The Status of Bonobo (Pan Paniscus) in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Abstract

The total bonobo population may be larger than the most conservative estimates referred to in early publications that ignore the likely existence of several as yet unidentified bonobo populations. However, free-ranging bonobo populations are currently being decimated by the Congolese people, who are desperately seeking a way to eke out a living. This devastating impact is caused not by subsistence hunting, but by ever growing commercial hunting. An increasing fragmentation of the remaining bonobo population is a likely outgrowth of this hunting. An aerial view of the forest provides few clues of the slaughter taking place beneath the canopy;only a resident becomes aware of this. The dearth of more detailed figures on bonobo distribution, densities, and ecology and on socioeconomic conditions of local human populations should be emphasized at every opportunity. Despite a lack of significant investment by donor organizations, a small group of dedicated researchers and conservationists continue their grassroots efforts. We make an appeal to all interested institutions and agencies to resume or increase their support of researchers and conservationists working in the field under sometimes desperate conditions. We must not wait until Pan paniscus becomes a critically endangered species and assumes a place next to the mountain gorilla on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The bonobo’s situation is urgent, but it is not yet too late to intervene on the species’behalf.