Eastern chimpanzee

The eastern chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) is a subspecies of the common chimpanzee. It occurs in the Central African Republic, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and Tanzania. The 2007 IUCN Red List classified them as Endangered. Although the common chimpanzee is the most abundant and widespread of the non-human great apes, recent declines in East Africa are expected to continue due to hunting and loss of habitat. Because chimpanzees and humans are physiologically very similar, chimpanzees succumb to many diseases that afflict humans. If not properly managed, research and tourism also presents a risk of disease transmission between humans and chimpanzees. Colin Groves of the Australian National University argues that there is enough variation between the northern and southern populations of P. t. schweinfurthii to be split into two subspecies instead of one; the northern population as P. t. schweinfurthii and the southern population as P. t. marungensis This subspecies has been extensively studied by Dr. Jane Goodall at Gombe Stream National Park.