Baby "cocaine hippo" linked to infamous drug lord is rescued in Colombia

A newborn hippopotamus, showing signs of malnutrition, has been rescued by authorities in northwestern Colombia after being found alone by fishermen. The calf was discovered on the banks of a river in a rural area of the Puerto Nare municipality in Antioquia.

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advanced dehydration and malnutrition

Veterinarians treated the young hippo for severe dehydration and malnutrition. Once stabilized, the animal was transferred to the Hacienda Napoles sanctuary, a former estate of slain cocaine kingpin Pablo Escobar, which now operates as a theme park. This rescued calf is one of approximately 200 "cocaine hippos" living in the wild in Colombia, all descended from a group of four hippos imported by Escobar in the 1980s for his private zoo.

Following Escobar's death in 1993, the hippos escaped and established themselves along the Magdalena River. Their population has since boomed due to the absence of natural predators in South America, leading them to disrupt the local ecosystem. They are known to kill fish, threaten native species like manatees and otters, and consume large amounts of grassland, polluting rivers with their waste.

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Because they have no natural predators here, as they would in Africa, the population is booming and it's affecting the local ecosystem.

Considered an invasive species, the hippos destabilize native ecosystems. This prompted the Colombian government to approve a plan to cull around 80 of them after sterilization efforts failed to curb their reproduction. Attempts to transfer hippos to overseas sanctuaries have also been considered, but the estimated cost of deportation is around $3.5 million, making it a significant financial challenge.

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Because they are such large animals, they consume considerable amounts of grassland and produce significant waste, which then poisons the rivers.