ISTANBUL

Jane Goodall, the trailblazing British primatologist whose groundbreaking research on chimpanzees transformed the understanding of primates and inspired a global movement for wildlife conservation, has died at 91.

The Jane Goodall Institute announced Wednesday that she died of natural causes while in California as part of her US speaking tour.

“Dr. Goodall’s discoveries as an ethologist revolutionized science, and she was a tireless advocate for the protection and restoration of our natural world,” the institute said in a statement.

Goodall, born April 3, 1934, in London, rose to international prominence with her pioneering 60-year study of wild chimpanzees at Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania. Her observations of tool use, social hierarchies and emotional bonds among chimpanzees challenged long-held beliefs about the divide between humans and animals.

In 2002, she was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace. Over her career, Goodall authored numerous influential books, including In the Shadow of Man. She was also the recipient of some of the world’s most prestigious awards, among them the Kyoto Prize in 1990 and the Templeton Prize in 2021.