The much-loved hippo

Excitement and mixed feelings as Fiona the hippopotamus turns 1

FIONA, the world’s most famous hippopotamus, recently turned 1. The birthday celebration, which consisted of her munching on a tower of tropical fruits at her home in the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, US, was broadcast on Facebook Live.

Born six weeks early at 13kg, Fiona survived against all odds.

Zoo caretakers hand-fed her infant hippo formula, warmed her with blankets and hugs, and massaged her gums when she was teething. And because they did all this on camera online, the pudgy-wudgy hippo, who seemed to smile through the drama, became a sensation.

Playing cards, magnets, bags and cutting boards bearing her likeness were made. Some netizens monitored her like she was their own baby. Even as Fiona expanded, she looked adorable and squishy enough to hug.

Amid all this heart-melting cuteness, one viewer on Facebook raised a concern. Fiona is still a wild animal. “When will she become dangerous to her caretakers?”

The answer: Fiona already is.

“She could knock us over with no problem,” Christina Gorsuch, who works at the zoo said.

The reality is that Fiona is a hippo, and hippos can be deadly. While this one is only about a fifth the size she will be as an adult, at 294kg she’s as heavy as a couple of refrigerators. Her weight is one reason Fiona will soon be handled only through metal barriers.

Keepers who once cradled her 24 hours a day completely stopped sharing space with her about a month ago, Gorsuch said.

Bottle-feeding ended weeks ago; Fiona now gets hay, grains and produce. She’s being trained – to swallow big pills when needed, and to paint hippo “kisses” with her lips – but that’s also through barriers.

Fiona has taken this separation in her stride, as have her smitten keepers, for the most part.

“It’s a little sad to see it over,” but Fiona “can very easily hurt somebody, even without meaning to,” Gorsuch said.

Conservationist Rebecca Lewison has been researching hippos in Tanzania.

Being a full-time hippo in the wild involves a lot of time in the water by day, Lewison said. After sundown it turns into a “lawn mower” as groups “walk and chew” on trails to and from grazing areas.

Hippos don’t consume humans, but regular run-ins with people have earned them a reputation as one of the world’s deadliest animals.

In recent months, according to news reports, hippos have killed a Zimbabwean man crossing into South Africa and a woman on safari in Tanzania.

“They, like, hole-punch you,” Lewison said when asked how a hippo can kill a human.

“I study hippos, I love them, but I am not going on any of those safaris that go down the Zambezi,” river, in Zambia, where loads of hippos live.

“They feel threatened, and what do they do? They knock your boat over, and they use the tool that they have, which is their mouth.”

The world has plenty of “hippo enthusiasm”, Lewison said, though more needs to be done to support hippo conservation.

Gorsuch, for her part, said she thinks Fiona is an excellent hippo ambassador who’s teaching her followers lots about the animal. – Washington Post.