According to a statement from Colombian authorities, a hippo that once belonged to drug lord Pablo Escobar died in the country after being struck by a car.
Following the collision with a car on a route between Medellin and the Colombian capital of Bogota on Tuesday night, the hippo perished on the spot. The driver of the automobile received medical assistance from emergency personnel.“Situations like these reaffirm that the presence of hippos in the region is an environmental and social problem, which requires inter-institutional articulation to search for comprehensive, in-depth, and timely solutions,” said officials.
Escobar illegally imported hippos into Colombia in the 1980s. He added them to his collection of exotic animals at his ranch, which was located some 250 kilometers (155 miles) outside of Medellin.
Authorities relocated the majority of the animals after his passing in 1993, but not the hippos because they were too difficult to move.
Since then, they have multiplied quickly, and there are currently between 130 and 160 hippos far outside of Escobar’s ranch. This is a significant increase from their original population of just one male and three females.
Hippos have recently been designated an invasive species in Colombia. Research has shown that they pose a hazard to both agriculture and human beings. Their feces impacts water oxygen levels, which can lower water quality and result in widespread fish fatalities.
Officials have used sterilizations and contraceptive injections to control the population. Most recently, a $3.5 million proposal to transport 70 hippos to sanctuaries in Mexico and India was announced in an effort to curb the animals’ population increase.
The risk of disrupting the indigenous ecosystem in Africa makes it hard to return the hippos there.
Anbal Gaviria, the governor of Antioquia, urged the federal government to move the hippos to reserves in India and Mexico on Wednesday.
