Everyone knows hippos live wild only in Africa — but that might change in the near future, thanks to infamous Colombian drug cartel leader and all-around douchebag Pablo Escobar. In one of his many outlandish delusions of grandeur, he constructed a private zoo on one of his palatial estates, complete with a herd of hippos. But after Escobar was gunned down, his empire fell and the estate fell to ruin. The hippos ran free, thrived and even reproduced. Now there's even a possibility that the hippos could spread into the surrounding rain forest, becoming one of the larger invasive species in recent memory. Let's go to the tape:
First of all, I love how National Geographic has the full name of the local game warden, but chooses to display and identify him with his chosen honorific title, "Chocolate." Classic.
But seriously, folks, should the hippos be allowed to thrive in their foreign environment, even if it is similar to their natural environment? These ain't snakehead fish we're talking about, after all.
Of all the things Pablo Escobar thought he was (King Cocaine, Robin Hood, God), champion of invasive-species biodiversity probably wasn't one of them.
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