The story of Colombia’s ‘cocaine hippos,’ and why they have become a threat to native biodiversity

After Escobar was killed in 1993, most of the animals from his estate were removed. The hippos, however, were left behind. With Colombia’s warm weather, abundant rivers, and no natural predators, the animals adapted quickly. They began breeding rapidly and slowly spread far beyond the boundaries of the old estate.

Today, Colombia is the only country outside Africa with a wild hippo population. A study by Colombia’s National University estimated that “nearly 170 hippos were living freely in the wild by 2022, and sightings have been reported more than 60 miles away from Hacienda Nápoles.”  Colombia’s Environment Minister Irene Vélez recently defended the decision to euthanise up to 80 hippos, citing previous attempts such as sterilisation and relocation, which had proved “costly and ineffective.”

“If we don’t do this, we will not be able to control the population,” Vélez said. “We have to take this action to preserve our ecosystems,” CBS quoted Vélez.

But the proposal by Vantara, Anant Ambani’s 3,500-acre wildlife rescue, treatment and rehabilitation centre in Jamnagar, Gujarat, to provide “lifelong care” to the animals has opened a fresh conversation around ethics and ecological responsibility.

 

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Is relocation really the answer?

Conservationist and founder of Deccan Conservation Foundation, Indrajeet Ghorpade, believes the issue goes far beyond saving individual animals. “Conservation needs ethical self-regulation,” he says. “Thousands of species are rare, endangered, or threatened, RET (rare, endangered and threatened) species. That must remain the focus, along with reviving and rewilding degraded ecosystems and habitats. Priority should be saving species, not individuals.”

According to him, relocating invasive species across continents can create a new ecological problem instead of solving the old one. “Where does it end?” he asks. He argues, “India itself culls species such as wild boar and nilgai when they are classified as vermin due to ecological imbalance and human conflict. If culling is accepted in some cases to protect ecosystems, then we need consistency in our conservation priorities.”

Culling vs compassion

“Culling, though harsh, can stop the spread of invasive species,” says Ghorpade. “Conservation needs guide rails and priorities.” He argues that the better alternative is not indefinite captivity or luxury relocation, but scientific rewilding and habitat restoration wherever feasible.

“Relocating animals to restore degraded habitats can work when done strategically,” he notes, citing recent examples of deer being moved from overcrowded urban public parks to more suitable landscapes in Rajasthan.

However, moving Colombian hippos to India raises logistical, ecological, climatic, and ethical concerns. Wildlife activists have also previously questioned whether Gujarat’s hot and dry conditions are suitable for species like hippos that thrive in wetter ecosystems.