Pablo Escobar's wild hippo herd facing a cull in Colombia

Colombian officials are set to cull around 80 wild hippos from a colony originally started by Pablo Escobar.

The notorious drug lord brought four of the animals into Colombia in the 1980s for his private zoo in the Magdalena River valley.

They have since multiplied and roam freely around the country.

A study published by Colombia's National University estimated that there were around 170 hippos in the country in 2022.

Environmental authorities say the mammals pose a threat to villagers who have encountered them in farms and rivers.

Some have made it 60 miles north of Escobar's former zoo.

His imports have made Colombia the only country outside Africa with a wild hippo population.

Environment Minister Irene Vélez said previous methods to control their population had been expensive and unsuccessful, including neutering some of the animals or moving them to zoos.

"If we don't do this we will not be able to control the population," she said.

"We have to take this action to preserve our ecosystems."

The animals are also competing for food and space against local species such as river manatees.

But animal welfare activists have opposed the plan.

Andrea Padilla, a senator who drafted a law against bullfights in Colombia, described the plan to cull the hippos as "cruel".

"Killings and massacres will never be acceptable," Padilla wrote on X.

The hippos have made headlines over the years as officials think up different ways to deal with them.

In 2022 they were officially declared an invasive species. The following year authorities began trying to neuter them. But the initiative had limited scope due to the high cost of capturing the dangerous animals and performing surgery on them.

Weeks later one was killed after it was hit by a car.

But they have also become a tourist attraction with residents near the site of Escobar's former zoo offering hippo spotting tours and hippo-themed souvenirs.

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Because Colombia's hippos come from a limited gene pool and could carry diseases, taking them back to their natural habitat in Africa has been considered unfeasible.

Hacienda Nápolesm, Escobar's ranch which held the private zoo, was previously confiscated by Colombia's government and is now run as a theme park.

Often called "The King of Cocaine," the drug lord was one of the wealthiest criminals in history.

He was gunned down in his home city of Medellin by police on 2 December 1993, a day after his 44th birthday.

Forbes listed him as the world's seventh richest man in 1989 with an estimated net worth of $9bn (£7bn).

(c) Sky News 2026: Pablo Escobar's wild hippo herd facing a cull in Colombia