How One Billionaire Could Save Colombia’s Hippos From Mass Culling

Few stories in modern Conservation are as wild, tragic, and strangely poignant as what is unfolding right now in Colombia — where roughly 200 hippopotamuses are roaming free along the Magdalena River basin, descendants of animals once owned by one of history’s most infamous criminals.

Back in the 1980s, drug lord Pablo Escobar imported four hippos from sub-Saharan Africa to his private estate, Hacienda Nápoles. When he was killed in 1993, the Colombian government simply abandoned the animals, leaving them to breed and spread without predators to keep their numbers in check. Decades later, the environmental consequences have become impossible to ignore. The hippos have devastated native vegetation, displaced local wildlife, and terrorized livestock across the region. Experts warn that without intervention, the population could swell beyond 1,000 animals within a few decades.

This month, Colombian authorities announced plans to begin formally culling the hippos, sparking fierce backlash from animal rights advocates and Conservation groups around the world. The cause to find a humane alternative has since gained unexpected momentum from an unlikely direction.

According to The Guardian, Anant Ambani, son of Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, has renewed an offer to relocate all 80 hippos slated for culling to Vantara, his private animal sanctuary in the state of Gujarat, India. Ambani has called the hippos “living, sentient beings” and framed the relocation as a moral responsibility. He has reportedly appealed directly to the Colombian government to permit a scientifically supervised translocation, offering to cover the effort entirely on Colombia’s terms. The cost could exceed four million dollars.

The offer is not without complications. Vantara has faced serious scrutiny over allegations of unethical animal sourcing and potential wildlife trafficking, though India’s Supreme Court found no evidence of wrongdoing following an investigation last year. Critics have also questioned whether the ecosystem needs of hippos can truly be met at a facility with no prior record of housing the species.

Still, for animals that never asked to be born into this situation, the conversation itself represents progress. Whether or not Vantara proves to be the answer, the world is watching Colombia’s hippos, and demanding something better than a bullet.

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