# Stupid drug lords and their hippos **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 12, 2014, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936 "2014-07-12T17:07:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Encinitas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@Encinitas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Encinitas)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2014, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936/61 "2014-07-14T21:20:24Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Maybe we could build a Hippodrome for them. I like my hippos free-range. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2014, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936/62 "2014-07-14T21:21:39Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > I’m not a biologist, but I would guess that this population of hippos will snuff outself out in the long run. A population has to remain small for quite a few generations to lose most of its genetic diversity. While the founder population was small, the population seems to be growing rapidly for such a large mammal so it’s unlikely that any lack of diversity will lead to its extinction. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2014, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936/63 "2014-07-14T23:26:51Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > I have vague memories of my parents suggesting a family vacation to a cabin where we could watch the feral hippos of Colombia. > > My sister dubiously said “Hippo camp? _Us?_” 😃 I say ignore **D\_Odds** and treat yourself to the unacceptably unhealthy dessert of your choice. He’s just jealous ;). ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936/64 "2014-07-15T01:54:12Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > My sister dubiously said “Hippo camp? _Us?_” Took me about five minutes to finally get that joke. It wasn’t worth the wait. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936/65 "2014-07-15T02:23:48Z")
But “vague memories”… hippocampus…! It works on so many levels! Two, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936/66 "2014-07-15T03:24:21Z")
FWIW I got it immediately, and it was foul but not a Penalty. We’ve seen far worse around here. I smirked. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936/67 "2014-07-15T12:36:32Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > A population has to remain small for quite a few generations to lose most of its genetic diversity. While the founder population was small, the population seems to be growing rapidly for such a large mammal so it’s unlikely that any lack of diversity will lead to its extinction. So maybe this is good news, because it means we wouldn’t have to hunt down every last South American hippo; we’d just need to keep the population small for an extended period. So once a month you send a hunter upriver in a boat for a few days to blast every hippo he sees, and after a few years, we should have a population that’s so inbred that it can no longer successfully reproduce? ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936/68 "2014-07-15T12:55:13Z")
In all seriousness, Mrs Iggy is Colombian and lives not too terribly far from this area. Grandpa died earlier this year and the family decided to scatter his ashes in the river. When she explained why they were traveling to the river further away I assumed I was losing something in the translation. And because this is the Pit… [It’s Colombia, not Columbia](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/22/its-colombia-not-columbia-a-social-media-campaign-changing-the-image-of-a-country_n_2743909.html). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-drug-lords-and-their-hippos/692936.md?page=3)