larger than the females. Chimpanzees’
arms are longer than their legs. They
have coats of brown or black hair. But
their faces, large ears, hands, and feet are
bare.
Behavior
Chimpanzees eat mainly plants, including
fruits, leaves, and seeds. They also
eat insects and birds’ eggs. Sometimes
chimpanzees hunt and eat monkeys and
other mammals.
On the ground chimpanzees can walk
upright on two legs. But more often
they lean on their knuckles and walk on
all fours. Chimpanzees spend time both
in trees and on the ground.
Chimpanzees make and use a variety of
simple tools. For instance, some chimpanzees
chew certain leaves to make
them spongy. Next, they push the leaves
into tree hollows filled with water. They
use sticks to get their leaf-sponges back
out. Finally, they drink the water from
the leaves. Young chimpanzees probably
learn how to use tools by watching and
imitating adults.
Chimpanzees live in groups of about 15
to 120 individuals, led by a male. They
communicate with each other using
facial expressions, gestures, and sounds.
Members of a group are generally
friendly toward each other but
unfriendly to other groups. Sometimes
one group will attack a smaller group
and try to take its land.
#More to explore
Ape • Bonobo • Primate
The West African, or masked, chimpanzee
is an endangered species. This means that it
is in danger of dying out.
100 Chimpanzee BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
China
More than one fifth of all the people in
the world live in China. The country is
also the largest in Asia. China’s capital is
Beijing.
Geography
China shares borders with Mongolia,
Russia, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos,
Myanmar, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan,
Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan,
and Kazakhstan. The Yellow,
East China, and South China seas lie to
the east. The Himalayan, Karakoram,
and Altai mountain ranges separate
China from its neighbors to the west.
The Plateau of Tibet in the southwest is
a cold, mountainous region. The northwest
is a highland with large desert
basins. The east holds almost all of China’s
lowlands. China’s major rivers are
the Huang He, the Yangtze, and the Xi.
Plants and Animals
Forests cover about 15 percent of China’s
land. Among the many trees are
tung, camphor, lacquer, and star anise
trees. Mangrove swamps are found along
the South China Sea. Rain forests grow
in parts of southern China.
Giant pandas, Chinese paddlefish, and
giant salamanders live in the wild only
in China. Other animals and birds
include tigers, monkeys, alligators,
pheasants, and laughing thrushes.
People
The Han, or the ethnic Chinese, make
up more than 90 percent of the population.
Mandarin, a type of Han Chinese,
is the official language. China has about
55 minority groups. For many years the
government discouraged religion, but
that began to change in the late 20th
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA China 101
century. Today many people follow traditional
Chinese beliefs. Growing numbers
practice Buddhism, Christianity,
and Islam.
About 38 percent of the people live in
cities.More than 40 cities have at least
1 million residents. The government has
tried to control the growing population
by asking families to have only one child.
Economy
China’s Communist government once
owned most of the businesses and farms
in the country. Today individuals are
allowed to own businesses. As a result
the economy is growing steadily.
Mining and manufacturing are the most
important economic activities. Mines
produce zinc, lead, copper, iron ore,
coal, and other minerals. Factories make
cement, steel, iron, paper, chemicals,
fabrics, electronic products, household
appliances, and cars. Service industries,
including finance and health care, are
becoming increasingly important.
Agriculture is a smaller part of the
economy. However, it employs the
largest number of workers. China is the
world’s top producer of rice. It also
produces corn, wheat, soybeans,
peanuts, fruits, vegetables, tobacco,
cotton, pigs, and chickens.
History
Human ancestors lived in what is now
China at least 400,000 years ago. By
about 2000 BC people began living in
settled groups and farming. Eventually
those groups formed communities and
then dynasties, or royal families, to rule
over the communities.
Dynasties
The first dynasty for which there are
written records was the Shang. It took
Xiling Gorge is a part of the Three Gorges region of China’s Yangtze River. A huge dam in
the area has caused the water in the gorge to rise greatly.
Facts About
CHINA
Population
(2008 estimate)
1,324,681,000
Area
3,696,100 sq mi
(9,572,900 sq
km)
Capital
Beijing
Form of
government
People’s republic
Major cities
Shanghai,
Beijing, Tianjin,
Guangzhou,Wuhan,
Chongqing,
Shenyang
102 China BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
power over part of China in the 1700s
BC. The Shang created bronze tools and
written documents. Their neighbors, the
Zhou, took over their territory in about
1050 BC. The Zhou Dynasty ruled a
loose collection of states. The leaders of
one of those states, the Qin, unified
China in 221 BC. The Qin began to
construct the GreatWall of China,
which was more than 4,000 miles long.
From 202 BC to AD 1279, the Han, Sui,
