![]() The human population of sub-Saharan Africa numbered around 227 million when Goodall first came to Gombe, and by 2050 is expected to exceed 2 billion: a nearly 10-fold increase ( Suzuki, 2019). Gombe’s chimpanzees confront challenges that are faced by wildlife worldwide, as landscapes increasingly become modified to meet the needs of a rapidly growing human population. The park is small, and its chimpanzee population is small, relatively isolated from other chimpanzee populations, and subjected to major disease risks. Despite all this, the ability of Gombe’s chimpanzee population to survive remains uncertain. The worldwide attention gained by Goodall’s research led to the upgrading of Gombe from a Game Reserve to a National Park in 1968. Gombe chimpanzees became the iconic wild chimpanzees, and to a large extent remain so for many, despite the bounty of information now being obtained from many other chimpanzee study sites. Images and stories from Gombe presented in magazines, books, television, and film attracted a global audience. These and other discoveries enabled Goodall to acquire funding needed to extend research at Gombe from the initial five-month project to a truly long-term study, which is now in its 60th year. ![]() After months of patient searching and watching, Goodall observed chimpanzees engaging in behaviors considered key steps in human evolution: eating meat, and making and using tools ( Goodall, 1986). The first long-term study of chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes) began in 1960, when Jane Goodall arrived at Gombe Stream Game Reserve, Tanganyika Territory. Such projects provide important benefits for conserving wildlife and habitats ( Wrangham & Ross, 2008). Understanding the behavior and ecology of long-lived animals like chimpanzees requires long-term research, spanning multiple decades. Conservation work in the Greater Gombe Ecosystem has helped promote broader efforts to plan and work for conservation elsewhere in Tanzania and across Africa. ![]() Many challenges remain, but the regeneration of natural forest on previously degraded lands provides hope that conservation solutions can be found that benefit both people and wildlife. Surveys and genetic analyses confirm that chimpanzees persist on village lands and remain connected to the Gombe population. Expected benefits to people include stabilizing watersheds, improving water supplies, and ensuring a supply of forest resources. To promote habitat restoration, JGI facilitated participatory village land use planning, in which communities voluntarily allocated land to a network of Village Land Forest Reserves. Deforestation reduces connections between Gombe and other chimpanzee populations, which can cause loss of genetic diversity. A health monitoring program has increased understanding of the pathogens affecting chimpanzees and has promoted measures to characterize and reduce disease risk. These chimpanzees face two main challenges to their survival: infectious disease - including simian immunodeficiency virus (SIVcpz), which can cause Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) in chimpanzees - and the deforestation of land outside the park. With funding from multiple sources, including the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) and grants from private foundations and federal programs, the project has continued for sixty years, providing a wealth of information about our evolutionary cousins. The study of chimpanzees in Gombe National Park, Tanzania, started by Jane Goodall in 1960, provided pioneering accounts of chimpanzee behavior and ecology.
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