Jerry Haigh has a story to tell about hippos.
"Hippos . . . are an animal that, like the whale, was once terrestrial and returned to the water," he said during a Saskatchewan Festival of Words session in the Moose Jaw Museum and Art Gallery on Saturday.
Rather than give an evolutionary explanation of how hippos became aquatic, the University of Sask-atchewan veterinary college professor gave the audience a more traditional folklore explanation.
According to Haigh, the hippopotamus once lived entirely on land and was subject to constant sunburning. So all the hippos went to their king and asked if they could go live in the water.
The king then went and asked God if this would be permissible, but God refused the request because he didn't want all the fish eaten. However, the hippos asked their king to beg for permission again, and God finally agreed to the request, but on three conditions.
Firstly, all the hippos had to leave the water at night and graze grass in the area for food. They could not eat fish.
Secondly, when the hippos returned to the water in the morning, they had to lift their tails and poop, allowing God to ensure there were no fish bones in their feces.
Thirdly, while in the water, hippos had to periodically stick their heads above the surface and open their mouths wide, allowing God to make sure no fish meat was inside.
"So that is how hippo water behaviour is explained," Haigh said, adding hippos actually serve a very useful function in Africa's aqua-ecosystem. When they eat native grasses while grazing, they consequently poop those grasses out while in the water. The fish then feed on grasses found within the hippos poop.
"It's been described as a warm meal on a cold day."
Unfortunately, Haigh said when hippos are poached and lakes are left without resident grass importers, many fish die because they lose their main source of food.
While in Africa with the University of Saskatchewan, Haigh helped bring many constructive innovations to a poor community, such as solar ovens, clothes, and a TV to the village school.
Haigh said one of the first videos shown on the village TV was a documentary on the importance of hippos for fish survival (fish are vital to the village's economy). The professor hopes such education will lead the villagers to fight against hippo poaching.
Haigh was at the Festival of Words promoting his book, The Trouble with Lions and Other Animals: A Glasgow Vet in Africa.
Carter Haydu can be reached at 691-1265.
