What does a Water Hyacinth have to do with hippopotumous? A little research revealed that the water hyacinth was first introduced in 1884 at the World's Fair in New Orleans. Soon after, the water hyacinth was choking rivers, killing fish and stopping shipping in Louisiana and Florida. There were many attempts to eradicate the flower, including one by the U.S. War Department to pour oil over many of the flowers, but none worked.
In 1910, a bold solution was put forth by the New Foods Society. Their plan was to import and release hippopotamus from Africa into the rivers and bayous of Louisiana. The hippopotamus would then eat the water hyacinth and also produce meat to solve another serious problem at the time, the American meat crisis. The American Hippo Bill, after hot debate in the House of Representatives, fell only one vote short of passing! Just think, one more vote and we could have been eating hippo sliders at happy hour...
wow...never knew this...plant is so pretty but deadly in the wrong area...australia made the same mistake importing the rabbit, the cane toad and the fox...
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