Project Chimps Blog

Choose your favorite chimpanzee for the cover of our upcoming 2019 Project Chimps Calendar! Caregiver/photographer, Crystal Alba, has chosen five of her favorite images for you to vote on. Will it be Gertrude, Stirlene, Loretta, Almasi, or Noel? The contest is open through July 23, so VOTE NOW!  

Meet Project Chimps on the first-everWorld Chimpanzee Day, Saturday, July 14. World Chimpanzee Day was created to celebrate chimpanzees, our closest cousin. It’s a day to raise awareness about chimpanzees, learn about the threats they’re facing (and what we can do to help), and promote the proper care of chimps when they can’t be in…

In our June News, Ali Crumpacker reflects on what Koko the gorilla taught us about communication, as many mourned her passing. Read about Gertrude and Jason’s second encounter in our chimpanzee introduction program; and meet our new board members Amber Nash and Helen & Simon Law.

Project Chimps Executive Director Ali Crumpacker describes her experiences with wildlife observation in Africa and at Project Chimps. In this issue we also welcome our first intern, Fred Rubio, and recap Hercules and Leo’s first experience in our outdoor Peachtree Habitat. Read more in our May news.

Emma graced the cover of the May/June issue of All Animals magazine! All Animals is the award-winning, bimonthly membership publication of The Humane Society of the United States, the nation’s largest and most effective animal protection organization, backed by more than 10 million people. The article was written by Emily Smith and features beautiful photos of the…

Nearly 500 people attended Project Chimps’ first Discovery Days open house May 19 and 20. Guests came from areas as near as Morganton and as far away as California for a chance to see the former research chimpanzees and learn more about their journey from the lab to their permanent home at Project Chimps. At…

Morganton, GA (May 16, 2018) – Everyone at Project Chimps is mourning the loss of Sopulu, a 15-year-old male chimpanzee who lived with his chimpanzee family and human caregivers at our sanctuary in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Georgia. Caregivers found Sopulu laying unresponsive in his hammock on Tuesday morning with group mate Arthur by his side.…

Hercules and Leo were the first two chimpanzees in their social group to explore Project Chimps’ forested outdoor Peachtree Habitat on May 8, 2018. It was an important day in the lives of these well-known former research chimpanzees and a new beginning in their lives of retirement at Project Chimps. Hercules, Leo and their seven…

In our April 2018 update, we see how well-known former research chimpanzees Hercules and Leo are settling in, along with their seven adolescent group mates. We also look at the critical role volunteers play at a chimpanzee sanctuary – we couldn’t do it without them!

Morganton, GA (March 21) — Two well-known former research chimpanzees now have a forever home in the Blue Ridge Mountains, thanks to a cooperative agreement between the New Iberia Research Center in Louisiana and Project Chimps, a 236-acre sanctuary in north Georgia. Eleven-year-old Hercules and Leo joined other retired chimpanzees at the forested Project Chimps…

Gertrude meets Jason in our March 2018 update as we describe our new chimpanzee introduction program. The intros are conducted under the supervision of Michael Seres, Project Chimps’ Manager of Chimpanzee Socialization. We also look in on Genesis after her recent bout with pneumonia and look ahead to Project Chimps’ first-ever Discovery Days.

Project Chimps has been granted full member status in the North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance. The North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance (NAPSA) is dedicated to the mission of advancing and advocating for the welfare of captive primates. This coalition of primate sanctuaries, who care for more than 700 nonhuman primates retired from the entertainment, biomedical…

Project Chimps took top honors at the Blue Ridge Business Association’s annual Fire & Ice Chili Cook Off with its debuted “Chimp Chili” recipe. The animal-free, vegan chili recipe was created by Rachael Ray and modified with her permission to include foods that are tasty to both humans and chimpanzees! The chili earned first place…

February 7, 2018, (Washington DC) – The Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS), the only globally recognized organization providing standards for identifying legitimate animal sanctuaries, awarded Accredited status to Project Chimps as of February 1, 2018. Project Chimps is the newest chimpanzee sanctuary in the United States and provides lifelong care to former research chimpanzees…

In our February 2018 update, we describe the first day in our outdoor habitat for Marlon and his group of seven chimpanzees. Project Chimps’ executive director, Ali Crumpacker, also shares her experiences working with wild and exotic animals.