Chimpanzee Vs Bonobos Essay

Pan troglodytes, Pan Paniscus, and Homo sapiens or more commonly referred to as Chimpanzees, Bonobos, and Humans have unbelievably similar biological traits that one could invoke philosophical reflection of our origin and evolution. Highly intelligent, social, vocalized, animals that share a taxonomic group with Homo sapiens: a tribe. But where do we draw the line? How do we define these primates as different species even at a 98% gene proportion? Are these creatures analogous to each other to the degree as we currently believe? Let us find out! Personality can create a huge factor in identifying diverse characteristics. The first research conducted to differentiate Chimpanzees and Bonobos was on each species distinct behavioral pattern. Sarah Heilbronner an anthropologist from Harvard Universities conducted this deep analysis of risk vs. reward behavior on both species. The
But how physically different are these two primates? Not very much; both species have similar cranial capacity and physical features. Both apes are considered knuckle walkers with evident brachiation. The most notable difference in physical features is the split hairlines found in bonobos in contrast to the flat hair Chimpanzee. Average lifespan of both apes are quite close with Bonobos having a slightly lower average lifespan of 40 years while Chimpanzee can live up to 40-50 years (Lang KA, 2010). Perhaps the most different trait of each primate is how much physical deviation is between the genders. Sexual dimorphism is more apparent in Chimpanzees than in Bonobos. The average fully matured male bonobo weighs 86lb while average matured female bonobo weigh 68lb. Male Chimpanzees on the other hand weigh an average of 110lb while matured females can weigh 87lb (Lang KA, 2006). The outcome is that although there are slight physical, Chimpanzee and Bonobos are almost