Photo: Michael Levine-Clark/Creative Commons
They are among the last survivors of the MedellÃn Cartel, regaining their freedom from the confines of a narco-estate by marching to the Magdalena River. When Hacienda Napoles was thriving with the cocaine fortune of Pablo Escobar, there were four hippos, a giraffe and plenty of imported plumage to keep the drug lord’s close business associates and inner circle of professional hitmen, entertained. Even rouge pilots returning from a drug run to the Everglades would delight in a tour of the ranch accompanied by mini-Uzi wielding “zookeepers.”
According to popular legend surrounding the mansion in Puerto Triunfo (Antioquia), dried hippo excrement was a highly effective agent in concealing the smell of cocaine before crated and dispatched from the hacienda’s airstrip.
In the 6.5 years since we last visited Pablo Escobar's hippo herd , it's become illegal to kill any member of the Colombian population, which is considered something of a country emblem. It's. Science News Summaries. | Newser
El Silencio Reserve expansion benefits critically endangered species and a beloved U.S.-nesting songbird
WARRENTON, VA, Jan. 15, 2021 Rainforest Trust announced 5,407 acres in the El Silencio Natural Reserve, located in Colombia’s Middle Magdalena Valley, have been secured for conservation. In addition to Rainforest Trust, other partners in the powerful conservation alliance include World Land Trust, Saving Nature, American Bird Conservancy and Fundación Biodiversa Colombia. This has more than doubled the size of the reserve to 6,844 acres. Additional assistance came from a partial voluntary compensation from the owner companies La Zebra and Tierra y Río.
Conserving and protecting this land is extremely important. Over 98% of the lowland rainforest in the Magdalena Valley has been destroyed for cattle ranching and illicit coca production. It is also under pressure from illegal logging. In addition to providing habitat for many rare species, the land has long been an important
Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar bought 4 hippos from California zoo in the early 1980s
They were known as his cocaine hippos because of the kingpin s love of buying exotic animals with his ill-gotten gains
In the years after his death in 1993 four escaped the compound
But decades later they are 100-strong herd that rampage his former village
Their toxic urine and faeces are killing wildlife, say eco-experts
They are now the largest invasive species in the world with largest, wild hippo population outside of Africa
By 2040 numbers could rise to 1,500, making their environmental impact irreversible and their numbers impossible to control, a new study has claimed
Current investments in Colombia strengthen nearshore sourcing options bizjournals.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from bizjournals.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.