hippopotamus – News Stories About hippopotamus - Page 2

South African Farmer Marius Els Killed by Pet Hippo

Nov 15, 2011 12:36 AM CST

Farmer Killed by Hippo 'Son'

Dangerous pet turns on South African

(Newser) - They tried to tell Marius Els that a hippo couldn't be domesticated. Unfortunately for the South African farmer, they were right. The 40-year-old army major was killed by Humphrey, a 6-year-old "pet" hippo he considered one of the family, the Guardian reports. The 2,600-pound animal bit Els,...

Montenegro's Lone Hippo
Goes on the Lam

Jan 14, 2010 3:40 PM CST

Montenegro's Lone Hippo Goes on the Lam

Flooding lets 2-ton mammal elude her keepers

(Newser) - The only hippopotamus in Montenegro took advantage of flooding in the mountainous country to flee her zoo enclosure and camp out a mile away, zookeepers say. Nikica, a 2-ton female, swam away from her home south of Podgorica, the Adriatic country's capital, and is being aided and abetted by locals....

Hippo Hunt Divides Colombia

Sep 11, 2009 10:59 AM CDT

Hippo Hunt Divides Colombia

Animal rights groups decry containment plan

(Newser) - Pepe the Hippo has become a divisive figure in Colombia. When the animal escaped from his birthplace near Pablo Escobar’s pleasure palace, the government and some environmentalists organized an intense hunt that eventually ended when a team of more than a dozen soldiers killed the runaway beast. But some...

Hippo Sweat
Key to Phat
Sunscreen

Mar 17, 2009 3:02 AM CDT

Hippo Sweat Key to Phat Sunscreen

Researchers aim to harness properties of hippo secretions for human use

(Newser) - Scientists puzzling over how hippos can loll around in the sun all day without getting burned believe they may have hit upon the next big thing in sunscreen, Discovery News reports. The animals secrete a substance that protects them from burns by scattering light. Researchers hope to someday recreate the...

No Room at the Zoo: Baby Hippo May Meet His Maker

Mar 13, 2009 2:53 PM CDT

No Room at the Zoo: Baby Hippo May Meet His Maker

Zookeepers deny little Farasi will be put down

(Newser) - Farasi, the hippopotamus calf that has dazzled Switzerland since his birth last November, needs a new home, fast. Otherwise, he could become animal chow for the Basel Zoo's carnivores, the Wall Street Journal reports. The 220-pound hippo, who beat out Roger Federer to be named 2008’s “Swiss of...

DC Zoo Evicting Hippo

Aug 3, 2008 2:18 PM CDT

DC Zoo Evicting Hippo

'Happy' must move to make place for elephants

(Newser) - The National Zoo is adding a new elephant sanctuary, reports the Washington Post, and the move is putting its sole Nile hippopotamus, Happy, out on the street in a year or so. The zoo will hold onto its pygmy hippos, but is more committed to Asian elephant programs. "You...

Berlin Zoo Accused of Selling Animals for Slaughter

Mar 19, 2008 2:38 PM CDT

Berlin Zoo Accused of Selling Animals for Slaughter

Politician says director sold hippo, bear family

(Newser) - A German politician has filed a criminal complaint against the director of the Berlin Zoo, accusing him of selling animals for slaughter, Der Spiegel reports. The complaint cites examples of a hippopotamus and a family of bears allegedly sold in Belgium. Bernhard Blaszkiewitz vehemently denied the accusations, which he described...

Pygmy Hippos Found in Liberia

Mar 10, 2008 10:27 AM CDT

Pygmy Hippos Found in Liberia

Rare mammal not wiped out by wars, deforestation

(Newser) - Rare pygmy hippos have been videotaped in the forests of Liberia, proving to a team of zoologists that the rare and elusive mammal has survived through two civil wars, illegal logging, and poaching thought to have wiped it out. Less than 3,000 pygmy hippos, which look like normal hippos...