The genus Pan consists of two extant species: the bonobo and the chimpanzee. Taxonomically, these two ape species are collectively termed panins; however, both species are more commonly referred to collectively using the generalized term chimpanzees, or chimps. Together with humans, gorillas, and orangutans, they are part of the family Hominidae (the great apes, or hominids). Native to sub-Saharan Africa, chimpanzees and bonobos are currently both found in the Congo jungle, while only the chimpanzee is also found further north in West Africa. Both species are listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and in 2017 the Convention on Migratory Species selected the chimpanzee for special protection.

Chimpanzee and bonobo: comparison

The chimpanzee (P. troglodytes), which lives north of the Congo River, and the bonobo (P. paniscus), which lives south of it, were once considered to be the same species, but since 1928 they have been recognized as distinct. In addition, P. troglodytes is divided into four subspecies, while P. paniscus is undivided<!--By definition, it is not possible for a species to have a single subspecies, it either has 2 or more subspecies or none-->. Based on genome sequencing, these two extant Pan species diverged around one million years ago.

The most obvious differences are that chimpanzees are somewhat larger, more aggressive and male-dominated, while the bonobos are more gracile, peaceful, and female-dominated. Their hair is typically black or brown. Males and females differ in size and appearance. Both chimpanzees and bonobos are some of the most social great apes, with social bonds occurring throughout large communities. Fruit is the most important component of a chimpanzee's diet; but they will also eat vegetation, bark, honey, insects and even other chimpanzees or monkeys. They can live over 30 years in both the wild and captivity.

thumb|right|[[Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) (left) and bonobo (Pan paniscus) (right)]]

Chimpanzees and bonobos are equally humanity's closest living relatives. They use a variety of sophisticated tools and construct elaborate sleeping nests each night from branches and foliage. Their learning abilities have been extensively studied. There may even be distinctive cultures within populations. Field studies of Pan troglodytes were pioneered by primatologist Jane Goodall.

Names

The genus name Pan was first introduced by Lorenz Oken in 1816. While Oken did not give a rationale for his choice, it is generally thought to have been inspired by the name of the Greek god Pan. An alternative Theranthropus was suggested by Brookes 1828 and Chimpansee by Voigt 1831. Troglodytes was not available, as it had been given as the name of a genus of wren in 1809, for "cave-dweller", reflecting the tendency of some wrens to forage in dark crevices. The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature adopted Pan as the only official name of the genus in 1895, glossed as meaning "mockman" in a language of "the Angolans" (apparently from a Bantu language; reportedly modern Vili (Civili), a Zone H Bantu language, has the comparable ci-mpenzi). The spelling chimpanzee is found in a 1758 supplement to Chamber's Cyclopædia. The colloquialism "chimp" was most likely coined some time in the late 1870s.

The chimpanzee was named Simia troglodytes by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach in 1776. The species name troglodytes is a reference to the Troglodytae (literally "cave-goers"), an African people described by Greco-Roman geographers. Blumenbach first used it in his De generis humani varietate nativa liber ("On the natural varieties of the human genus") in 1776, Linnaeus 1758 had already used Homo troglodytes for a hypothetical mixture of human and orangutan.

The bonobo, in the past also referred to as the "pygmy chimpanzee", was given the species name of paniscus by Ernst Schwarz (1929), a Greek-style diminutive of the theonym Pan used by Cicero.

Distribution and habitat

There are two species of the genus Pan, both previously called simply chimpanzees:

  1. Chimpanzees or Pan troglodytes, are found almost exclusively in the heavily forested regions of Central and West Africa. With at least four commonly accepted subspecies, their population and distribution is much more extensive than the bonobos, in the past also called 'pygmy chimpanzee'.
  2. Bonobos, Pan paniscus, are found only in Central Africa, south of the Congo River and north of the Kasai River (a tributary of the Congo), in the humid forest of the Democratic Republic of Congo of Central Africa.