Colombia has decided to relocate 70 hippos owned by notorious drug trafficker Pablo Escobar to sanctuaries abroad.
Cocaine smuggler Escobar brought small numbers of African animals to Colombia in the late 1980s, but after his death in 1993, the animals were allowed to roam free in a hot, swampy area of the Antioquia region where environmental officials are powerless to stop their growing numbers, which are now 150 numbered. Is.
Since the murder of Pablo Escobar by Colombian police, Hacienda Napoles and his hippo have become a local tourist attraction. According to Pablo, hippos continued to spawn in local rivers and favorable climates, weighing up to 3 tons.
Scientists have warned that hippos in Colombia have no natural predators and pose a potential biodiversity problem as their waste can alter the structure of rivers and affect the habitats of manatees and capybaras.
Last year, the Colombian government declared these large animals venomous invaders. Officials attempted a sterilization program to control the population but failed.
According to the plan, 60 hippos will be sent to Green's Kingdom Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation in the Indian state of Gujarat, while another 10 will go to zoos and sanctuaries in Mexico such as B. Ostok in Sinaloa.
The entire operation will cost about $3.5 million.
The decision is seen as a rescue measure for these hippos as the Environment Ministry aims to kill them. Ecuador, the Philippines and Botswana have also indicated their willingness to take in the hippos.
It should be noted that Pablo was one of the most notorious people in the world, responsible for an incredible number of drug-related deaths and explosions in Colombia.
Escobar was killed in a shootout with police officers and soldiers on a rooftop in Medellin on December 2, 1993, the day after his 44th birthday. Five months ago, he was included in Forbes magazine's list of the richest people in the world for the seventh time.
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