Current:Home > InvestColombia will try to control invasive hippo population through sterilization, transfer, euthanasia-LoTradeCoin
Colombia will try to control invasive hippo population through sterilization, transfer, euthanasia
View Date:2024-12-23 21:37:20
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombia will try to control its population of more than 100 hippopotamuses, descendants of animals illegally brought to the country by late drug kingpin Pablo Escobar in the 1980s, through surgical sterilization, the transfer of hippos to other countries and possibly euthanasia, the government said Thursday.
The hippos, which spread from Escobar’s estate into nearby rivers where they flourished, have no natural predators in Colombia and have been declared an invasive species that could upset the ecosystem.
Authorities estimate there are 169 hippos in Colombia, especially in the Magdalena River basin, and that if no measures are taken, there could be 1,000 by 2035.
Environment Minister Susana Muhamad said the first stage of the plan will be the surgical sterilization of 40 hippos per year and this will begin next week.
The procedure is expensive — each sterilization costs about $9,800 — and entails risks for the hippopotamus, including allergic reactions to anesthesia or death, as well as risks to the animal health personnel, according to the ministry. The hippos are dispersed over a large area, and are territorial and often aggressive.
Experts say sterilization alone is not enough to control the growth of the invasive species, which is why the government is arranging for the possible transfer of hippos to other countries, a plan that was announced in March.
Muhamad said Colombian officials have contacted authorities in Mexico, India and the Philippines, and are evaluating sending 60 hippos to India.
“We are working on the protocol for the export of the animals,” she said. “We are not going to export a single animal if there is no authorization from the environmental authority of the other country.”
As a last resort to control the population, the ministry is creating a protocol for euthanasia.
A group of hippos was brought in the 1980s to Hacienda Nápoles, Escobar’s private zoo that became a tourist attraction after his death in 1993. Most of the animals live freely in rivers and reproduce without control.
Residents of nearby Puerto Triunfo have become used to hippos sometimes roaming freely about the town.
Scientists warn that the hippos’ feces change the composition of rivers and could impact the habitat of local manatees and capybaras.
veryGood! (8422)
Related
- The boy was found in a ditch in Wisconsin in 1959. He was identified 65 years later.
- 'Fargo' Season 5: Cast, schedule, trailer, how to watch episode 3
- Webb telescope captures cluster of baby stars in the center of the Milky Way
- No. 5 Marquette takes down No. 1 Kansas at Maui Invitational
- Golden Bachelorette: Joan Vassos Gets Engaged During Season Finale
- Britain’s Conservative government set to start cutting taxes ahead of likely election next year
- Suspected militants kill 5, including 2 soldiers, in pair of bombings in northwest Pakistan
- Landslide leaves 3 dead and trail of damage in remote community of Wrangell, Alaska
- Best fits for Corbin Burnes: 6 teams that could match up with Cy Young winner
- Albania’s prime minister calls for more NATO troops in neighboring Kosovo following ethnic violence
Ranking
- 3 Iraqis tortured at Abu Ghraib win $42M judgement against defense contractor
- EU lawmakers reject proposal to cut the use of chemical pesticides by 50% by 2030
- 'A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving' turns 50 this year. How has it held up?
- Ethics probe into North Carolina justice’s comments continues after federal court refuses to halt it
- Philadelphia mass transit users face fare hikes of more than 20% and possible service cuts
- Wilcox Ice Cream recalls multiple products after listeria found in batch of mint chip
- Broadcom planning to complete deal for $69 billion acquisition of VMWare after regulators give OK
- 'Please God, let them live': Colts' Ryan Kelly, wife and twin boys who fought to survive
Recommendation
-
Judge extends the time to indict the driver accused of killing Johnny Gaudreau and his brother
-
Prepare for Beyoncé's 'Renaissance' film: What to wear, how to do mute challenge
-
New AP analysis of last month’s deadly Gaza hospital explosion rules out widely cited video
-
New Philanthropy Roundtable CEO Christie Herrera ready to fight for donor privacy
-
Britney Spears reunites with son Jayden, 18, after kids moved in with dad Kevin Federline
-
A hand grenade explosion triggered by a quarrel at a market injured 9 people in southern Kosovo
-
Russia’s parliament approves budget with a record amount devoted to defense spending
-
Lottery winner sues mother of his child, saying she told his relatives about his prize money