The diet of chimpanzees in the Budongo Forest Reserve, Uganda

Chimpanzee diets are highly variable, but in all cases dominated by ripe fruit. Previous work has suggested that in the Budongo Forest Reserve, Uganda, ripe fruit remains available throughout the year, but dietary data for chimpanzees at this site remain sparse. This paper details the diet of a recently habituated community of Budongo chimpanzees living in the Sonso region. Chimpanzees of this community spent 64.5% of their feeding time eating fruit, and 19.7% eating arboreal leaves. Terrestrial herbaceous vegetation formed only a minor component of the diet. In these general dietary characteristics, Budongo chimpanzees show greater similarity to those of the Gombe National Park than they do to those in the geographically closer and floristically more similar Kibale Forest National Park. The diet was dominated by the fruit of four species and leaves of two species, although the composition of the diet varied from month to month, remaining diverse. Figs were consumed throughout much of the year, and in consequence, should perhaps be regarded as a staple, rather than fallback, food. A period of food scarcity was not apparent in this study and future comparative nutritional investigation will be required to determine whether these chimpanzees face a time of dietary hardship.