Denver Zoo’s only hippo will move to the Lone Star State this fall so the organization can conserve water and update the hippo exhibit, which no longer meets certification standards.
Mahali, a Nile hippopotamus, will leave the only home he’s ever known and relocate to a three-acre habitat at a Texas wildlife preserve, Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance officials announced in a news release Thursday. He was born at the zoo in 2002 to parents Samantha and Bert and has been a crowd favorite, according to the release.
“Kids and adults alike delight at his antics and even the occasional splatter as he would spray his poop around in a territorial gesture,” the news release states. “Mahali’s departure will leave a hippo-shaped hole in our hearts and on our campus.”
The building that housed Mahali was built in 1959 and needs significant updates to meet Association of Zoos and Aquariums standards, according to zoo officials. After maintenance is complete, zoo leaders will decide what species should occupy the space — though they will not consider another large hippo.
Relocating Mahali will also help the zoo meet its sustainability goals.
The hippo exhibit consumed approximately 21 million gallons of water a year — more than a quarter of the zoo’s total water usage and enough water for more than 350 families’ annual use, according to the release. The water and the natural gas needed to heat it cost the zoo about $200,000 every year.
Zookeepers will soon place a crate in Mahali’s exhibit so he can get used to the structure.
Mahali will have the chance to make a new friend — an older female hippo — in his new Texas home.
Get more Colorado news by signing up for our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter.
Related Posts:
- Zoo kills 12 baboons because there wasn’t enough space News Contraceptive methods to control the zoo’s Guinea baboon population had failed (Picture: AP) Twelve baboons were shot dead at a German zoo because there was not enough space in their enclosure. Tiergarten Nürnberg zoo has sparked outcry from animal rights groups after culling the healthy animals and feeding them to…
- Los Angeles Zoo has two Tasmanian devils who go by Crush and Danny Zuko News For the first time in five years the Los Angeles Zoo is home to wildly popular Tasmanian devils. Their name is derived from their origin on the island of Tasmania, and they are called “devils” due to their fierce reputations and unearthly screeches. In partnership with the Australian government, the…
- Who to catch at Lollapalooza 2025: Expert picks for hip-hop, pop, rock and EDM Uncategorized On Thursday, Lollapalooza plugs back into Grant Park, bringing 170-plus bands on eight stages across four days. To help make sense of the massive lineup, we asked local experts in the worlds of hip-hop, pop, rock and EDM to share their perfect schedules — for each day by genre. Photo:…
- Who to catch at Lollapalooza 2025: Expert picks for hip-hop, pop, rock and EDM News On Thursday, Lollapalooza plugs back into Grant Park, bringing 170-plus bands on eight stages across four days. To help make sense of the massive lineup, we asked local experts in the worlds of hip-hop, pop, rock and EDM to share their perfect schedules — for each day by genre. Photo:…
- Denver may soon have multiple stadium districts along the South Platte River. Can the city support them all? News Before the industrial age, before railyards and steam plants and I-25 melded a concrete jungle around a polluted river, the South Platte was the genesis of Denver. The riverbanks were mined for gold. The river itself was used for irrigation for farmlands. For over a century, a cycle of neglect…
(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today)