often among bonobos than among other primates. Despite the frequency of sex, the bonobo's rate of reproduction in the wild is about the same as that of the chimpanzee. A female gives birth to a single infant at intervals of between five and six years.
Compared to the chimpanzee, and like humans, bonobos have relatively longer legs, shorter arms, and a narrower trunk. The skull sits upright on the spine, and they have smaller canine teeth. There is sexual dimorphism in the canines where the males' are longer than the canines of the female. They are distinguished from chimpanzees by their black face and red lips from birth, two or three webbed toes, a tail tuft that persists into adulthood and forwardly rotated female genitals. The pelage color is black and may turn more of a grayish color with age. The average body mass for an adult male bonobo is around 85 pounds, and for the female it is around 65 pounds. Compared to chimpanzees, they have slightly smaller head and ears and a smaller brow ridge. The hair on their head is parted in the middle and long hairs sweep out from the sides of their faces, mostly covering their ears.
Habitat
The bonobo is only found in the country of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) between the Congo River, the Lomami River, the Kasai/Sankuru Rivers, and the Lake Tumba/Lac Ndombe region. Bonobo range is presently calculated at no more than 350,000 square kilometers. They spend much of their time in the tall, dense tropical forest canopy, gracefully maneuvering though the trees searching for food. This area is fragmented, and it seems as if bonobo can survive in close proximity to human communities that are willing to co-habitate with this peaceful ape. Recent surveys, however, show that many areas that were known to have lots of bonobo 20 years ago now have none. This region of DRC has been politically unstable for the past 10 years, and this has attributed to bonobo decline.
Behavior
When the bonobo moves on the ground it moves quadrupedally in a special position called knuckle-walking. In a tree this species can also move in a quadrupedal manner. However, it also uses suspensory behavior in the trees to move around within a tree laden with fruit. On the ground the bonobo can also walk bipedally, and it certainly the most human like of apes in that and several other respects.
The bonobo lives in a fission-fusion society dividing and then coming back together on a regular basis. Subgroups are generally multi-male, bisexual groups with strong maternal focused subunits. Bonobo sexual behavior is flexible and they have been observed to resolve conflict through sexual contact. Communities have ranges that overlap with other groups. Males of this species will protect members of the group as well as hunt. Males typically remain in their natal group while females are the ones who will disperse. Most of the grooming bouts and instances of food sharing occur between males and females, which is different from common chimpanzees where it occurs between male. Also the female-female relationship is much stronger in this species than it is for common chimpanzees.
Although they seem very outgoing, bonobos control their emotions when expressing themselves in times of happiness, sorrow, excitement or anger. They are very animated and perform similar gestures as humans when communicating without sound. For example, they will beg by streching out an open hand or foot and will make a whimpering sound if they fail at something.
Groups of bonobos range from about 50 to 100 individuals, although they do break up during the day to form foraging parties. Each night this species makes a sleeping nest made from branches and leaves, usually nesting with the subgroup they travel with.
Females become sexually mature after about 12 years, and may give birth soon thereafter. The young are born with a black face and hands and their ears are concealed behind whiskers. Females have babies in five and six year intervals so population growth can never be rapid. The gestation period is thought to be between 220 and 230 days. Females nurse and carry their young for five years and by the age of seven, the offspring reach adolescence. Females have between five and six offspring in a lifetime. The longevity of bonobos is unknown but researchers have predicted longer than 40 in the wild and age 60 in captivity.
Diet
The bonobo primarily eats fruit, but will also consume shoots, leaves, flowers, seeds, bark, invertebrates, and small vertebrates. This species uses over 113 types of plants, but meat eating appears to be opportunistic rather than stemming from organized hunts.
Predators and Threats
Only a small portion of the bonobo's habitat is protected. Due to war in the DRC, however, even within protected areas, they are threatened by illegal activities such as hunting, and deforestation / habitat loss. Local people depend on wildlife to provide protein in their diet and logging companies supply their employees with bushmeat by employing commercial hunters. Habitat is lost to both traditional slash-and-burn agriculture as well as commercial logging operations. Although the areas where bonobos are traditionally found generally have a very low human population, people are attracted to the bonobos' forested habitat for employment as well as for asylum during the recent conflicts that have ravished the DRC. Some bonobos may also be killed annually for medicinal and magical purposes. Specific body parts of bonobos are believed to increase sexual drive and strength, in the same way as chimpanzees and gorillas are believed to have magical powers.
No one truly knows exactly how many bonobos are left in the wild. Based on field observations, scientists believe that less than 100,000 bonobos remain. Bonobos are highly vulnerable to increasing hunting and habitat loss because they have a low birth rate and a fragmented population.
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