Hippo Caught after 9 months on lam

[JohnKleeb]

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - Relieved conservationists have recaptured a young hippopotamus that spent almost 10 months on the run near Cape Town after fleeing a nature reserve where it was being bullied by an older dominant male.



The hippo, known affectionately as Hugo or Houdini, escaped from the Rondevlei Nature Reserve through a broken fence in February, and was caught on Thursday after a dramatic 3-1/2 hour chase through waterways and reeds during which six tranquilizer darts were fired into his hide.

"At one stage there were two of us on the animal's back but it just kept on going," the greatly relieved Rondevlei manager, Dalton Gibbs, told Reuters on Friday. Conservationists might have had to shoot Hugo if he had not been caught, he said.

The young hippo will now be moved to an Eastern Cape private reserve, about 1,000 km (620 miles) east of Cape Town, where he will form the nucleus of a new herd.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=573&e=11&u=/nm/safrica_hippo_dc

[stellanoir]

1. he must be "brought to justice"

immediately !

sarcasm/

[Anakin Skywalker]

2. Cells in Guatanamo

big enough for hippos?

[stellanoir]

4. nahhh

I'd reckon the hippo gets a lawyer and is so terribly "quaint" that he'll be considered innocent until proven guilty. Ask Gonzolas to be sure though.

[Spinzonner]

3. I guess "Freeze. Hippo" didn't work

[TheCentepedeShoes]

5. Hippos are very heavy

Bet the lam is really tired.

[rug]

6. 3 1/2 hour chase?

[yardwork]

7. If he was being bullied, doesn't it sound reasonable that he would run?

That's what animals do when a dominant animal tells them to take off. They take off. It sounds to me like the Reserve was doing a lousy job providing enough room for both male hippos.

Now they're sending the young hippo back to be bullied some more!

I hope that the humans learned something from this.