Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) longevity, ageing, and life history

Classification (HAGRID: 03218)

Taxonomy: Kingdom: Animalia
    Phylum: Chordata
        Class: Mammalia (Taxon entry)
            Order: Primates (Taxon entry)
                Family: Hominidae
                    Genus: Pan
Species: Pan troglodytes
Common name: Chimpanzee

Lifespan, ageing, and relevant traits

IMR

0.04/year

MRDT

8 years

Maximum longevity

59.4 years (captivity)

Source

ref. 671

Sample size

Large

Data quality

Acceptable

Observations

Physiological observations indicate that chimpanzees develop age-related changes typical of humans at considerably earlier ages, and geriatric chimpanzees were originally defined as animals with 34 years of age and older [0590]. Even in captivity, young adult chimpanzees have considerably higher mortality rates than humans [0008]. Therefore, while it is not known whether the pace of ageing is different between chimpanzees and humans, the onset of ageing appears to occur at earlier ages in chimpanzees. The MRDT and IMR were estimated based on mortality rates obtained from field sites [0834].

Determining the maximum longevity of chimpanzees is problematic due to the many anecdotal reports. "Cheeta", a male chimpanzee who participated in some Tarzan movies, has been reported to be still alive [0505], as well as died at 80 years of age [0853]; these claims have not been verified and may well be exaggerated. One wild-born female called "Little Mama" was estimated to be over 70 years of age at Lion Country Safari in Florida [0842]. Another specimen, called "Gregoire", reportedly died at the age of 66 in Congo after living most of his life in Brazzaville Zoo. In spite of these claims, chimpanzees in captivity have not been confirmed to live for more than 60 years [0671]. Therefore, although the issue is controversial, the established maximum longevity of chimpanzees remains the 59.4 years that a female called "Gamma" was when she died in 1992 at Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center in Atlanta [0574]. Similarly, the maximum longevity in the wild belongs to one 55 year-old female, though there are unverified reports suggesting a longer lifespan [0008].

There is considerable controversy regarding whether chimpanzees reach menopause [0976]. A 56 year-old female has been reported to give birth at Sunset Zoo in Manhattan, Kansas [0854].

Life history traits (averages)

Female sexual maturity: 3,376 days
Male sexual maturity: 2,920 days
Gestation: 229 days
Weaning: 1,111 days
Litter size: 1 (viviparous)
Litters per year: 0.2
Inter-litter interval: 840 days
Weight at birth: 1,821 g
Weight at weaning: 8,500 g
Adult weight: 44,984 g
Postnatal growth rate: 0.0007 days^-1 (from Gompertz function)
Maximum longevity residual: 236%

Metabolism

Typical body temperature: 309ºK or 35.7ºC or 96.3ºF
Basal metabolic rate: Not yet available

References

[0866] Nunamaker et al. (2012), Chronic diseases in captive geriatric female Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), PubMed
[0899] Sherwood et al. (2011), Aging of the cerebral cortex differs between humans and chimpanzees, PubMed
[0877] Fujisawa et al. (2010), Farsightedness (presbyopia) in a wild elderly chimpanzee: the first report, PubMed
[1078] Hawkes et al. (2009), Mortality and fertility rates in humans and chimpanzees: How within-species variation complicates cross-species comparisons, PubMed
[0844] Atsalis and Videan (2009), Reproductive aging in captive and wild common chimpanzees: factors influencing the rate of follicular depletion, PubMed
[0871] Videan et al. (2008), Reproductive aging in female chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), PubMed
[0862] Lacreuse et al. (2008), Menstrual cycles continue into advanced old age in the common chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), PubMed
[0837] Rosen et al. (2008), Tauopathy with paired helical filaments in an aged chimpanzee, PubMed
[0846] Seraphin et al. (2008), The influence of age on fecal steroid hormone levels in male Budongo Forest chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii), PubMed
[0753] Videan et al. (2008), Effects of aging on hematology and serum clinical chemistry in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), PubMed
[0752] Emery Thompson et al. (2007), Aging and fertility patterns in wild chimpanzees provide insights into the evolution of menopause, PubMed
[0736] Videan et al. (2006), The effects of aging on hormone and reproductive cycles in female chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), PubMed
[0607] Dou et al. (2006), Co-evolutionary analysis of insulin/insulin like growth factor 1 signal pathway in vertebrate species, PubMed
[0834] de Magalhaes (2006), Species selection in comparative studies of aging and antiaging research
[0535] Fraser et al. (2005), Aging and gene expression in the primate brain, PubMed
[0671] Richard Weigl (2005), Longevity of Mammals in Captivity; from the Living Collections of the World
[0976] Cohen (2004), Female post-reproductive lifespan: a general mammalian trait, PubMed
[0072] Sugiyama (2004), Demographic parameters and life history of chimpanzees at Bossou, Guinea, PubMed
[0256] Finch and Stanford (2004), Meat-adaptive genes and the evolution of slower aging in humans, PubMed
[0234] Howell et al. (2003), Normal hematologic and serum clinical chemistry values for captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), PubMed
[0073] Gunji et al. (2003), Extraordinarily low bone mineral density in an old female chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) from the Mahale Mountains National Park, PubMed
[0610] Ernest (2003), Life history characteristics of placental non-volant mammals
[0681] Peter Kappeler and Michael Pereira (2003), Primate Life Histories and Socioecology
[0467] Lindenfors (2002), Sexually antagonistic selection on primate size
[0008] Hill et al. (2001), Mortality rates among wild chimpanzees, PubMed
[0434] Ronald Nowak (1999), Walker's Mammals of the World
[1057] Fowler et al. (1999), Establishing the presence of a body temperature rhythm in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) using a tympanic membrane thermometer
[0463] Austad (1997), Small nonhuman primates as potential models of human aging, PubMed
[0235] Gearing et al. (1996), A beta40 is a major form of beta-amyloid in nonhuman primates, PubMed
[0574] Hakeem et al. (1996), Brain and life span in primates
[0676] Purvis and Harvey (1995), Mammal life-history evolution: a comparative test of Charnov's model
[0236] Gearing et al. (1994), Neuropathology and apolipoprotein E profile of aged chimpanzees: implications for Alzheimer disease, PubMed
[0455] Virginia Hayssen et al. (1993), Asdell's Patterns of Mammalian Reproduction: A Compendium of Species-Specific Data
[0237] Sumner et al. (1989), Apparent age-related bone loss among adult female Gombe chimpanzees, PubMed
[0680] Wootton (1987), The effects of body mass, phylogeny, habitat, and trophic level on mammalian age at first reproduction
[0679] Harvey and Clutton-Brock (1985), Life-history variation in primates
[0731] Zullinger et al. (1984), Fitting sigmoid equations to mammalian growth curves
[0323] Gould et al. (1981), Chimpanzee reproductive senescence: a possible model for evolution of the menopause, PubMed
[0059] Tolmasoff et al. (1980), Superoxide dismutase: correlation with life-span and specific metabolic rate in primate species, PubMed
[0436] Cutler (1979), Evolution of human longevity: a critical overview, PubMed
[0238] Graham (1979), Reproductive function in aged female chimpanzees, PubMed
[0239] Graham and McClure (1977), Ovarian tumors and related lesions in aged chimpanzees, PubMed
[0505] C.H.E.E.T.A. Primate Sanctuary
[0590] ChimpanZoo
[0842] Lion Country Safari
[0853] Suncoast Primate Sanctuary
[0854] Sunset Zoo

External Resources