Pan Africa NewsThe Newsletter of the Committee for the Careand Conservation of Chimpanzees, and the Mahale
Wildlife Conservation Society
ISSN 1884-751X (print), 1884-7528 (online) mahale.main.jp/PAN/

DECEMBER 2020
P. A. N. EDITORIAL STAFF
Chief Editor:
Kazuhiko Hosaka, Kamakura Womenʼs University, Japan
Deputy Chief Editor:
Michio Nakamura, Kyoto University, Japan
Associate Editors:
Christophe Boesch, Max-Planck Institute, Germany
Jane Goodall, Jane Goodall Institute, USA
Tetsuro Matsuzawa, Kyoto University, Japan
William C. McGrew, University of St. Andrews, UKJohn C. Mitani, University of Michigan, USA
Vernon Reynolds, Budongo Forest Project, UK
Yukimaru Sugiyama, Kyoto University, Japan
Richard W. Wrangham, Harvard University, USA
Takeshi Furuichi, Kyoto University, Japan
Editorial Secretaries:
Noriko Itoh, Kyoto University, Japan
Koichiro Zamma, Nagano College of Nursing, Japan
Eiji Inoue, Toho University, Japan
Takuya Matsumoto, Research Institute for Humanity and Nature,Japan
Instructions for Authors:
Pan Africa News publishes articles, notes, reviews,
forums, news, essays, book reviews, letters to editor, andclassified ads (restricted to non-profit organizations) on any
aspect of conservation and research regarding chimpanzees(Pan troglodytes) and bilias (Pan paniscus). Contributors arerequested to write in English and the papers except forums,
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See also http://mahale.main.jp/PAN/instruction.html

VOL. 27, NO. 2

Contents<Editorial>
Tackling the COVID-19 crisis to create a new era for
chimpanzee research and conservation		
14
Kazuhiko Hosaka				<Note>
COVID-19 and chimpanzees from a field perspective:
Mitigation measures, ecological and economical situation after four months in Sebitoli, Kibale National
Park, Uganda
Sabrina Krief, Chloé Couturier, Julie Bonnald,John Paul Okimat, Edward Asalu& Jean-Michel Krief			
16<Note>Development of bonobo tourism in the Lomako
Yokokala Faunal Reserve, the Democratic Republic of
the Congo
Tetsuya Sakamaki, Cléo Mashini & Jef Dupain								 21
<Book Review>
Chimpanzee Culture Wars: Rethinking Human
Nature alongside Japanese, European, and American
Cultural Primatologists
Michio Nakamura			
24<Book Info>
Chimpanzee: Lessons from our Sister Species (byKevin D. Hunt)				 26Pan Africa News, Vol. 27, No.2
Published in December, 2020
Address: c/o Human Evolution Studies,
Dept. of Zoology, Faculty of Science,
Kyoto Univ., Kyoto, 606-8502, JAPANTEL: (+81)75-753-4108
FAX: (+81)75-753-4115
E-mail: pan.editor@gmail.com
URL: http://mahale.main.jp/PAN/
ISSN: 1884-751X (Print), 1884-7528 (Online)

13Pan Africa News, 27(2): 14–15 (2020)

Editorial

Tackling the COVID-19 crisis to create a new era for
chimpanzee research and conservation
The first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has
engulfed the people of the world, is coming to an end. For
researchers of the two Pan species, it has been a year of
emergencies and turmoil. The pandemic began in Wuhan,
China in December 2019, spread to Europe in February,and gained momentum in March. In late March, Africancountries began to lock down because there were fears
of an influx of patients, and research and conservation
activities in each study site suffered significant negative
impacts in a variety of ways.
The long-term project at Mahale is no exception. A
graduate student who had three months left in her stay inthe field had to return to Japan urgently before the airlines
ceased operations, and the researchers who were due tostay this year had to postpone their plans. Since then,some postdocs in Kyoto have vigorously engaged in remote communication with local staff to maintain minimalfunctions at the Kansyana Research Station that allows
for health monitoring to ensure that chimpanzees are notexposed to the new virus, together with collection of basic
data, such as demography of the M-group chimpanzees.
However, the Mahale project has traditionally emphasised
direct observation. Continuous direct observation is particularly important for the study of social relationships. In
fact, for the first time in eight years, we were watching apolitical drama in the forest where the alpha male might
be overthrown. Six months before, during my fieldworkfrom August–September 2019, I noticed a change in the
behaviour of the alpha male. Although this was the season when chimpanzees aggregated in large parties withmany adult males, the alpha male repeated short stays in
the core parties, while spending most of his time absent,
presumably forming consortship with a cycling female.
During this time, the beta male behaved as if he were
the alpha male. For several months thereafter, graduate
students and postdocs continued to observe the changing
situation, and by the end of 2019, we received word thatthe alpha male had been replaced. I was excited and looking forward to hearing how things progressed, but thenthere was a break in the news.
When SARS-CoV-2 started to spread in Europe,
researchers were quick to suggest that the virus would
be more likely to infect great apes and that immediate
measures such as suspension of ecotourism and reduction of field research should be taken from a conservation
perspective (IUCN 2020; Gillespie & Leendertz 2020).
Behind this quick action was the ordeal caused by several
outbreaks of human respiratory diseases in chimpanzee
study groups at several long-term study sites (Leendertz
et al. 2006; Hanamura et al. 2015; Scully et al. 2018;
Negrey et al. 2019). There is widespread recognition thatall great apes must be protected from the risk of infection
to viruses of human origin (Woodford et al. 2002; Carne
et al. 2014).

In this context, it would be very helpful to know how
researchers at other sites are protecting the health of theirstaff and the chimpanzees from the threat of COVID-19,
while continuing to collect research data. Primatologist
Prof. Sabrina Krief, who is a veterinarian and Director of
the Sebitoli Chimpanzee Project in Kibale National Park,
Uganda, presented a report about her project just after the
lockdown at a UNESCO webinar on 11 June, “COVID-19
and Biodiversity Loss: Another Threat to Great Apes?” I
asked her to contribute similar and updated information
to Pan Africa News (PAN). She readily agreed and reported on the situation at Sebitoli in the first four monthsof the COVID-19 lockdown in Uganda (Krief, this issue).
Her interest was not only focused on how to adapt our research activities to a pandemic, but also to how the socialchanges caused by a pandemic might affect the conservation status of chimpanzees and their habitat. The results
challenge the optimistic expectation that restricted humanaccess will have a positive effect.
How should we tackle the pandemic in the second
year? I believe that there are four possible directions.
First, we need to build “new styles of research” andprovide the structures to support them. It is important
to make sustainable and proactive changes that are notad hoc, but will be positive for activities in the postpandemic era. The time has already come for researchers
to be connected to their research sites to varying degrees
via the Internet. New styles of research could be devised,with local assistants trained remotely to minimise thenumber and duration of human visits to apes and to carryout high-priority research and conservation activities in aminimal, but productive manner. However, there are manytasks that researchers have had to perform in the field,
such as direct communication with local counterparts
and authorities, and negotiations regarding the livelihood,
employment, and education of local staff. There is also aneed to remotely replenish the research and conservationequipment and supplies that have previously been transported by researchers to the field. It is difficult to carryout these tasks while balancing the responsibilities thathave doubled in Japan because of the adaptation to remote
working. Therefore, it is necessary to secure stable agentsand financial resources. Likewise, the conservation activities of the Mahale Wildlife Conservation Society, which
until now relied on the volunteer services of researchers
in the field, must all be carried out remotely from Japan.
Second, we should accelerate our efforts to disseminate our accumulated knowledge and experience, realising that this information may now be of some use in saving human lives around the world. Researchers of African
great apes have witnessed the tragic deaths of chimpanzees to lethal outbreaks of viral infections (see above). In
particular, chimpanzee researchers have painfully learned
that their subjects are highly susceptible to human res-14Pan Africa News, 27(2): 14–15 (2020)
piratory viruses, and that virulence can sometimes be as
lethal as the Spanish flu in chimpanzees, while humans
usually only show common cold symptoms. Most of theinfection prevention measures recommended as effective
in preventing COVID-19, including keeping a safe distance and wearing a mask to prevent droplet infection, arefamiliar to great ape researchers and ecotourism workers,
who have been practicing them for more than a decade(Macfie et al. 2010; Gilardi et al. 2015). In a world wheresome people deny the threat of the virus and others refuse
to wear masks and follow social distancing practices, wehave the experience and responsibility to speak for the effectiveness of such prevention measures.
Third, for some researchers who have studied wild
animals at the human–wildlife interface, it is natural tosee that most pandemics are the result of environmental
problems (Kretchmer 2020). If this is true, then it is human responsibility to solve it. Some have likened the
COVID-19 pandemic to a natural calamity, like an earthquake or typhoon. While this is true in terms of precautionary stockpiling of food and water and people helping
each other in times of trouble, it is not appropriate to seea pandemic as a natural phenomenon unrelated to humanactivities. The recognition that modern humans’ excessive
proximity to wildlife has led to outbreaks of new viruses
is a reality very close to our nightmares in the field. It
has been estimated that about 75% of emerging viruses
are zoonotic pathogens (Taylor et al. 2001), and like HIV,
Ebola, and other notorious emerging viruses, the origin of
SARS-CoV-2 is likely to be linked to the trafficked wild
animals (Andersen et al. 2020; Tang et al. 2020). Dr. Jane
Goodall, an associate editor of PAN, called for people totake earnest action to reduce the consumption of meat,from both farmed and wild animals. She even suggested
that if we do not take this opportunity to rethink our relations with nonhuman animals, there will be no future forhumanity (Kretchmer 2020).
Lastly, it is important that we Pan Africanists standin solidarity and promote the exchange of informationand ideas between our study sites. While researchers are
rivals for scientific achievements, they are also linked bya responsibility to cooperate on common interests. In thewake of the recent pandemic, it is easy to imagine thatnational and international societies and journals will have
similar concerns, and PAN would also like to provide ahub. In the next issue, I would like to put together an article in which Pan researchers can share their experiencesof the COVID-19 crisis and their outlook for the future. I
would be very grateful for any suggestions regarding myideas.

REFERENCES

Andersen KG, Rambaut A, Lipkin WI, Holmes EC, Garry
RF 2020. The proximal origin of SARS-CoV-2. Nat Med
26: 450–452.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-020-0820-9

Carne C, Semple S, Morrogh-Bernard H, Zuberbühler
K, Lehmann J 2014. The risk of disease to great apes:
Simulating disease spread in orang-utan (Pongo pygmaeus
wurmbii) and chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii)
association networks. PLoS ONE 9: e95039.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0095039

Gilardi KV, Gillespie TR, Leendertz FH et al. 2015. Best
Practice Guidelines for Health Monitoring and Disease
Control in Great Ape Populations. IUCN SSC Primate
Specialist Group, Gland, Switzerland.
Gillespie TR, Leendertz FH 2020. COVID-19: Protect great
apes during human pandemics. Nature 579: 497–497.
https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-00859-y

Hanamura S, Kooriyama T, Hosaka K 2015. Diseases anddeaths: Variety and impact on social life. In: Mahale
Chimpanzees: 50 Years of Research. Nakamura M, Hosaka
K, Itoh N, Zamma K (eds), Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge, UK, pp. 354–371.
https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781107280533

IUCN 2020. Great apes, COVID-19 and the SARS CoV-2:
Joint statement of the IUCN SSC Wildlife Health Specialist
Group and the Primate Specialist Group, Section on Great
Apes, 15 March 2020,
http://www.primate-sg.org/covid-19

Kretchmer H 2020. We’re ‘finished’ if we don’t change after
coronavirus, warns naturalist Jane Goodall. The World
Economic Forum, accessed 17 June 2020,
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/06/
jane-goodall-coronavirus-humanity-natural-animals-covid-finished/

Leendertz FH, Pauli G, Maetz-Rensing K et al. 2006.
Pathogens as drivers of population declines: The importance of systematic monitoring in great apes and otherthreatened mammals. Biological Conservation 131:
325–337.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2006.05.002

Macfie EJ, Williamson EA 2010. Best Practice Guidelines forGreat Ape Tourism. IUCN SSC Primate Specialist Group,
Gland, Switzerland.
Negrey JD, Reddy RB, Scully EJ et al. 2019. Simultaneous
outbreaks of respiratory disease in wild chimpanzees
caused by distinct viruses of human origin. Emerg
Microbes Infect 8: 139–149.
https://doi.org/10.1080/22221751.2018.1563456

Scully EJ, Basnet S, Wrangham et al. 2018. Lethal respiratory disease associated with human rhinovirus C in wild
chimpanzees, Uganda, 2013. Emerg Infect Dis 24: 267–274.
https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2402.170778

Tang X, Wu C, Li X et al. 2020. On the origin and continuing
evolution of SARS-CoV-2. Natl Sci Rev 7: 1012–1023.
https://doi.org/10.1093/nsr/nwaa036

Taylor LH, Latham SM, Woolhouse MEJ 2001. Risk factors
for human disease emergence. Philos Trans R Soc B 356:
983–989.
https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2001.0888

Woodford MH, Butynski TM, Karesh WB 2002. Habituating
the great apes: The disease risks. Oryx 36: 153–160.
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0030605302000224

Kazuhiko Hosaka
Kamakura Women’s University, Japan
Mahale Wildlife Conservation Society✉ E-mail: hosaka@kamakura-u.ac.jp

15Pan Africa News, 27(2):16–20 (2020)

Note

COVID-19 and chimpanzees from a field perspective:
Mitigation measures, ecological and economical situation after
four months in Sebitoli, Kibale National Park, Uganda
Sabrina Krief 1, 2 , Chloé Couturier 1, 2, 3, Julie Bonnald 1, 2, 4, John Paul Okimat 2,
Edward Asalu 5 & Jean-Michel Krief 2✉

1 UMR 7206 CNRS/MNHN/P7, Eco-anthropologie, Hommes et Environnements, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Muséede l’Homme, 17 place du Trocadéro, 75016 Paris, France
2 Great Ape Conservation Project (GACP), Sebitoli Research Station, Kibale National Park, Fort Portal, Uganda
3 Fondation Nicolas Hulot pour la Nature et l’Homme, 6 rue de l’Est, 92100 Boulogne-Billancourt, France
4 Kinomé, Campus du Jardin d’Agronomie Tropicale de la ville de Paris, 45 bis avenue de la Belle Gabrielle, 94736 Nogent surMarne cedex, France
5 Uganda Wildlife Authority, Uganda(✉E-mail: sabrina.krief@mnhn.fr)

INTRODUCTION

The SARS-CoV-2 outbreak has led to the confinementof about two-thirds of the world’s population (Bates et al.
2020). The emergence of the virus seems to be related tothe increase in the interaction between wild animals andhumans. Two main drivers have been proposed to explainit (1) the encroachment of human activities into wild areas and forests, and (2) the (legal and illegal) expanding
international market of bushmeat and live wild animals
from tropical and sub-tropical areas for food and traditional medicine, sold in unsanitary conditions (Volpato etal. 2020). While the biology underlying susceptibility to
SARS-CoV-2 infection remains to be fully elucidated, it is
now well-established that the virus infects the endothelial
cells in targeting the angiotensin-converting enzyme-2(ACE2) receptor. Apes exhibit the same set of amino-acidresidues in ACE2 as humans, making them highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 (Melin et al. 2020).
With the restriction of national and internationaltraffic to limit the virus transmission, many benefits
were expected for wildlife from this “anthropause,” as aconsequence of reduced habitat disturbance (Rutz et al.
2020). However, the reverse also has been noticed in someplaces, with an increase in poaching and illegal activities(Rutz et al. 2020). Besides the dramatic consequences onhuman health of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19),
this unique case of global reduction of human mobility
and activities may be viewed as an opportunity to better estimate both positive and negative effects of humanimpact in different ecosystems and on different species(Bates et al. 2020).
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Sebitoli chimpanzees living in the north of Kibale National Park (Uganda)
experienced a high level of pressure from human activities, such as intensive agriculture, road traffic and related
pollution (Cibot et al. 2015; Bortolamiol et al. 2016; Kriefet al. 2014; 2017; 2020; Spirhanzlova et al. 2019). They
also were indirect victims of wire snares set by poachers
to catch duikers for bushmeat (Cibot et al. 2016). During
the COVID-19 pandemic, the Sebitoli Chimpanzee
Project (SCP) monitored the direct and indirect consequences of COVID-19 in terms of health, environment
and the economy in order to mitigate them. Based on our
preliminary results, we propose perspectives for researchers and conservationists on possible tools and measures

to protect great apes and their habitats in the contexts ofsuch pandemics.

STUDY SITE

The home range of the Sebitoli chimpanzee community covers 25 km2 in the far north of the Kibale National
Park, Uganda (795 km 2; 0°13′ to 0°41′N and 0°19′ to30°32′E). Since 2008, SCP has monitored daily this community of about 80 chimpanzees. In 2020, before thepandemic, SCP consisted of 25 Ugandan field assistants
working to: collect scientific data, conduct anti-poaching
operations, implement education and community-based
programmes, and maintain the trail systems, managed
by one of us, JPO, coordinator. During the lockdown decided by the Ugandan government and Uganda Wildlife
Authority, eight of the assistants were confined in the
National Park, i.e. they did not have contact with the
population outside of the research station. Food wasordered and delivered at the gate of the station and communication between France (direction of the project) and
Ugandan team was maintained daily with social networks
and weekly with visioconferences.

METHODS

We adapted the usual protocols to record chimpanzee
behaviour and health and to reduce threats of poaching inaccordance with Uganda Wildlife Authority guidelines.
We set up 14 camera traps at the most commonly-visited
locations (feeding trees and crop-fields) and memory
cards were collected twice weekly for immediate reading. We designed new datasheets: identity of chimpanzees
and when possible, general condition, injuries, respiratory function (sneezing, coughing), locomotion, appetite,
faecal consistency, reproductive status of females werescored. We collected data on illegal activities during antipoaching patrols five days per week. Two teams werededicated to this task during the COVID-19 period, wereas usually only one was active. We counted twice weekly,
the number of vehicles travelling in both directions along
the road inside the protected area. On 19 May and 27
July, 2020, we collected all plastic bottles and other litter
discarded by people from the vehicles along the 4.6 km ofroadsides (4 m each side of the tarmac within the nationalpark).

16

Pan Africa News, 27(2):16–20 (2020)
Table 1. Confinement measures and Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) taken in Uganda
Date

Event and measure

18 March 2020

Public gatherings (religious, cultural meeting, school) suspended.

21 March 2020

The first case of COVID-19 recorded at the Entebbe International Airport.

22 March 2020

Travel from abroad suspended except for drivers of cargo trucks (PCR tests done before entering Uganda).
Moto-taxis allowed to carry only food and material. Private cars allowed but to carry no more than three people including, thedriver.

25 March 2020

Communication from Uganda Wildlife Authority management to stop primate research, filming and tourism.

27 March 2020

Public and private transport suspended.

30 March 2020

Total lock-down declared. Curfew 19:00–06:30 hr.

31 March 2020

Private car traffic suspended.

26 May 2020

Private cars allowed to operate from 06:30–19:00 hr in 95 of 135 districts.

4 June 2020

Public transport (bus and minibus) allowed to operate, provided they followed SOPs and only in some districts. No public transport
in border districts.

21 July 2020

30 July 2020

Moto-taxis allowed to carry passengers provided they followed SOPs.
During entire period, cargo trucks continued to operate.
SOP for research activities in UWA estates—Reopening of the Park Area (PA) during COVID-19 pandemic.
i) All researchers coming into the PAs or close proximity of wild animals must wear clean clothing and disinfected footwear prior togoing to the field for data collection.
ii) Every researcher must carry into the field a hand sanitiser.
iii) Time spent conducting research activities near primates shall be limited to a maximum of five hours per designated research
day.
iv) The research team shall comprise a maximum number of three people to ensure safety and health monitoring.
v) A distance of not less than 10 metres from the primates shall be maintained at all times.
vi) A surgical facemask must be worn by anyone coming within 10 metres of primates.

RESULTS

Protecting Sebitoli chimpanzees
and local communities : sensitization by SCP
From 21 April through July
2020, a series of measures wereadopted by the government andUganda Wildlife Authority, modulating the level of human activities
in and around Kibale National
Park (Table 1). Although SCP,
even before the pandemic, had
implemented preventive measuresagainst transmission of human respiratory diseases to chimpanzees(e.g. keeping distance between
observers and apes, wearing surgical masks, using sanitizer, not spitting in the forest...), to reduce anemergent risk of the new coronavirus transmission, SCP initiatedcommunication related to safety
recommendations. The SCP teamdesigned posters using pictograms
to highlight the risks and the measures to reduce them (Figure 1). The
targeted public was: (1) SCP fieldassistants at the research stationand in the forest when authorized
to carry out health monitoring, Figure 1. Posters designed to sensitize SCP staff and local farmers to COVID-19
anti-poaching patrols, and transect
maintenance in the National Park; (2) villagers, especially Indirect monitoring of the chimpanzees using camera
those who neither know how to read nor speak English, traps
thus the simplicity and pictorial nature of the messages.
Over the first eight weeks, 51 chimpanzees were seen17

Pan Africa News, 27(2):16–20 (2020)

Figure 2. Cost of some basic food items eaten locally around the study area before the COVID-19 period and during the
COVID-19 period. Prices are given in Uganda shillings for 1 kg of food except for posho (maize flour, 10 kg).

Figure 3. Traffic (mean number of pedestrians and vehicles/hour) on the tarmac road from Fort Portal to Kampala
before and during the COVID-19 period.

a total of 612 times. None was diagnosed as showing severe symptoms (sneezing, coughing, apathy), which can
indicate COVID-19. Injuries were observed (see below,
poaching section).
Econom ic sit uat ion dur i ng the four months of
COVID-19 confinement
We made very basic estimates of the economic consequences for local communities, using as a proxy of thecost of living, the price of common foods. Over eightweeks after the traffic was suspended (15 May, 2020), allfood-item prices had increased (Figure 2).
Ecological situat ion during the four months of
COVID-19 confinement
Public transport (by bus, minibus) was almost absent
between 25 March and 4 June, i.e. over more than twomonths (Figure 3).
Despite this substantial reduction of traffic,- A subadult female chimpanzee, CP (Chapati) estimated age of 14 year, was knocked dead by a vehicle on
the tarmac road on 8 May, 2020 (Figure 4). Since 2012,
three Sebitoli chimpanzees were killed on this portion ofroad (Krief et al. 2020).

Figure 4. Chapati, subadult female fatality from a car
accident on 8 May 2020 on the tarmac road crossing the
Sebitoli chimpanzee home range in Kibale National Park.

- On 27 July, 2020 : 2626 bottles (52 kg) and 26 kg ofother plastic waste were collected with the assistance of
the Uganda Wildlife Authority. Seventy-eight kg of such
litter had accumulated in only 10 weeks (19 May to 27
July, 2020) since the last collection during the confinement. Twice as many bottles were collected during the
COVID-19 period (1170/month) compared to a mean number of 601 bottles/month in the four months, at the end of2019 (Table 2; Figure 5).

18

Pan Africa News, 27(2):16–20 (2020)
Table 2. Plastic collection along the Fort Portal-Kampalaroad, in the section crossing Kibale National Park and thehome-range of Sebitoli chimpanzees.
Date of plastic
collection

Number of bottles
per monthsince last collection

Number ofplastic bottles

Weight ofplastic (kg)July 2019

3090

92

December 2019

2406

96

601/month

May 2020

1884

70.5

July 2020

2926

78

Total for year

10306

336.5

Table 3. Illegal activities recorded during patrols of
Sebitoli Chimpanzee Project in chimpanzee homerange from 25 March – 31 July in 2019 and in 2020 (sinceconfinement was declared in Uganda).
Type of illegal activities

Number of evidences recorded during
patrols from 20 March – 31 July
20192020 (COVID-19)

Debarked trees

122376/month

Firewood collection sites

20

28

1170/month

Piper guineense harvesting2

13

Tree cutting

27

41

Snares

58

64

Total

116

210

Figure 5. Litter collection by Sebitoli Chimpanzee Project
assistants 19 May 2020 on the tarmac road crossing the
Sebitoli chimpanzee home range in Kibale National Park.

The total number of snares recovered was similar
during a four-month period (25 March to 31 July) in 2019and 2020. Patrols found a mean number of 0.70 snare/
day during the COVID-19 period (64 in 91 working days)
against 0.85/day in 2019 during the same period (58 in 68
working days). However, other illegal activities related toflora increased by a factor of 2.5 in 2020, especially thosethat generate income, such as Piper guineense (13 casesvs 2) and tree cutting for getting bark from medicinal
trees (such as Prunus africana) (22 vs 1) (Table 3). Also,
several observations indicated an increase of illegal activities, including poaching:
One of the camera traps was stolen on 7 May, 2020,
and the presence of dogs attacking chimpanzees in theforest was also observed in camera-traps and reported to
the Uganda Wildlife Authority (two dogs observed in fouroccasions).
We also observed three cases of severe injuries tochimpanzees caused by poaching over the COVID-19 period, while no case had been observed in 2019:
Subadult male GR (17 April, 2020) had a large wound(at least 4 cm) on his left thigh, attributed to a spear;
Infant female, dependant of FR (27 May, 2020) had asevere injury on her right foot from a snare;
Subadult male LK (14 July, 2020) had a severe injury
on his left hand from a snare (Figure 6).

DISCUSSION

In the Sebitoli area, a strict sanitary protocol was applied for the field team confined in the protected area. The

Figure 6. Subadult male LK severely injured his left handby a snare. Image captured by camera-trap on 14 July2020.

direct effects of COVID-19 on the chimpanzees’ health,as monitored by camera traps, did not reveal respiratory
symptoms. Camera traps enabled us to discover severe
injuries caused by poaching (wires and spear) on Sebitoli
chimpanzees. While the number of snares recovered by
the anti-poaching patrols did not increase compared to thesame period in 2019, damages to the habitat have more thandoubled likely due of loss of revenues in local communities. Despite the fact that public transport was banned,
no detectable positive consequences were noted along
the road inside the park, with a female chimpanzee being
knocked dead and the number of plastic bottles along theroad having more than doubled compared to the period
before the lockdown. Unfortunately, the relaxation of thepressure expected on wildlife did not occur and the indirect effects of COVID-19 on wild chimpanzees and theirhabitat in Sebitoli area seems more negative than positive,in general. This case study in a small part of a protectedarea emphasized: (1) the relevance of camera-traps’ use to
reduce proximity with apes in such circumstances, and (2)the importance of strengthening efforts to contain illegal
activities. We suggest that sharing local experiences withother study-sites, harmonizing protocols, and increasing
indirect monitoring of apes’ habitat (e.g. drone, cameratrap) are necessary to be ready to react to future emerging
disease outbreaks.
The potential cascading impacts of COVID-19 from19

Pan Africa News, 27(2):16–20 (2020)
sis and beyond. Nat Ecol Evol 4:1300–1310.

international travel restriction, reduced tourism, local
food insecurity, poverty increase, and funding reduction
due to global economic shrinkage show the importanceof supporting local agencies and civil society. This pointis proposed to IUCN World Congress 2021 in the motion
115 – “Strengthening great ape conservation across countries, in and outside of protected areas, involving local
actors” and shall be also considered to diversify revenueoperating actions from wildlife areas (Lindsey et al.
2020).

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-020-1275-6

Melin AD, Janiak MC, Marrone II F, Arora PS, Higham J P
2020. Comparative ACE2 variation and primate COVID-19
risk. BioRxiv. (preprint)
https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.04.09.034967

Rutz C, Loretto MC, Bates AE et al. 2020. COVID-19 lockdown allows researchers to quantify the effects of humanactivity on wildlife. Nat Ecol Evol 4:1156–1159.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-020-1237-z

Spi rhan zlova P, Fi n i J-B, Demenei x B et al. 2019.
Composition and endocrine effects of water collectedin the Kibale national park in Uganda. Environ Pollut
251:460–468.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.05.006

We thank the Uganda Wildlife Authority and Uganda
National Council for Science and Technology for authorizing our research in the Kibale National Park. We
are very grateful to all field assistants of the Sebitoli
Chimpanzee Project who were confined at Sebitoli
Station during Covid-19 lockdown, namely, EmmanuelBalinda, Deogratius Kiomuhangi, Joseph Alinaitwe,
Ibrahim Nyakana, Wilson Muzahura, Edward Kalyegira,and Sulaiti Tusabe. We offer profound thanks to Daniela
Zainabu Birungi, Robert Asimwe, and Robert Nyakahuma
for their assistance for the plastic waste collection andto Clovice Alikonyera, Charles Twesige, and PhilipMusinguzi for the road patrols. We are grateful to the
Fondation Nicolas Hulot pour la Nature et pour l’Homme,
the Fondation Prince Albert II, and the Fonds Françaispour l’Environnement Mondial for financial support. We
deeply thank Kazuhiko Hosaka, Noriko Itoh and William
C. McGrew for their valuable comments to improve thismanuscript.

Volpato G, Fontefrancesco MF, Gruppuso P, Zocchi DM,
Pieroni A 2020. Baby pangolins on my plate: Possible lessons to learn from the COVID-19 pandemic. J Ethnobiol
Ethnomed 16:19.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-020-00366-4

Received: 13 August 2020
Accepted: 26 October 2020

REFERENCES

Bates AE, Primack RB, Moraga P, Duarte CM 2020.
COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdown as a “Global
Human Confinement Experiment” to investigate biodiversity conservation. Biol Conserv 248:108665.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108665

Bortolamiol S, Cohen M, Jiguet F et al. 2016. Chimpanzee
non-avoidance of hyper-proximity to humans. J Wildl
Manag 80:924–934.
https://doi.org/10.1002/jwmg.1072

Cibot M, Bor tola m iol S, Seg uya A, K r ief S 2015.
Chimpanzees facing a dangerous situation: A high-traffic
asphalted road in the Sebitoli area of Kibale National Park,
Uganda. Am J Primatol 77:890–900.
https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.22417

Cibot M, Krief S, Philippon J et al. 2016. Feeding consequences of hand and foot disability in wild adult chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii). Int J Primatol 37:
479-494.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-016-9914-0

Krief S, Cibot M, Bortolamiol S et al. 2014. Wild chimpanzees on the edge: Nocturnal activities in croplands. PLoS
One 9:e109925.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109925

Krief S, Berny P, Gumisiriza F et al. 2017. Agricultural expansion as risk to endangered wildlife: Pesticide exposurein wild chimpanzees and baboons displaying facial dysplasia. Sci Total Environ 598:647–656.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.04.113

Krief S, Iglesias-Gonzalez A, Appenzeller BMR et al. 2020.
Road impact in a protected area with rich biodiversity:
The case of the Sebitoli road in Kibale National Park,
Uganda. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27:27914–27925.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-09098-0

Lindsey P, Allan J, Brehony P et al. 2020. Conserving
Africa’s wildlife and wildlands through the COVID-19 cri-20

Pan Africa News, 27(2): 21–23 (2020)

Note

Development of bonobo tourism in the Lomako Yokokala
Faunal Reserve, the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Tetsuya Sakamaki 1, 2 , Cléo Mashini 2 & Jef Dupain 1✉

1 Antwerp Zoo Foundation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, Belgium
2 Juristes pour le Renforcement et l’Application de la Loi dans le secteur de l’Environnement,
the Democratic Republic of the Congo(✉E-mail: ttsakamaki@gmail.com)

INTRODUCTION

The bonobo (Pan paniscus) is an endangered endemic
species (IUCN & ICCN 2012) in the Democratic Republicof the Congo (DRC). The main threats are deforestation, poaching, and disease transmission. The current
population is estimated to be between 15,000 and 20,000
individuals as a minimum value (IUCN & ICCN 2012).
Sustainable and viable management of protected areas(PAs) as strongholds of priority bonobo populations is
crucial for bonobo conservation (IUCN & ICCN 2012).
Currently, two national parks and six reserves are home
to free-ranging bonobo populations. Most of these face alack of financial and/or technical support needed for goodmanagement, putting the PAs at risk to become so-called‘paper parks’ (Bruner et al. 2001).
Apart from law enforcement by rangers, the presenceof researchers and tourism activities is known to contribute to the conservation status of PAs (Pusey et al. 2007;
Tranquilli et al. 2012). The presence of researchers andtourists, even if very limited and focused on a specialised
niche, is not only a known deterrent for poachers but also
a way to increase the visibility as well as awareness ofthe existence and importance of sometimes very remoteand less well-known PAs. The Lomako Yokokala Faunal
Reserve (RFLY) is one such location.
Lomako forest has been known as a long-term studysite of bonobos since 1974 (Badrian & Badrian 1977;
White 1996), with teams from a number of universities and institutes (Stony Brook University, Max Planck
Institute, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, Antwerp
University, etc.) attempting to set up long-term researchsites (Dupain & Van Elsacker 2001). In the 1980s, at-Figure 1. Map of Lomako Yokokala Faunal Reserve in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

21

Pan Africa News, 27(2): 21–23 (2020)
tempts were made to create a formally protected area inthe Lomako forest, but the civil unrest and warfare in
DRC in the 1990s interrupted the activities for bonobo
study and conservation (Dupain & Van Elsacker 2001).
Finally, in 2006, in the frame of the USAID-funded
Central African Regional Program for Environment, the3,625 km2 RFLY was officially gazetted (Figure 1).
Since its creation in 2006, RFLY has been managed increasingly well by the Congolese Institute for theConservation of Nature (ICCN). Due to performancebased management, with a focus on efficient law enforcement and community outreach, the RFLY is witnessing
increasing numbers of fauna. Forest elephants are returning and bonobos are now ranging in places where they
have not been observed for many years (Maptula et al.
2020; our personal observation).
The Antwerp Zoo Foundation (AZF) of the Royal
Zoological Society of Antwerp, together with a Congolese
NGO, Juristes pour le Renforcement et l’Application de laLoi dans le secteur de l’Environnement (JURISTRALE),
signed a memorandum of understanding with the DRC
National Office of Tourism (ONT) and ICCN in 2019and 2020, respectively, to prepare the Lomako for the
tourism and scientific research that focus on bonobos. In
this paper, we report the identification and habituation ofbonobo communities. We discuss the potential for tourism development in RFLY and the involvement of local
communities.

HABITUATION OF BONOBOS

Since the creation of the RFLY in 2006, intermittent
efforts to habituate bonobos for tourism and scientificresearch continued until 2018. Representatives of the local communities have been involved in all stages of these
efforts. The local communities are the traditional ownersof the Lomako forest who agreed with the creation of the
PA in 2006 and expressed their desire that the PA would
bring improved livelihoods to their communities throughbonobo-related employment. Permanent research campsin Lomako have played an important role in regular monitoring of bonobo populations and biodiversity. They havealso provided various researchers with opportunities to
conduct field studies and select tourists to visit bonobos.
In agreement with the ICCN, the AZF/JURISTRALE
took up the responsibility to ensure the continuation of
the above-mentioned efforts and provided all financial
as well as technical support to continue habituation andtourism development in mid-2019. A bonobo habituation
expert (the first author, TS) improved the capacities of local assistants to follow bonobos from morning to evening.
The assistants were also trained to recognise individual
bonobos.
Over the last year, the number of bonobos who accepted human observers at a distance of 10 m gradually
increased. To date, we identified and named 21 individuals in one group: 10 females (6 adults, 2 subadults, and 2
infants) and 11 males (5 adults, 3 subadults, 2 juveniles,
and 1 infant). Two or three adult males have not yet been
individually recognised. This group is named ‘Tolende’
from the name of small tributaries in its ranging area,
covering approximately 20 km 2. We confirmed at least
three neighbouring groups around the Tolende group.
Most bonobos in the Tolende group are well habituated to the presence of observers, allowing for behavioural studies. In January–July 2020, monthly observation
days and time were 23 days (median, range = 18–23 days;
no surveys on weekends) and 84.1 hours (mean, range =59.2–132.5 h), respectively. However, the observation conditions are still unstable. Figure 2 shows the weekly observation time of bonobos from January to July in 2020,
indicating much fluctuation week by week. We typicallyfollowed bonobos continuously when they ranged in a
relatively large party (10 individuals or more), while we
frequently lost them and observation time was cut shortwhen they split into several small parties.

POTENTIAL FOR TOURISM

The current progress of bonobo habituation, the existence of a permanent camp with trained assistants, andthe history and reputation as a long-term study site arefavourable indicators for attracting tourists and researchers to the Lomako forest. The good performance of the

Figure 2. Fluctuation of weekly observation time of bonobos from January to July in 2020.

22

Pan Africa News, 27(2): 21–23 (2020)
protected area authority, the ICCN, and the ongoing efforts for the best coordination between the ICCN and thetourism initiative create confidence for success. Further,
the Lomako forest is not only attractive for its bonobos.
Between January and July 2020, we recorded calls from
Congo peafowls (Afropavo congensis) at our camp every
2.25 days. Birdquest, a British specialised-tour operator,
successfully brought 6–8 clients to observe the Congo
peafowls in Lomako on both endeavours in 2015 and 2017.
Forest elephants (Loxodonta cyclotis) occasionally range
in a part of the main study area. Four diurnal primates,
black crested mangabey (Lophocebus aterrimus), redtailed monkey (Cercopithecus ascanius), Wolf’s monkey(C. wolfi), and Angola colobus (Colobus angolensis) daily
visit the camp, and Allen’s swamp monkey (Allenopithecus
nigroviridis) are frequently observed along the Lomako
River. Along with the river travel opportunities, travel
agencies agree that there is an opportunity for a combination of packages for a variety of tourists.
On the other hand, the remoteness of the Lomako forest and the lack of convenient access increase the cost andtime needed for any visits. The bonobos in Lomako will
never attract the same level of tourism and investment as
the chimpanzees in Uganda and Tanzania or the mountain gorillas. However, this is not the intention either.
Successful but albeit limited specialised niche tourism can
improve the level of protection of the Lomako forest andits biodiversity. This can help avoid the RFLY becoming aforgotten park and a forgotten bonobo priority site. Wellchosen activities of tourism and research will improve theawareness of the existence of this important area for bonobo conservation and attract worldwide attention. This, inturn, also draws attention from Congolese governmental
stakeholders (as is already the case).

status of this priority bonobo population.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We are grateful to ICCN, Cosma Wilungula, Jeff
Mapilanga, Elie Lubucibwa, Gentil Kisangani, RFLY
rangers, Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Scientific
Research, Fanny Minesi of Les Amis des Bonobos,
Alfred Simba, and the local communities of Lomako for
their support and continuous assistance in various ways.
In the field, we had help from Dipon Bomposo, Teddy
Bofaso, Isaac Lokuli, Beken Bompoma, Gedeon Lokofo,
Belvie Iyambe, Christian Dzambo, Aughu Lofili, Thomas
Lokuli, and Mathieu Esaola. We are grateful to Alain
Lushimba and Joël Masimo for the map of Lomako and
to Takeshi Furuichi for useful comments. We thank the
ARCUS foundation for its continuous support for the
Lomako forest.

REFERENCES

Badrian A, Badrian N 1977. Pygmy chimpanzees. Oryx 14:
463– 468.
https://doi.org/10.1017/s0030605300014502

Bruner AG, Gullison RE, Rice RE, de Fonseca GAB 2001.
Effectiveness of parks in protecting tropical biodiversity.
Science 291: 125–128.
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.291.5501.125

Dupain J, Van Elsacker L 2001. Status of the proposed
Lomako Forest Bonobo Reserve: A case study of thebushmeat trade. In: All Apes Great and Small, Volume 1:
African Apes. Galdikas BMF, Briggs NE, Sheeran LK,
Shapiro GL, Goodall J (eds), Kluwer Academic/Plenum
Publishers, New York, pp.259–273.
https://doi.org/10.1007/0-306-47461-1_25

IUCN, ICCN 2012. Bonobo (Pan paniscus): Conservation
Strategy 2012–2022. IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group& Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature,
Gland, Switzerland.
Maputla N, Lushimba A, Kasa P, Facheux C, Muruthi P
2020. First record of a breeding forest elephant herd in the
Lomako Yokokala Faunal Reserve, Democratic Republicof Congo. Afr J Ecol 58:537–539.

CONTRIBUTION TO LOCAL COMMUNITIESThe development of specialised bonobo eco-tourism
and scientific research is done in close collaboration withlocal communities. All local assistants and guides wereselected from and appointed by these communities. At
the yearly coordination meetings, representatives of thecommunities receive progress reports and discuss further
plans. They also receive reports on the creation of income,
if any, and their share. A general sense of ownership isembraced.
Communities are proud to be visited by ‘the outside
world’ even when limited. Not only the arrival of foreign
researchers and tourists but also continued contact withformer visitors through social media, for example, ishighly appreciated. There is a general feeling that positive
experiences by outside visitors can pull ‘Lomako’ out of
its isolation and contribute to the well-being of the local
community. This in return will improve the conservation

https://doi.org/10.1111/aje.12725

Pusey AE, Pintea L, Wilson ML, Kamenya S, Goodall J
2007. The contribution of long-term research at Gombe
National Park to chimpanzee conservation. Conserv Biol
21: 623– 634.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523-1739.2007.00704.x

Tranquilli S, Abedi-Lartey M, Amsini F, et al. 2012. Lackof conservation effort rapidly increases African great ape
extinction risk. Conservation Letters 5: 48–55.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2011.00211.x

White FJ 1996. Pan paniscus 1973 to 1996: Twenty-three
years of field research. Evolutionary Anthropology 5:
11–17.
https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1520-6505(1996)5:1%3C11::AID-EVAN5%3E3.0.CO;2-Z

Received: 20 November 2020
Accepted: 21 December 202023

Pan Africa News, 27(2): 24–25 (2020)

Book Review

Chimpanzee Culture Wars: Rethinking Human Nature
alongside Japanese, European, and American Cultural
Primatologists
By Nicolas Langlitz
Princeton University Press, 352 pp.
Published in 2020
ISBN: 9780691204277, $95.00 (USA), hardcover
ISBN: 9780691204284, $26.95 (USA), paperback

Michio Nakamura
Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Japan(✉ E-mail: nakamura@jinrui.zool.kyoto-u.ac.jp)

When the editor-inchief of PAN contacted
me to review this book, I
was somewhat hesitant.
This was not because I
was uninterested, but
because it takes me asignif icant amount oftime to read th rougha 352-page academ ic
book in English. The
reading process actually took three weeks,
not simply because of
my modest English ability, but also because thebook contained rather
intricate philosophical discussions referring to Rousseau,
Heidegger, Merleau‒Ponty, etc. Nonetheless, I felt compelled to finish because the book’s theme is quite relevant
to my own research and many of the people mentioned in
the text are familiar to me.
In brief, this book is an ethnography of “cultural
primatologists” studying chimpanzees. Two famous primatologists, one from Europe and another from Japan,
are the main figures of the book, although many othersupporting individuals appear at relevant points. These
two eminent scholars differ in various ways, which readers will learn in detail from the book, but I would like tohighlight their commonalities. First, both study westernsubspecies of chimpanzees, field studies of which started
later than those of eastern subspecies. Second, both belong to academic institutions where they were able todelve entirely into research, avoiding the need to devote
time to undergraduate teaching. Third, the two were
heads of their respective institutions while also conducting their own research projects (so, they have long been“alpha males!”). Fourth, their research teams are highlyinternational in terms of membership. I draw attention
to these points as I think they can affect the behaviors of
researchers in the same way as the leaders’ regional orcultural origins.

The descriptions of these two stalwarts by Langlitz
were quite interesting and useful. Being Japanese myself, I was more familiar with the situation in Japan, but
discovered a great deal from accounts of the Max Planck
team. For example, it was interesting to learn of the veryrefined hygiene measures taken at the field site, the important role of a specialized statistician at the institute,the overhabituation problem of chimpanzees, and thetendency for students to rely exclusively on electronic
devices to take data and even to read e-books in the forest(though this last point may be more of a generational difference than a cultural one), etc. Perhaps Western readers
can learn likewise from descriptions of the Japanese side.
The aim of this book is not just to describe the behaviors of two human alpha males, of course. By going into
the field sites and laboratories of these primatologists,
Langlitz’s ultimate aim is to understand the reflections of“cultural primatologists” from the viewpoint of cultural
anthropology. While Langlitz is well aware that his observations are “very much skewed toward the researchers who allowed me” (p. 12), he looks more broadly at
the controversy over whether or not chimpanzees havecultures by comparing the backgrounds of “field studies
vs. laboratory studies” and “Euro‒American studies vs.
Japanese studies.”
I felt slightly awkward to find myself mentioned on p.
12 alongside big names of cultural primatology. While I
felt honored to be grouped among such eminent scholars,honestly speaking this accolade should rather belong toToshisada Nishida. Nishida also deserves to be mentioned
more often elsewhere in the text, at least in my view. For
example, Langlitz did not refer to Nishida even as a representative of Mahale. Instead, he repeatedly arranged“Goodall’s Gombe” and “Itani’s Mahale” consecutively(e.g., pp. 20–21, p. 59, p. 106). I do not deny the significance of Itani’s role in the initial stage of Mahale research.
Calling Mahale “Itani’s,” however, seems almost like calling Gombe “Leakey’s,” as it disregards those who actually worked on site. It was Nishida who stayed at Mahale
for a long time, accomplishing the habituation of K and
M group chimpanzees, and subsequently writing many
influential papers about the site, and maintaining it over24

Pan Africa News, 27(2): 24–25 (2020)the long-term. I understand that Langlitz could not study
Nishida (in the form of participant observation or interview) because, by the time of his research on this topic,
Nishida was already deceased. Nonetheless, it might havebeen better if more credit had been given to this important player, at least in the context of comparing Euro‒American and Japanese cultural primatologists.
Perhaps in conjunction with the paucity of references to Nishida, very few papers or books written in theJapanese language are cited in the book. In my understanding, anthropological studies are usually performed in
the languages of the target audience (at least my anthropologist colleagues use local languages to undertake interviews and participant observations). If texts exist in thelanguage of the targets of an anthropological study, thislocal literature should also be a very important source forinvestigation, especially in the specific context of researchon diversity between cultures.
While reading books of this kind on science studies (oranthropology of science), I sometimes become confused
about whose voices are really represented in the text. For
example, even when the words of a scientist are placed inquotation marks, it is not really easy to tell whose message this is. Of course, the words were originally those of
the scientist, but it is the anthropologist (the author) who
selected them from among many other things that thescientist may have said in the interview or during morecasual conversations with the anthropologist. Thus, the final decision over which words to use in the book seems tobelong to the anthropologist. To further confuse matters,such words are not usually presented independently, but
may be connected to other words or writings by different
actors, which are then woven into a story. Perhaps some
important actors were inevitably excluded from the story.
What may superficially seem to represent the voice of ascientist is actually the result of careful selection by theanthropologist to fit his/her story.
Conversely, human informants do not always tell“truths.” As Langlitz cites the words of William McGrew,“Large-brained, intelligent creatures practice deception,and one of the easiest ways of doing so is by telling lies”(p. 129). I do not want to claim that the primatologists

in this book are telling “lies” to deceive the author, but I
can easily imagine that prominent scientists may be quite
good at presenting themselves well at least to the public
and to the media. Perhaps such great figures’ loud andclear messages are more easily adopted in this kind ofanthropology of science, precisely because they are loudand clear. However, might there not be minorities who
would not even dare to speak their “truth” for fear thatthey may be regarded as defying the alpha? Would there
be a completely different story if the author compiled
such different voices? It might be interesting for a study
to be undertaken on the academic conduct of anthropologists (how they choose target scientists or how they selectwords of the scientists, etc.) just as anthropologists study
the academic conduct of primatologists.
Although I have raised several concerns (some ofwhich I understand are overly demanding), I can assurethat this book is both an important ethnography as well
as a philosophical essay that raises some significant questions regarding cultural primatology. I found it especiallyinteresting to read the discussion of certain similarities
between Kinji Imanishi’s epistemology and recent trends
in science studies. If I understand correctly, both pose
doubts over the presuppositions of the Modern, such as
the a priori division of nature and culture, which may be
perpetuating the deep gap between the academic domainsof humanities and natural sciences.
“It is such deviations from the habitual that get us tothink” (p. 307), Langlitz says in the concluding chapter. I
completely agree. Whether anthropologists or primatologists, this is the main reason that we do fieldwork.

Some minor notes:• “Kazutaka Sugawara” (p. 31) should read “Kazuyoshi
Sugawara” (even many Japanese mistakenly read Sugawara’s first name in kanji as Kazutaka).
• The patterns of grooming hand-clasp in Mahale K and M
groups (p. 131) are reversed.

Received: 17 December 2020
Accepted: 19 December 202025

Pan Africa News, 27(2): 26 (2020)

Book Info

Kevin D. Hunt

Chimpanzee: Lessons from ourSister Species
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 592 pp.
Published in 2020
Online ISBN: 9781108882897
DOI: 10.1017/9781316339916
The chimpanzee is one of our planet’s best-loved
and most instantly recognisable animals. Splitting fromthe human lineage between four and six million years
ago, it is (along with its cousin, the bonobo) our closest
living relative, sharing around 94% of our DNA. First
encountered by Westerners in the seventeenth century,
virtually nothing was known about chimpanzees in theirnatural environment until 1960, when Jane Goodall travelled to Gombe to live and work with them. Accessibly
written, yet fully referenced and uncompromising in its
accuracy and comprehensiveness, this book encapsulates
everything we currently know about chimpanzees: fromtheir discovery and why we study them, to their anatomy,
physiology, genetics and culture. The text is beautifully illustrated and infused with examples and anecdotes drawn
from the author’s thirty years of primate observation,
making this a perfect resource for students of biologicalanthropology and primatology as well as non-specialists
interested in chimpanzees.

CONTENTS

Foreword (pp. ix–x) / Richard Wrangham
Preface (pp. xi–xiv)
Acknowledgments (pp. xv–xx)
Chapter 1. Sister’s Keeper: Humans and Chimpanzees (pp.
1–8)
Chapter 2. Wild Lesson: Why Study Animals in Nature?
(pp. 9–19)
Chapter 3. A Most Surprising Creature: The Discovery of
the Chimpanzee (pp. 20–39)

Chapter 4. Kin: The Chimpanzee’s Place in Nature (pp.
40–60)
Chapter 5. Scratching Out a Living in an Unforgiving
World: Habitat and Diet (pp. 61–79)
Chapter 6. Guts, Glorious Guts, Large Stomach, andColon: Plant Chemistry, Fruit Ripening, Digestive
Physiology, and Gut Anatomy (pp. 80–96)
Chapter 7. Thews, Sinews and Bone: Chimpanzee
Anatomy and Osteology (pp. 97–118)
Chapter 8. Arboreal Gathering, Terrestrial Traveling:
Locomotion and Posture (pp. 119–130)
Chapter 9. Forged in Nature’s Cauldron: Engineering the
Chimpanzee (pp. 131–157)
Chapter 10. Up from the Protoape: The Evolution of the
Chimpanzee (pp. 158–187)
Chapter 11. Building a Nat u ral Wonder: G row th,
Development and Life History (pp. 188–216)
Chapter 12. The Source of Similarity: Chimpanzee
Genetics (pp. 217–241)
Chapter 13. Making Your Way in the Great Wild World:
Chimpanzee Senses (pp. 242–251)
Chapter 14. The Grim Reaper in the Forest Primeval:Wild Chimpanzee Diseases and Lessons for Healthy
Living (pp. 252–273)
Chapter 15. Powering Life: Endocrinology and Physiology(pp. 274–297)
Chapter 16. Shelter f rom the Stor m: Chimpan zee
Mothering (pp. 298–311)
Chapter 17. Meat-Seeking Missiles: Chimpanzees as
Hunters (pp. 312–322)
Chapter 18. The Mind of The Chimpanzee: Reasoning,
Memory and Emotion (pp. 323–356)
Chapter 19. The Brain of the Chimpanzee: The Mind’sMotor (pp. 357–371)
Chapter 20. Tired Nature’s Sweet Restorer: Chimpanzee
Sleep (pp. 372–382)
C h a p t e r 21. C h i m p a n z e e T h o u g h t T r a n s f e r :Communication and Language (pp. 383–403)
Chapter 22. Ape Implements: Making and Using Tools (pp.
404–418)
Chapter 23. Wisdom of the Ages: Chimpanzee Culture (pp.
419–426)
Chapter 24. The Daily Grind: Within-Group Aggression(pp. 427–436)
Chapter 25. A Nation at War with Itself: Defending a
Community of the Mind (pp. 437–448)
Chapter 26. The Sporting Chimpanzee: Dominance without Destruction (pp. 449–457)
Chapter 27. The Passion of Pan: Sex and Reproduction (pp.
458–472)
Chapter 28. Into the Light: Semliki Chimpanzees (pp.
473–498)
Chapter 29. The Other Sister, Bonobos: The Monkey
Convergence Hypothesis (pp. 499–516)
Chapter 30. Sister Species: Lessons from the Chimpanzee(pp. 517–535)
Appendix 1. Taxonomy of the Primates (pp. 536–552)
Appendix 2. Professional Grade Chimpanzee: Testable
Hypotheses (pp. 553–558)
Index (pp. 559–576)

26