The species is not typical of the Colombian ecosystem.
News Caribbean.
Four hippos They were introduced to the country 42 years ago by the late drug trafficker Pablo Escobar to keep them in captivity at Hacienda Nápoles, which today is a theme park open to the public.
See: Hippos in Colombia: By 2030 there could be more than 400 in Magdalena
Since then, the species that is typical of Africa has reproduced in our country until today reaching 169 copies, according to figures from MinAmbientecreating a serious environmental problem because it is an animal introduced to the Colombian natural ecosystem.
One of these hippos was sighted by fishermen on the banks of the Magdalena River, causing them admiration for its large size, but at the same time fear because they are highly dangerous animals that have no predator (adults), although their babies can be devoured by lions, hyenas or crocodiles.
Here, the scene that fishermen recorded in the Magdalena River:
Hippos in Colombia represent a danger
According to MinAmbiente, the presence of hippos in Colombia displaces species such as the manatee, the otter, the chigüiro, the deeras well as fish that are important for the sustenance of the communities and that are devoured by this large mammal.
Furthermore, they point out that they are disease transmitters, since “Their transit along the trails, which they travel repeatedly, generates changes in the soil, in the native vegetation, in the banks and bodies of water.”
On the other hand, its presence generates fear among communities, since it is an animal that in Africa causes nearly 500 deaths of people each year due to its aggressive instinct.
What will happen to the hippos in Colombia
For the prevention, control and management of hippos, the Ministry of the Environment works, hand in hand with experts, in three protocols: translocation, surgical sterilization and confinement.
«Inter-institutional coordination, prevention, principles of animal welfare, establishment of mechanisms for the timely detection of the presence of the species in new areas, rapid response, education and dissemination, risk management and adaptive management that allows procedures to be implemented at a national and regional scale. of eradication or containment of the species»says the ministry.
The ministry proposes euthanasia as a last resort under high standards of animal welfare.
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