Nigeria town celebrates after hunting down ‘killer hippo’

Residents of a town in north-western Nigeria are celebrating after a rare but feared hippo - along with its calf - was killed by rice farmers and fishermen in a hunt lasting several weeks.

People in Yauri, in Kebbi state, have been terrified of the hippo after she killed a fisherman who worked for the local traditional leader.

It prompted the Kebbi state government to order that the animal be killed for the safety of the community living along the River Niger.

Nigeria’s hippo population has declined rapidly over the last few decades - estimates suggest there are now around 100 animals, which mainly live in conservation areas.

The hippo in Yauri was tracked down by young men, who used locally made spears known as a “zagos” to kill it.

Its carcass has since been ferried in a canoe to the palace of one of the Emir of Yauri's high-ranking administrators, where it has been butchered and its meat given to those in local community.

“We are a town of fishermen and farmers and this hippo has made many to stop going out due to fear of an attack,” resident Sani Yauri told the BBC.

“Apart from killing a member of the emir’s staff, it also seriously injured another person - not also forgetting the damage it regularly does to our farmlands.”

There are many paddy fields along the banks of the river near the town, where the hippo had sometimes been spotted.

“We are happy it has been killed and people came out in jubilation - and also got their share of the meat,” Mr Yauri said.

Another resident, Isa Jamilu, said he was relieved that could now go to his farm, which he had abandoned weeks ago.

Photos of the dead animal have been widely shared on social media - with mixed reactions: some hailed members of the local community for standing up for themselves while others expressed concern about the welfare of the animal.

The common hippopotamus is on the red list of threatened species put together by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

“This is an endangered species and I was sad when I saw the video clip of people celebrating after it was killed,” Isyaku Abdullahi, animal rights activist and founder of Nigeria's African Voice for Animals Initiative, told the BBC.

“What the people of Yauri ought to have done was to report to relevant authorities who would capture and relocate it.”

He said communities living in rural areas, especially places like Kebbi state where there are several rivers and lakes, needed to be made aware of other options when dealing with the dangerous mammals.

Kebbi is renowned for hosting the annual Argungu Fishing Festival, which is on the United Nations' cultural heritage list.

Hippos are the third-largest land mammal and their teeth can reach up to 50.8cm (20in) in length. Despite their size, they can also reach speeds of up to 20mph (32km/h).

While the animals are herbivores, they can become highly aggressive when they feel threatened or their habitats are disturbed - and kill around 500 people every year in Africa.