Chimpanzees and their mammalian sympatriates in the Issa Valley, Tanzania

Abstract

Chimpanzees have been studied for nearly 300 combined years across Africa, but aside from their roles as predators or prey, remarkably little is known about the diverse species with whom they share habitats. We calculated likely chimpanzee encounter rates with sympatric mammals in the Issa Valley, Tanzania, through modelling actual researcher encounter rates with all medium and large mammals. Compared to other long-term chimpanzee study sites, Issa had a relatively high diversity in medium and large mammal species present, with 36 species documented. We encountered common duiker (Sylvicapra grimmia) most frequently, followed by yellow baboons (Papio cynocephalus) and bushbuck. Chimpanzees ranked fifth overall. Chimpanzees, on the other hand, were predicted to most frequently encounter bushbuck, klipspringer and hartebeest—all woodland species. We compare these results to published literature and contextualise them in light of reconstructing diverse mammalian communities in which hominins lived during the Plio-Pleistocene and the use of chimpanzees as flagship species for conservation policy.