Kanzi — Ape Initiative

CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF KANZI Thank you to everyone that joined us in honoring the life of the remarkable bonobo, Kanzi Saturday, November 8, 2025 | 5-8 PM Science Center of Iowa 401 W Martin Luther King Jr Pkwy Des Moines, IA 50309 Kanzi’s Celebration of Life was made possible by: Honoring Kanzi If you would like to make a donation in honor of Kanzi, please click the Honoring Kanzi button. KANZI Kanzi was a superstar. He was born to Lorel on October 28th, 1980, and was adopted by Matata when he was 6 months old. Kanzi was Elikya and Maisha’s adopted brother, and Nyota and Teco’s uncle. Kanzi is regarded as the first great ape to demonstrate an understanding of spoken English. Kanzi comprehended novel sentences and combined lexigram symbols to describe new objects and foods. He enjoyed playing water-chase, tickling with his pals Teco and Clara, and using his lexigram keyboard to ask his caregivers for his favorite foods - bananas, grapes, eggs, and peanuts. Kanzi was truly one-of-a-kind! Remembering Kanzi KANZI’S TRANSFORMATION Sadly, due to years of mismanagement by the previous organization, Kanzi became severely overweight. When Ape Initiative took over the care of Kanzi and his bonobo family, we made it a priority to improve the bonobos’ welfare. We started Kanzi on a species appropriate diet and increased his opportunities for physical activity, leading to his tremendous transformation - losing over 75 pounds! We are so proud of the progress Kanzi made and are committed to informing and improving the welfare of bonobos worldwide. KANZI BEFORE APE INITIATIVE KANZI BEFORE APE INITIATIVE KANZI IN 2014 KANZI IN 2015 KANZI IN 2016 KANZI IN 2017 KANZI IN 2018 KANZI IN 2019 DONATE