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Hippos devour eight cows
22/11/2002 14:59 - (SA)
Addis Ababa - Farmers in an Ethiopian village are keeping a close eye on their cows after a local hippo herd developed a taste for meat, devouring eight cows in the past eight weeks, the government press reported on Friday.
The people of Ginbo Woreda village, in the southern province of Kaffa told local police that the normally herbivorous hippos had taken to devouring cows and calves, the Amharic language daily, Addis Zemen, reported.
Local animal health and wildlife protection expert Alemayehu Alemu said the hippopotami's unusual behaviour may have been provoked by humans.
Alemu said that pregnant hippos tended to react aggressively to acts of provocation around delivery time, but cautioned that the "bizarre phenomenon" required a thorough study for a "scientific explanation". - Sapa-DPA
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South Africa
