Owen and Mzee are a hippopotamus and a tortoise, respectively, that became the subject of much media attention after forming a unique bond of friendship.[1]
A baby hippopotamus, Owen, was orphaned in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Kenya near Malindi during the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake on December 26, 2004. The baby hippo, weighing 600 pounds (270 kg), was rescued during a day long effort by nearly 1,000 villagers using shark nets. Owen's namesake is a villager named Owen Saubion, who finally tackled the hippo during the rescue.
Owen was taken to Haller Park, a restored limestone quarry near Mombasa owned by Lafarge Eco Systems' East African firm, Bamburi Cement. He was released into a large wooded penned-in area that included a pond and a co-inhabitant -- a 700-pound (320 kg), 130-year-old Aldabran tortoise named Mzee (Swahili for "wise old man").
Owen immediately bonded to Mzee, who initially resisted Owen's overtures. Over time, the old tortoise came to accept the young hippo, who began to mimic his adoptive "parent." Gradually, Mzee taught Owen, who was a nursing calf, what to eat and where to sleep.
In the first year, the two have become inseparable companions who eat, sleep, swim, and play together. They have surprised scientists with the strength of what appears to be a genuine bond, as well as a unique vocal communication that has developed between them. Owen and Mzee have also become world-wide celebrities as a result of their astonishing behavior, captured on film and video primarily by BBC photographer Peter Greste. Two picture books, Owen and Mzee: The true story of a remarkable friendship and Owen & Mzee: Language Of Friendship, both published by Scholastic Press, and authored by Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff, and Paula Kahumbu were released in February 2006 and January 2007.