The hilly terrain within the Project zone consists of irregular dry forest and grassland mosaic habitat increasing in elevation out of the southern periphery of the topographic

Congo
Basin

. This Project area delineates the most southern limit, at latitude 4^o South, of bonobo occupation within the species geographic distribution.

Ecological field data from the site challenges the established image of bonobos as specialized arboreal apes restricted to living exclusively in lowland moist forest. Although it is clear that bonobos require access to forest, Lukuru Project findings provided evidence that bonobos also occupy and utilize a drier and more open habitat. Observations confirmed that grassland fruits are consumed by resident bonobos. These findings changed the perception of the species’ ecological limits.

Bonobo crossing a grassland patch and feeding on grassland fruit.

Research and observations in the Lukuru are the first evidence of bonobos inhabiting patches of savanna grassland.

In 1997 we were able to again provide startling new evidence … this time of bonobos frequenting and using perennial pools to feed on sub aquatic vegetation. Here the bonobos are observed to wade bipedally out into pools of waist-deep water. This was markedly unique habitat use compared to the shallow streams that bonobos had been known to wade in at other field sites.

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