"Time Bomb." Why Colombia Wants to Kill Pablo Escobar's "Cocaine Hippos"

Photo: AFP via Getty Images

A group of hippos, which Escobar imported to his private zoo in the 1980s, has multiplied and spread along one of the country's main waterways — the Magdalena River. According to a 2022 study, there could now be up to 250 such "cocaine hippos," and after decades of discussions, the Colombian government has announced plans to cull about 80 of them.

"If we don't do this, we won't be able to control the population," said Environment Minister Irene Vélez. "We must take these measures to preserve our ecosystems."

However, animal welfare organizations criticized the decision. Senator Andrea Padilla called it "simplistic and cruel."

"I will never support the killing of healthy beings," she wrote on X, "especially when, as in this case, they are victims of the state's irresponsibility, negligence, indifference, and corruption."

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Hacienda Napoles was once Pablo Escobar's luxurious estate and is now a theme park. Photo: Getty Images

Invasive Species

Colombian scientists have long argued that culling animals in the wild is the only way to mitigate their environmental impact. The main problem is that hippos are not a native species in this Latin American country — or anywhere outside of Africa, for that matter. This means they have no natural predators, such as lions or crocodiles, and can reproduce almost uncontrollably.

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Scientists believe that without culling some of the animals, the hippo population could exceed 1,400 individuals in just a decade. Photo: AFP via Getty Images

"Obviously, we feel for these animals, but as scientists, we must be honest," Colombian biologist Nataly Castelblanco, one of the leading experts on "cocaine hippos," tells the BBC.

"Hippos are an invasive species in Colombia, and if we don't cull part of their population now, the situation could spiral out of control in 10 or 20 years. The government has made a sad but necessary decision. Thank you for listening to science," she adds.

Castelblanco explains that "cocaine hippos" have taken advantage of another evolutionary opportunity, besides the absence of lions and crocodiles to keep their numbers in check: the climate.

Africa has intense dry seasons, which also help control population size. In the Magdalena River basin, the situation is entirely different — there is stable rainfall. In fact, the conditions in their South American home are so ideal that hippos seem to even reach sexual maturity earlier — put simply, they start bearing offspring at a younger age.

How the Hippos Got There in the First Place

The appearance of the so-called "cocaine hippos" is directly linked to the killing of Pablo Escobar by Colombian security forces in 1993. After his death, Hacienda Napoles — a luxurious estate about 250 km northwest of the capital Bogotá — was confiscated by authorities. Escobar's private zoo was dismantled, although it soon became part of a popular theme park.

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Most Colombians oppose the killing of "cocaine hippos" — like Vanessa, pictured here in 2009. Photo: AFP via Getty Images

The animals from Hacienda Napoles were initially distributed among zoos across the country. But not the hippos.

"It was logistically difficult to transport them, so the authorities simply left them there, probably thinking the animals would die," says Castelblanco.

Instead, they thrived.

"This is the largest herd of hippos outside of Africa, their natural habitat," explains veterinarian and conservationist Carlos Valderrama to the BBC.

And their numbers are projected to grow. Castelblanco and her colleagues say that without culling the animals, the mammal population could exceed 1,400 individuals by 2034 — all descendants of the initial group of one male and three females. In a 2021 study, they described an ideal scenario where 30 animals would need to be culled or sterilized annually to prevent this.

Why These Hippos Are Such a Problem

Researchers studying the ecological impact of hippos believe their presence can harm the local ecosystem in various ways: from displacing local species already threatened with extinction, such as manatees, to altering the chemical composition of waterways, which can jeopardize fishing.

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Scientists and authorities say that hippos also pose a threat to local communities. Photo: AFP via Getty Images

"Hippos are spreading throughout Colombia's largest river basin, which thousands of people rely on for their livelihoods," says Castelblanco.

"Hippos have been seen as far as 370 km from Hacienda Napoles," she adds.

They also pose a risk to humans: although there have been no fatal attacks in Colombia so far, hippos are territorial animals and are estimated to kill around 500 people annually in Africa — more than lions, crocodiles, or elephants.

"It's like being in a 'Jurassic Park' movie"

It should be noted that there are experts who oppose the idea of culling the animals. Enrique Ordoñez, a biologist from the National University of Colombia, argues that "cocaine hippos" offer hope for the conservation of the global hippo population — international organizations, particularly the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), consider them a vulnerable species.

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According to experts, sterilizing hippos is a dangerous and logistically complex operation. Photo: Courtesy of Carlos Valderrama

He is one of the experts who advocate for sterilization as the best way to control the population. But such procedures are far from simple — and not cheap — and Carlos Valderrama has experience with this. In 2009, he castrated a male "cocaine hippo" as part of an experiment to study possible ways to control population growth.

"We're talking about an animal that can weigh five tons and be very aggressive," says Valderrama.

"Even though the animal was tranquilized, it nearly overturned the crane we were using for the procedure. It was like being next to a dinosaur in a 'Jurassic Park' movie," he adds.

The veterinarian says the main lesson from the experiment was that castration alone is simply not an option — especially considering the $50,000 bill.

"Many of these hippos live in the wild. It's simply impossible to easily reach all of them," he explains.

"Meanwhile, they will continue to reproduce. And hippos are polygamous, meaning one male can impregnate many females," Valderrama adds.

Death Threats

Previously, Colombian authorities preferred a different approach — capturing hippos and transferring them to zoos worldwide — but relocation attempts failed, particularly due to the cost of transportation. And sending them to Africa, their ancestral homeland, was never considered an option.

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There is huge public interest in the hippos, which have spawned an entire industry in Colombia. Photo: AFP via Getty Images

Born and raised in Colombia — all descendants of Escobar's one male and three females — the "cocaine hippos" could not only introduce diseases to local animal populations but also create genetic risks.

So what prevented authorities from taking more radical action? The short answer is public opinion. People are very emotional about "cocaine hippos," as Nataly Castelblanco's experience confirms.

After Colombian media reported on her research, the biologist began receiving insults and death threats on social media.

"They called me a 'murderer' and other words. In Colombia, some people can get very angry when it comes to hippos," she says.

"This is a natural human reaction. It's much easier for people to understand the problem of invasive species when it comes to plants or smaller creatures, rather than a huge mammal that many find cute," Castelblanco adds.

A whole local industry has also formed around the hippos in the communities of the Magdalena River basin. The rebuilt zoo at Hacienda Napoles houses several recaptured hippos and attracts thousands of tourists annually — significantly, during Escobar's lifetime, he allowed public visits as a PR stunt, and Nataly Castelblanco mentions visiting there with her family as a child.

In 2009, when Colombian soldiers shot a hippo named Pepe, considered a threat to communities near the estate, massive public outcry — fueled by the revelation that the shooters took selfies with the body — led to legal protection for the hippos. But now the situation has become "serious enough" to warrant a change in stance, biologist David Echeverri from the Colombian environmental agency Cornare tells the BBC.

"Culling animals is not the only solution to the problem of population growth, but it is necessary," he says.

Escobar's Legacy

A stalemate is what Castelblanco and her colleagues fear almost as much as the spread of the mammals. In their research, they cite official government statistics according to which only four animals underwent sterilization between 2011 and 2019.

"For now, hippos in Colombia live in paradise," Castelblanco believes. "But they are an ecological time bomb."

More than 30 years after Pablo Escobar's death, the "cocaine hippos" are also a testament to the drug lord's enduring presence in Colombia.

Павялічыць

Photo: Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images

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