Escobar’s Hippos On the Move

BY LINNEA 30 MAY 2023

Pablo Escobar, an infamous drug lord, is renowned for his criminal empire...

[{"selector":"#anim-3abc7296-5205-4b95-829e-cdbac88cb92e","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-96657320-b9bf-45f1-8e94-069ea1b35c69","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(115.55555%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more

but his legacy extends to an unforeseen ecological crisis: his hippos.

[{"selector":"#anim-efbff271-3602-4058-ac37-5d8d4d9361a5","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-6e5d574a-90e8-48bd-abb9-50283a9e0ae7","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(0px, 615.16081%, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-fe37920c-86f5-4a6c-bbbf-d170ed29dd9e","keyframes":{"transform":["scale(1)","scale(1.5)","scale(0.95)","scale(1)"],"offset":[0,0.33,0.66,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"ease-in-out","fill":"both","iterations":1}] Learn more

Escobar imported four hippos to his extravagant estate...

[{"selector":"#anim-a7255726-0676-4836-a1a8-f0c6c7a5d47a","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-aff16596-656c-4fb9-a943-0940be80446d","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(0px, -151.60957%, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more

Unaware that they would multiply into a population exceeding 80, wreaking havoc on Colombia’s waterways.

[{"selector":"#anim-31ac202e-78e4-41de-adbf-cbc157c906e6","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-bfb72838-2834-440b-b850-5e96166475e1","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(0px, -349.28616%, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more

Dubbed “cocaine hippos,” these non-native creatures threaten the local ecosystem and human safety due to their territorial nature.

[{"selector":"#anim-adf1c2b0-402c-489b-9cd4-09fe8115de13","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-a671fcc3-c7a9-4a23-9e2d-82b206a5aa80","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(-114.24333%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more

Despite efforts to relocate them, the process proves challenging and costly.

[{"selector":"#anim-71b76c05-300e-4138-b8c4-e69b808769a2","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-f91c712d-972e-4b01-9b80-8da863598295","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(-120.25316%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more

Escobar’s hippos were left to roam free when he was killed in 1993, initially viewed as innocuous.

[{"selector":"#anim-d9de61b8-e02d-4ada-9cec-b5077a39fc8f","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-c7d37175-866f-475c-a642-89f8d90b04b1","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(0px, 567.41374%, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more

They are now estimated to a population of 80 to 120 hippos, and it is steadily increasing.

[{"selector":"#anim-547d323f-0dd4-4835-957a-7f3b63e5afc6","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-0a3285e2-fc60-4946-8252-0410450c9426","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(0px, 580.01876%, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more

Swipe up to read the full story!

[{"selector":"#anim-2ebdb267-17a4-4399-8172-4a8201808cd4","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-54253154-9f88-46b0-b4e8-5c02a8ec6629","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(-106.43431%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more

Learn More!

[{"selector":"#anim-e54c7a81-2f7e-4b1a-8525-a90ef64c89bd","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-0d4f9569-cf0f-4b62-84cd-2717901f3778","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(-105.09383%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":0,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Learn more