Rare pygmy hippos spotted by cameras in Liberia
MONROVIA (AFP) — Endangered pygmy hippos have been spotted on cameras installed in a national park in Liberia, reaffirming the species's existence in the war-torn West African country, officials said Tuesday.
The discovery was made by a team from the Zoological Society of London that installed 40 cameras in Sapo National Park from February 1-15, said John Woods, managing director of the Forest Development Authority.
"You cannot imagine the number of species of animal we found in that period of time," said Woods. "One of the most important species was the pygmy hippo and you could see the pygmy hippo in the wild on those cameras."
Sightings of the nocturnal hippos are extremely rare in the wild and especially in Liberia, which endured two brutal civil wars between 1989 and 2003, when rival fighters were also predators on wildlife for food.
The Zoological Society said there are estimated to be fewer than 3,000 of the animals left in the wild in Liberia, Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone.
It added however that the estimate is likely to be inaccurate since so little is known about the species. There has been no recent census work and their habitat has been heavily degraded, it said.
According to the society, the pygmy hippopotamus is a large mammal species whose closest living relatives, besides the bigger common hippo, are whales.
The national park, the country's largest, stretches over an area of more than 1,800 square kilometres (695 square miles) and includes other rare species, such as the West African chimpanzee, forest elephants and antelopes.
The park was first established in 1983 because pygmy hippos were located there, said Woods.
