Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Longevity and mortality of captive chimpanzees in Japan from 1921 to 2018

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Primates Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Utilizing the Great Ape Information Network (GAIN), an open-access nationwide database containing the detailed life history information of all apes who have lived or currently reside in Japan, we present a robust chimpanzee life table by single year of age and sex including 821 individuals spanning nearly a century, current through March 11, 2019. While the demographic composition and status of captive chimpanzees in Japan has been previously reported, longevity and mortality statistics have not. We show that female and male survivorship do not differ significantly, and that a live-born chimpanzee in Japan can expect to live 28.3 years (females 26.3, males 30.3). Life expectancy increases to 34.6 years (females 33.4, males 35.7) for individuals who reach one year of age, and to 40.4 years (females 39.2, males 41.5) for those who survive to adulthood. The oldest chimpanzee in Japan, a wild-born male, lived an estimated 68 years. One in six infants are stillborn, and nearly 80% of all infants born alive survive beyond their first birthday. Finally, we report that a seasonal death pattern exists and chimpanzees in Japan are more likely to decease in the winter months (Dec–Feb) than in any other season.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Analitis A, Katsouyanni K, Biggeri A, Baccini M, Forsberg B, Bisanti L, Kirchmayer U, Ballester F, Cadum E, Goodman PG, Hojs A (2008) Effects of cold weather on mortality: results from 15 European cities within the PHEWE project. Am J Epidemiol 168:1397–1408

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ballou JD, Lacy RC, Pollak JP (2010) PMx: software for demographic and genetic analysis and management of pedigreed populations. Chicago Zoological Society, Brookfield

    Google Scholar 

  • Bronikowski AM, Altmann J, Brockman DK, Cords M, Fedigan LM, Pusey A, Stoinski T, Morris WF, Strier KB, Alberts SC (2011) Aging in the natural world: comparative data reveal similar mortality patterns across primates. Science 331:1325–1328

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Carlsen F, de Jongh T (2014) European studbook for the chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes). Copenhagen Zoo, Frederiksberg

    Google Scholar 

  • Chimpanzee Species Survival Plan (2012) 2012 North American regional chimpanzee studbook (Pan troglodytes). Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Courtenay J, Santow G (1989) Mortality of wild and captive chimpanzees. Folia Primatol 52:167–177

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cox B, Gasparrini A, Catry B, Delcloo A, Bijnens E, Vangronsveld J, Nawrot TS (2016) Mortality related to cold and heat. What do we learn from dairy cattle? Environ Res 149:231–238

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • de Magalhães JP, Costa J (2009) A database of vertebrate longevity records and their relation to other life‐history traits. J Evol Biol 22:1770–1774

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dyke B, Gage TB, Alford PL, Swenson B, Williams-Blangero S (1995) Model life table for captive chimpanzees. Am J Primatol 37:25–37

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Faust LJ, Bergstrom YM, Thompson SD, Bier L (2012a) PopLink version 2.4. Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Faust LJ, Bier L, Schowe K, Gazlay T (2012b) PopLink 2.4: user’s manual. Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Fisken FA, Carlsen F, Elder M, de Jongh T, Pereboom JJM, Pohl B, Rietkerk F, Ross SR, Taniguchi A (2018) Global population records and managed-programme updates for the great apes. Int Zoo Yearb 52:212–226

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gogarten JF, Brown LM, Chapman CA, Cords M, Doran-Sheehy D, Fedigan LM, Grine FE, Perry S, Pusey E, Sterck EH, Wich SA (2012) Seasonal mortality patterns in non-human primates: implications for variation in selection pressures across environments. Evolution 66:3252–3266

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hayashi M, Sakuraba Y, Watanabe S, Kaneko A, Matsuzawa T (2013) Behavioral recovery from tetraparesis in a captive chimpanzee. Primates 54:237–243

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hill K, Boesch C, Goodall J, Pusey A, Williams J, Wrangham R (2001) Mortality rates among wild chimpanzees. J Hum Evol 40:437–450

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hirata S, Morimura N, Watanuki K, Ross SR (in press) The establishment of sanctuaries for former laboratory chimpanzees: challenges, successes, and cross-cultural context. In: Hopper L, Ross SR (eds) Chimpanzees in context. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago

  • Hvilsom C, Frandsen P, Børsting C, Carlsen F, Sallé B, Simonsen BT, Siegismund HR (2013) Understanding geographic origins and history of admixture among chimpanzees in European zoos, with implications for future breeding programmes. Heredity 110:586

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jones KE, Bielby J, Cardillo M, Fritz SA, O’Dell J, Orme CDL, Safi K, Sechrest W, Boakes EH, Carbone C, Connolly C (2009) PanTHERIA: a species-level database of life history, ecology, and geography of extant and recently extinct mammals. Ecology 90:2648

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaplan H, Hill K, Lancaster J, Hurtado AM (2000) A theory of human life history evolution: diet, intelligence, and longevity. Evol Anthropol 9:156–185

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kohler IV, Preston SH, Lackey LB (2006) Comparative mortality levels among selected species of captive animals. Demogr Res 15:413–434

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Littleton J (2005) Fifty years of chimpanzee demography at Taronga Park Zoo. Am J Primatol 67:281–298

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matsuzawa T (2016a) Euthanasia is not an option: 10 years’ care of a chimpanzee with acute tetraparesis. Primates 57:291–293

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matsuzawa T (2016b) SAGA and GAIN for great apes. Primates 57:1–2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matsuzawa T (2018) Chimpanzee Velu: the wild chimpanzee who passed away at the estimated age of 58. Primates 59:107–111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matsuzawa T, Humle T, Sugiyama Y (2011) The chimpanzees of Bossou and Nimba. Springer, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Morimura N, Idani GI, Matsuzawa T (2011) The first chimpanzee sanctuary in Japan: an attempt to care for the “surplus” of biomedical research. Am J Primatol 73:226–232

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muller MN, Wrangham RW (2014) Mortality rates among Kanyawara chimpanzees. J Hum Evol 66:107–114

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ochiai T, Watanuki K, Udono T, Morimura N, Hirata S, Tomonaga M, Idani G, Matsuzawa T (2015) The history of captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) in Japan 1920–1950. Primate Res 31:19–29 (in Japanese with English summary)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rowe N, Myers M (2017) All The World’s Primates. Int Encycl Primatol. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119179313

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saiyed ST, Liubicich RC, Fidino M, Ross SR (2018) Stillbirth rates across three ape species in accredited American zoos. Am J Primatol 80:e22870. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.22870

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson ME, Jones JH, Pusey AE, Brewer-Marsden S, Goodall J, Marsden D, Matsuzawa T, Nishida T, Reynolds V, Sugiyama Y, Wrangham RW (2007) Aging and fertility patterns in wild chimpanzees provide insights into the evolution of menopause. Curr Biol 17:2150–2156

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tidière M, Gaillard JM, Berger V, Müller DW, Lackey LB, Gimenez O, Clauss M, Lemaître JF (2016) Comparative analyses of longevity and senescence reveal variable survival benefits of living in zoos across mammals. Sci Rep 6:36361. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep36361

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Wagner KE, Ross SR (2008) Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) birth patterns and human presence in zoological settings. Am J Primatol 70:703–706

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Watanuki K, Ochiai T, Hirata S, Morimura N, Tomonaga M, Idani G, Matsuzawa T (2014) Review and long-term survey of the status of captive chimpanzees in Japan in 1926–2013. Primate Res 30:147–156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wood BM, Watts DP, Mitani JC, Langergraber KE (2017) Favorable ecological circumstances promote life expectancy in chimpanzees similar to that of human hunter-gatherers. J Hum Evol 105:41–56

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the AZA Population Management and Chicago Zoological Society staff for assistance with questions regarding PopLink and PMx, and the two anonymous reviewers who provided crucial feedback on the original manuscript. Research was supported by SGU MEXT to K.H. and MEXT-JSPS Grants (#16H06283 to T. M., 15H05709 to M. T. and 18H05524 to S. H.); LGP-U04, Core-to-Core Program CCSN and the Great Ape Information Network (GAIN) to T.M.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, 2-24 Tanaka Sekiden-cho, Sakyo, Kyoto, 606-3201, Japan

    Kristin Havercamp & Satoshi Hirata

  2. Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Japan

    Koshiro Watanuki, Masaki Tomonaga & Tetsuro Matsuzawa

  3. Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

    Tetsuro Matsuzawa

  4. Japan Monkey Centre, Inuyama, Japan

    Tetsuro Matsuzawa

Authors
  1. Kristin Havercamp
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Koshiro Watanuki
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Masaki Tomonaga
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Tetsuro Matsuzawa
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Satoshi Hirata
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Satoshi Hirata.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Havercamp, K., Watanuki, K., Tomonaga, M. et al. Longevity and mortality of captive chimpanzees in Japan from 1921 to 2018. Primates 60, 525–535 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-019-00755-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-019-00755-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation