Chimpanzees, Saving

At the beginning of the 20th century, more than 2 million chimpanzees flourished in the forests of 25 African countries. Today, only 4 nations have significant populations. Population estimates for 1999 show that common chimpanzee numbers have dwindled to between 150,000 to 235,000 individuals. Most of the remaining animals are found in the Central Africa forests of Zaire, Gabon, Congo, and Cameroon. There are many factors that have contributed to the decline of wild chimpanzee populations. The largest contributor to the chimpanzee crisis is the threat made by the overpopulation of Homo sapiens. Large encampments of human population create a stress on the environment by consuming resources. Harvesting the environment for fuel and raw material results in deforestation and loss of habitat. Harvesting the environment for food results in the bushmeat trade.

The Pan African Sanctuary Alliance (PASA) is an alliance of 16 primate sanctuaries from all over Africa. PASA suggests a need for general guidelines for the establishment of authorities, site location, long-term sustainability, management practice, primate management, and health issues. Norm Rosen, a member of the PASA advisory board and a professor of anthropology at California State University Fullerton, coordinated a study on the extinction rate of the wild chimpanzee. The results of this research suggested that certain subspecies of chimpanzee could become extinct within the next two decades. The Pan troglodytes vellerosous is one of four chimpanzee subspecies, and it is estimated that only 8,000 remain in the wild. According to Rosen, the situation is critical; the rising number of orphaned chimpanzees is indicative of the decrease in population. There are a variety of reasons why wild chimpanzee populations are dropping dramatically.

The tropical rain forests of West and Central Africa cover an area of over 2 million sq km. Timber companies enter into untouched areas in search of the valuable trees that are scattered throughout the forest. The building of roads into unlogged areas heavily fragments the forest and opens it up to hunters. Logging companies introduce a large new workforce that increases the demand for meat. Furthermore, logging vehicles are used to transport bushmeat to the market, where the precious delicacy can satiate [Page 507]the demands of the masses. The vehicles facilitate the process, which results in more demand: more mouths to feed and ultimately far fewer chimpanzees in the wild. The logging companies make it easy and profitable for their workers to enter into the commercial trade for bushmeat.

Economics drives the bushmeat crisis. Growing demand for meat in most cities provides new economic opportunities for people whose traditional sources of income have disappeared and where jobs have become scarce. A majority of people who eat bushmeat do so because it is cheap or free and easily accessible. Hunting is vital to families without access to agricultural markets. Hunting is also woven into many societies. Animal parts, such as horns, feathers, or bones, are a crucial part of many cultural and religious ceremonies.

Source: Photograph by Gregory Scott Hamilton,Honolulu Zoo.

Central Africans typically eat as much as many Europeans and North Americans (30–70 kg/person/year). Approximately 30 million people live in the forests of Central Africa, and they eat approximately 1.1 million tons of wildlife each year. The estimated annual value of the bushmeat trade in West and Central Africa could exceed 1 billion U.S.dollars. A hunter can make $300 to $1,000 per year from commercial hunting, which, in that economic reality, is a lot of money. As the urban populations create more of a demand, more people will be attracted to the bushmeat trade.

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