At just three months of age, Bili not only got to have his own seat on a flight from Birmingham to Frankfurt , but also got his own passport, complete with name and picture.

Not impressed? Well you will be if you look closer at the picture and realize that Bili is not human, but a chimpanzee, who was flying to his new home in Germany.

Bili, a bonobo chimpanzee was born at a zoo in Leicestershire , England. Unfortunately, his birth mother, Maringa showed no interest in the newborn - a phenomenon that is quite common in first-time animal parents. After waiting a couple of days, the zoo officials took the cold and hungry baby from the enclosure and hand-reared him, until he was strong enough to be sent to a foster mother.

Meanwhile, at a German Zoo, the officials were training a female bonobo to care for little Bili - a mother that would carry him around, keep him warm and take him to the officials when he gets hungry.

D-day arrived earlier this week. Armed with a passport and a one-way ticket (and animal export documents), little Bili checked in at the Lufthansa counter, with the ease of a frequent traveler. Once on the airplane, he settled down with his favorite white blanket, staying close to his new zoo keeper as he embarked on his first flight. No word on whether Bili received any peanuts to snack on!

Found in the wild only in Congo , Africa, bonoba or pygmy chimpanzees are a greatly endangered species, with less than 10,000 remaining in the wild. With a gene make-up that is 99.6 percent human, they are the most similar to us, and one of the few that can walk upright on two legs.

While largely frugivores (animals that survive mainly on fruit), these chimps occasionally eat leaves and small animals like flying squirrels, to supplement their diet.

source:Dailymail.co.uk