Hippo love: Otis and Funani reunited at San Diego Zoo
After a more than two-year separation due to parenthood, the San Diego Zoo’s resident hippopotamuses, Otis and Funani, are together again in their 150,000-gallon pool.
The two were kept apart after zookeepers decided it was unwise to have Otis near the couple’s calf, Adhama, born in January 2011. But on June 13, the 1869-pound Adhama, as planned, was transferred to the Los Angeles Zoo.
On Tuesday, Otis (at 3,900 pounds) and Funani (a slim 3,600 pounds) were reunited in their pool. So far, zookeepers have spotted no signs of aggression or territorial fighting between the two mates.
Funani has shown a bit of assertiveness, however. She bared her teeth at Otis and indicated that the rock in the middle of the pool is hers; Otis, wisely, backed off.
Don’t figure on a sibling for Adhama. In anticipation of the reunion, Funani was put on birth control.
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