Post by Whiskers on Jul 22, 2006 1:03:41 GMT -6
I got this in an Email today and figured I would post it.
Hippo and Turtle
NAIROBI (AFP) - A baby hippopotamus that survived the tsunami waves on the
>Kenyan coast has formed a strong bond with a giant male century-old
>tortoise, in an animal facility in the port city of Mombassa, officials
>said.
>
>The hippopotamus, nicknamed Owen and weighin g about 300 kilograms (650
>pounds), was swept down Sabaki River into the Indian Ocean, then forced
>back to shore when tsunami waves struck the Kenyan coast on December 26,
>2004 before wildli fe rangers rescued him.
>
>
>
>"It is incredible. A-less-than-a-year-old hippo has adopted a male
>tortoise, about a century old, and the tortoise seems to be very happy with
>being a 'mother'," ecologist Paula Kahumbu, who is in charge of Lafarge
>Park, told AFP.
>
>
>
>"After it was swept and lost its mot her, the hippo was traumatized. It had
>to look for something to be a surrogate mother. Fortunately, it landed on
>the tortoise and established a strong bond. They swim, eat and sleep
>together," the ecologist added. "The hippo follows the tortoise exactly the
>way it follows its mother. If somebody approaches the tortoise, the hippo
>becomes aggressive, as if protecting its biological mother," Kahumbu added.
>
>
>
>"The hippo is a young baby, he was left at a very tender age and by nature,
>hippos are social animals that like to stay with their mothers for four
>years," he explained.
>
>
>
>
>
>This is a real story that shows that our differences don't matter much when
>we need the comfort of another. We could all learn a lesson from these two
>creatures of God. Look beyond the differences and find a way to walk the
>path together.
Hippo and Turtle
NAIROBI (AFP) - A baby hippopotamus that survived the tsunami waves on the
>Kenyan coast has formed a strong bond with a giant male century-old
>tortoise, in an animal facility in the port city of Mombassa, officials
>said.
>
>The hippopotamus, nicknamed Owen and weighin g about 300 kilograms (650
>pounds), was swept down Sabaki River into the Indian Ocean, then forced
>back to shore when tsunami waves struck the Kenyan coast on December 26,
>2004 before wildli fe rangers rescued him.
>
>
>
>"It is incredible. A-less-than-a-year-old hippo has adopted a male
>tortoise, about a century old, and the tortoise seems to be very happy with
>being a 'mother'," ecologist Paula Kahumbu, who is in charge of Lafarge
>Park, told AFP.
>
>
>
>"After it was swept and lost its mot her, the hippo was traumatized. It had
>to look for something to be a surrogate mother. Fortunately, it landed on
>the tortoise and established a strong bond. They swim, eat and sleep
>together," the ecologist added. "The hippo follows the tortoise exactly the
>way it follows its mother. If somebody approaches the tortoise, the hippo
>becomes aggressive, as if protecting its biological mother," Kahumbu added.
>
>
>
>"The hippo is a young baby, he was left at a very tender age and by nature,
>hippos are social animals that like to stay with their mothers for four
>years," he explained.
>
>
>
>
>
>This is a real story that shows that our differences don't matter much when
>we need the comfort of another. We could all learn a lesson from these two
>creatures of God. Look beyond the differences and find a way to walk the
>path together.
I FER ONE TRY TO GET ALONG WITH THOSE I MET, SO LONG AS THEY CAN SPEAK ENGLISH, AND NOT JIBERISH. 