Denver Zoo’s hippo to hop on to Texas wildlife preserve so exhibit can be updated

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.