'Maternal Instinct'

18x24 Acrylic on Canvas
 
In the wild, female Chimpanzees give birth every four to five years and their gestation period is eight to nine months. Chimpanzees have a long mother-infant dependency period. Infants will nurse on their mothers for five years and stay with their mothers several more years learning to care for younger siblings. The current chimpanzee population is estimated to be between 80,000 to 120,000. The number one threat is the bush meat trade that results in 6,000 chimpanzees per year being killed and eaten by humans. Chimpanzees are currently threatened to extinction by habitat destruction for logging and mining, as well as poaching for the exotic pet trade. When poached, mothers are killed, and if a baby survives the fall of the mother from the tree, the baby is taken by poachers.