Colombian officials authorized a plan Monday to euthanize up to 80 invasive hippopotamuses descended from animals illegally imported by drug lord Pablo Escobar in the 1980s.
Environment Minister Irene Vélez announced the decision in Bogotá, saying previous efforts at surgical sterilization and relocation had failed to curb the rapidly expanding population.
The culling phase is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2026 as part of a broader management strategy delegated to regional environmental agencies including Cornare, Corantioquia, Corpoboyacá and CAS. The plan carries an investment of about 7.2 billion Colombian pesos.
The hippos trace their origins to four animals Escobar brought from Africa for his private zoo at Hacienda Nápoles near Medellín. After Escobar’s death in 1993, the animals escaped the abandoned estate and thrived in the warm waters of the Magdalena River basin in central Colombia’s Magdalena Medio region. With no natural predators and ideal breeding conditions, their numbers have grown from a handful to an estimated 160 to 200 today, and projections show the population could exceed 500 within the next decade without intervention.
Authorities say the invasive species damages local ecosystems by overgrazing vegetation, polluting waterways and displacing native wildlife such as river turtles and manatees. The animals also pose safety risks to nearby farming communities and villagers who share the same riverbanks and wetlands.
La ministra (e), Irene Vélez Torres (@IreneVelezT), firmó la circular que establece lineamientos y metas para la coordinación institucional en el manejo y control de los #HipopótamosInvasores en Colombia:
— MinAmbiente Colombia (@MinAmbienteCo) April 13, 2026
“Con esta circular avanzamos en acciones coordinadas con las corporaciones… pic.twitter.com/CH3HAC4fhH
Vélez stressed that the government had exhausted non-lethal options first. Attempts to relocate hippos to sanctuaries abroad stalled because no other countries have agreed to accept them, citing their own biosecurity and logistical concerns.
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The hippos trace their origins to four animals Escobar brought from Africa for his private zoo
The hippos trace their origins to four animals Escobar brought from Africa for his private zoo
