Chronology - Great Apes evolving

Chronology – Great Apes evolving

posted in 16 Aug 2021

On the evolutionary scale, man (Homo sapiens) is one of five species of great apes. All descended from the same ancestor and each arose at a certain time in the planet’s history. Check this chart summarizing previsions made on the chronology of emergence of great apes.

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posted in 24 Mar 2025

Chimpanzee Yoko travels from Colombia and arrives at his new home, the Great Apes Sanctuary of Sorocaba, SP, Brazil

After months of documentation procedures and two days of travel, Yoko, a 38-year-old chimpanzee, finally arrives in Brazil on Monday, March 24, 2025. He will be a new resident of the Great Apes Sanctuary of Sorocaba, São Paulo, Brazil, affiliated with the GAP Project. Yoko was the last remaining chimpanzee at Bioparque Ukumari in Pereira,…

posted in 27 Feb 2025

Africa: DRC government directive triggers panic in ape sanctuaries amid ongoing conflict

The Lwiro Primate Rehabilitation Center began 2025 with concern and uncertainty. Amidst the violent conflicts plaguing the country, a government request to transfer chimpanzees from the Sanctuary to the capital's zoo in Kinshasa has sparked a crisis and raised suspicions, potentially putting the animals at serious risk.

posted in 04 Feb 2025

Elephants, gorillas and chimps hold out in Cameroon’s largest protected landscape

WWF research has revealed that the population of elephants, gorillas and chimpanzees in and around two national parks (Boumba Bek and Nki) in Cameroon has remained relatively stable since 2016. Conservationists celebrate, but continue to warn about the threats still facing wild populations.

posted in 03 Feb 2025

Don’t know something? Apes can tell

Bonobo Nyota was part of the study/Ape Initiative

A recent study by Johns Hopkins University shows that bonobos are capable of intuiting the ignorance of others, an ability previously thought to be exclusively human. This capacity is called "Theory of Mind" and was demonstrated by bonobos living at the Ape Initiative, a non-profit research and education organization in the United States.

posted in 31 Jan 2025

Today marks 64 years of the first chimpanzee in space

Exactly 64 years ago, three-year-old Ham was forced to become the first chimpanzee to travel into space. Save the Chimps Sanctuary honors Ham and his involuntary sacrifice, remembering that it was the fate of the chimpanzees in the US Air Force that inspired the founding of the Sanctuary.

Residents' Stories

posted in 06 Mar 2025

Nega and Pinho: life together at the Sanctuary

We remember with love Nega (born in 1977, first photo) and Pinho (born in 1985, second photo). Both lived for many years in the famous Garcia circus, "working" in the performances. However, they were kept in separate cages.

in memoriam

Pinho

Chimpanzee

He lived in Garcia circus, where he had several children.

Date of birth: 1985
Origin: Garcia circus
Sanctuary: Sorocaba, São Paulo/Brazil

posted in 24 Apr 2024

Katai and Sansão: orangutans in captivity in Brazil

Female orangutan Katai is the only resident of the species in a sanctuary in Brazil. Sansão lives alone in the São Paulo zoo for years. A lawsuit requests Sansão to be transferred to the sanctuary, aiming to improve both orangutan’s…

Katai

Orangutan

Meet the beautiful Katai! The female orangutan was born in 1985 in a German zoo and is a Sumatra/Borneo hybrid. Since 2010, she has been one of the residents of the Anami Institute's Great Apes Sanctuary, in Paraná.

Date of birth: 02/07/1985
Origin: Germany
Sanctuary: São José dos Pinhais, Paraná/Brazil

posted in 03 Apr 2024

Children snatched away by the circus

Throughout her life in the circus, Lucy gave birth to several children, but had no chance of becoming a mother. The babies were snatched from her on the day they were born, probably to be sold.

Lucy