bonobo

/bəˈnoʊboʊ/

Other forms: bonobos

A bonobo is an African ape that's slightly smaller than a chimpanzee. Known for being timid and peaceful, bonobo groups are also matriarchal, led by females.

Along with chimpanzees, bonobos are our closest relatives, sharing 98.7 percent of their DNA with humans. These apes are native to a small region in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where their existence is threatened by deforestation and poaching. Bonobo most likely derives from a misspelling of the Congolese town of Bolobo printed on a shipping crate. Before being recognized as a separate species and given a distinct name, they were called pygmy chimpanzees.

Definitions of bonobo

1. noun

   a small ape of swamp forests in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; a threatened species
   synonyms: Pan paniscus, pygmy chimpanzee

   type of:

   Pan troglodytes, chimp, chimpanzee

   intelligent somewhat arboreal ape of equatorial African forests