Cape Town conservation authorities are increasingly considering capturing a young hippopotamus that has been on the run for a couple of weeks after escaping from the Zeekoevlei Nature Reserve.
”We are contemplating active capture methods within the next few weeks,” said reserve manager Dalton Gibbs on Thursday.
Gibbs said the active capture methods could involve any one of or a combination of techniques, including netting, darting or herding the animal into a cordoned-off area.
The hippo, which has captured the public’s imagination, escaped from the reserve when a bulldozer was stolen from a site adjacent to the reserve, and the thieves knocked down a stretch of perimeter fencing.
Gibbs said so far passive capture methods, which included trying to lure the young Houdini into four capture funnels, have proved unsuccessful.
He said trying the active capture methods will depend on a variety of circumstances, such as where the animal is located and how much coverage it is afforded.
”The problem with, for example, darting is that the animal can run into the water and drown,” said Gibbs.
He said conservationists are hoping to have a situation where they dictate the terms, with ”minimal vegetation and minimal disturbances”.
Gibbs said the necessary expertise is available locally, with equipment likely to include nets, dart guns, boats and possibly even a helicopter.
He reminded the public that hippos are dangerous wild animals, saying already some people have tried to wade into water to be closer to the river horse.
”People give it a name, and think it’s a dog, but it a wild animal … Unfortunately there are some silly people out there,” said Gibbs.
He said members of the public have asked that the hippo be allowed to remain roaming outside the confines of the reserve, but this is ”too dangerous”.
The young animal — of undetermined sex, but thought to be male — is curious and does not follow the normal rules of the herd, which is making capture difficult, he said. — Sapa