Bullied chimpanzee is picked on by other apes at German zoo: Animal lovers launch bid to get Bonobo Bili sent back to Britain where he was born… and abandoned by his mother
- Bili the bonobo has been bitten and attacked by fellow chimps in a German zoo
- He was born in England and a petition has been launched to bring him home
- Wuppertal Zoo has so far rejected the appeal and hopes to find Bili a mate
- Bonobos are also known as pygmy chimpanzees, but are a separate species
A British-born chimpanzee who is being bullied by his fellow apes in a German zoo should be brought back home to England, animal rights activists say.
Bili the bonobo was born at Twycross Zoo in Leicestershire in 2008, but was rejected by his mother and sent to a zoo in Frankfurt before ending up in Wuppertal, east Germany.
The other apes at Wuppertal Zoo have not accepted Bili, and their attacks have left him with horrific open, bleeding wounds.
Images published by a campaign group fighting to have him sent back to Britain, show the poor ten-year-old ape with bites to his head and hands and a chunk missing from his ear.
Bonobo Bili who is being bullied by his fellow apes at a German zoo and has even had his ear bitten off
The campaign to bring British chimpanzee Bili home started after heartbreaking images were released showing him with bites on his head and hand
Bonobos are also known as pygmy chimpanzees, but are technically a separate species. They are, as their nickname alludes, smaller than chimpanzees and highly endangered.
In the wild they can only be found in one country, the Democratic Republic of Congo, where it is feared only a few thousand specimen remain.
Bili was sent to Germany from Twycross Zoo after his mother Maringa failed to care for him.
He was first flown to Frankfurt in January 2009, where he was adopted by loving female chimps who had previously brought up orphaned youngsters.
He reportedly integrated well in the group, but despite this he was sent to Wuppertal Zoo in autumn last year, where he is being bullied by the other apes.
The petition ‘Save Bonobo Bili from Wuppertal Zoo’ was started by animal lover Petra Bente, who says he has been severely traumatised since being sent to the zoo in western Germany
Bili was brought to Wuppertal Zoo for as part of a conservation programme as Bonobos are an endangered species
The ‘Save Bonobo Bili from Wuppertal Zoo’ campaign, launched by animal lover Petra Bente, wants to see him sent to the ‘Monkey World Ape Rescue Centre’ near Bovington, in Dorset.
The group’s pleas have so far been rejected by Wuppertal Zoo, who say they are still hoping that Bili can be integrated with their own ape family.
The zoo’s Deputy Director Severin Dressget said that Bili was not allowed to breed by the Frankfurt Zoo he was living in, and as a result had been sent to them.
He said: ‘This was done with the aim of integrating him into the existing group and thus to contribute to the preservation of the highly endangered bonobos by breeding.’
- The ‘Save Bonobo Bili from Wuppertal Zoo’ petition can be signed here.