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East Africa > Tanzania > Southern Tanganyika

Summary

• Eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) are present in Southern Tanganyika.
• It has been estimated that approximately 100 chimpanzees are found in the site.
• The population trend is unknown.
• Key threats to chimpanzees are logging, fires, and agricultural expansion.
• Conservation activities have focused on monitoring the population.
• The area holds the most southerly wild chimpanzee population in Africa.

Site characteristics

The site is located in western Tanzania, along the southern shores of Lake Tanganyika. The chimpanzee population in this area represents the most southerly wild chimpanzee population in Africa (TAWIRI 2018). The region contains large tracts of intact woodland characterised by Brachystegia sp. and Julbernardia spp. that provide high-quality habitat for a variety of species, including chimpanzees, savanna elephants and zebras (TAWIRI 2018).

Table 1. Basic site information for Southern Tanganyika

Area
Coordinates	-7.937187 S, 30.970704 E
Designation	Unclassified
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical dry forest, subtropical/tropical dry grassland

IUCN habitat categories Site designations

Ape status

Approximately 100 chimpanzees survive in the area, which spans from the south of Kipili to the north of Kalambo Falls, across two protected areas i.e., Lwafi Game Reserve and Loasi Forest Reserve. However, most of them are found outside protected areas (TAWIRI 2018).

Table 2. Ape population estimates in Southern Tanganyika

Species	Year	Abundance estimate (95% CI)	Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI)	Encounter rate (nests/km)	Area	Method	Source	Comments	A.P.E.S. database ID
Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii

Threats

Chimpanzees in the area are highly threatened by habitat loss. Destruction and degradation of their habitat, especially loss of riparian forest, comes from the expansion of agricultural activities and logging for timber and charcoal production (TAWIRI 2018).

Table 3. Threats to apes in Southern Tanganyika

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Quantified severity	Description	Year of threat
1. Residential & commercial development		Unknown
2. Agriculture & aquaculture	2.1 Annual & perennial non-timber crops	High		Forests and grasslands are cleared for commercial agriculture (WCS n.d., TAWIRI 2018).	Ongoing (2018)
3. Energy production & mining		Unknown
4. Transportation & service corridors		Unknown
5. Biological resource use	5.3 Logging & wood harvesting	High		Logging related to charcoal and timber production (WCS n.d., TAWIRI 2018).	Ongoing (2018)
6. Human intrusion & disturbance		Unknown
7. Natural system modifications	7.1 Fire & fire suppression	Present, but threat severity unknown		Uncontrolled fires (WCS n.d.).	Ongoing
8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases		Unknown
9. Pollution		Unknown
10. Geological Events		Absent
11. Climate change & severe weather		Unknown
12. Other options		Absent

IUCN Threats list

Conservation activities

The area is included in WCS' Southern Highlands Conservation Program, which was set up in 2000 to conserve key upland habitats and endangered species across southwest Tanzania (WCS n.d.). Chimpanzees are the focus of research and monitoring along the southern shores of Lake Tanganyika, and the first nationwide census and assessment of their habitat has been performed (WCS n.d.). The IUCN's "Eastern Chimpanzee Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan 2010–2020" and the "Tanzania Chimpanzee Conservation Action Plan 2018-2023" identified southern Tanganyka as an important target for conservation actions (TAWIRI 2018, Plumptre et al. 2010).

Table 4. Conservation activities in Southern Tanganyika

Category	Specific activity	Description	Year of activity
1. Residential & commercial development	Not reported
2. Agriculture & aquaculture	Not reported
3. Energy production & mining	Not reported
4. Transportation & service corridors	Not reported
5. Biological resource use	Not reported
6. Human intrusion & disturbance	Not reported
7. Natural system modifications	Not reported
8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases	Not reported
9. Pollution	Not reported
10. Education & Awareness	Not reported
11. Habitat Protection	Not reported
12. Species Management	Not reported
13. Livelihood; Economic & Other Incentives	Not reported

Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)

Challenges

Table 5. Challenges reported for Southern Tanganyika

Challenge	Source
Not reported

Research activities

Documented behaviours

Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Southern Tanganyika

Behavior	Source
Not reported

External links

WCS - Southern Highlands

Relevant datasets

A.P.E.S Portal

References

TAWIRI. (2018). Tanzania Chimpanzee Conservation Action Plan 2018-2023. TAWIRI Contact: info@tawiri.or.tz
WCS (n.d.). Landscapes: The Southern Highlands. https://tanzania.wcs.org/Landscapes/Southern-Highlands.aspx
Plumptre, A.J., Rose, R., Nangendo, G., Williamson, E.A., Didier, K., Hart, J., Mulindahabi, F., Hicks, C., Griffin, B., Ogawa, H., Nixon, S., Pintea, L., Vosper, A., McClennan, M., Amsini, F., McNeilage, A., Makana, J.R., Kanamori, M., Hernandez, A., Piel, A., Stewart, F., Moore, J., Zamma, K., Nakamura, M., Kamenya, S., Idani, G., Sakamaki, T., Yoshikawa, M., Greer, D., Tranquilli, S., Beyers, R., Furuichi, T., Hashimoto, C. and Bennett, E. (2010). Eastern Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii): Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan 2010–2020. IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group, Gland, Switzerland. 52pp.

Page completed by: A.P.E.S. Wiki team Date: 14/11/2021