The least known of the great apes, it is only to be found in the Congo, where it has been gravely affected by the civil war. That is clearly a threat. The primates have also been affected by the general indifference shown to the environment in the last few years. Now the Ape Alliance wants to put their plight back in the public eye. The world's top ape experts are gathering in London to demand action - before it is too late.
Many chimpanzees die from wounds caused by snares set for other animals.
Chimpanzees are our closest living relatives. A former Archbishop of York argued that chimps have souls. The smallest group of African great apes is the cross river gorilla, of which only 150 to 200 individuals survive. The Bornean orang-utan is losing its home because of legal and illegal logging and land conversion to palm oil. The Bornean orang-utan is also hunted and captured for pets.