Colombia plans to “translocate” some 70 of its so-called ‘cocaine hippos’ abroad, the governor of the nation’s northwestern division of Antioquia, Anibal Gaviria, introduced on Thursday. The animals, arguably probably the most weird legacy of the infamous drug lord Pablo Escobar, shall be despatched to India and Mexico.

At present, Colombia has an estimated inhabitants of 130 to 160 hippos, Gaviria instructed native Blu Radio. Some 70 of the animals, a mixture of men and women, are anticipated to be relocated to Mexico and India within the first half of this 12 months, with the latter nation set to obtain 60 of the hippos, the governor stated.

The hippos shall be transferred into their new dwelling by airplane, put inside specifically-built ‘crates,’ Gaviria added. The looming operation has been primarily payrolled by New Delhi, he revealed, noting that the brand new host international locations “have the capability to obtain them, to accommodate them correctly and to manage their replica.”

Relating to Colombia itself, the switch would drastically scale back the present hippo inhabitants, making it simpler for the federal government, long-struggling with the problem, to manage the remaining animals. The authorities are searching for to determine a sanctuary for hippos within the nation, in response to Gaviria, to have the ability to safely “preserve the animals, management their replica and dangers to the inhabitants.”

Colombia’s hippo downside originates within the Eighties, when Escobar smuggled 4 animals, one male and three females, for the personal zoo at his ranch of Hacienda Napoles, stuffed with unique – and unlawful – species. After the drug kingpin was killed in a firefight with police in 1993, all of the animals, apart from the hippos, have been relocated by the authorities, as the big mammals have been deemed too cumbersome and tough to move.

Left alone, the ‘cocaine hippos’ thrived within the nation’s moist and heat local weather, with their inhabitants exploding and spreading nicely past the previous ranch of Escobar. The animals have turn out to be popularly generally known as the ‘cocaine hippos,’ promptly changing into an environmental hazard and a lethal risk to locals, in addition to making Colombia the one nation outdoors Africa to have a wild hippo pack.

In accordance with a research, revealed again in 2021, the hippo numbers might have ballooned to some 1,500 specimens if left unchecked. On the similar time, environmentalists warned in opposition to a switch of hippos to Africa, because the transfer would probably do extra hurt than good, each for the hippos themselves and native African animals, probably uncovered to international illnesses.

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