Chimpanzees are found in 21 African countries - from the West coast of the continent to as far East as Western Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and Tanzania. Chimps live in the greatest concentrations in the rainforest areas of what used to be the equatorial forest "belt." Unfortunately, rapid deforestation in Africa has eliminated this belt, leaving only fragmented patches of forest where it once stretched.
However, Chimpanzees are able to move out into quite arid areas, such as southwest Tanzania and Senegal. Chimpanzees are also found in secondary re-growth forests, open woodlands, bamboo forests, swamp forests, and even open savanna with bands of riverine forest and forest savanna mosaic. In these areas they seldom venture far into the savanna except to move from one forest patch to the next.
The Gombe National Park (where JGI continues its 40-year study of a chimpanzee community) is a mixture of woodland, open areas on ridges and peaks, and thick riverine forest in the valleys. In order to survive, Chimpanzees need a water supply and a variety of fruits. They are omnivores, eating not only fruits, nuts, seeds, blossoms, and leaves, but insects and occasionally medium-sized mammals. Chimpanzees, like humans, have such catholic tastes that they are able to live in a wide variety of habitats, unlike gorillas and orang-utans which have more highly specialized diets.
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