A hippopotamus from a Japanese zoo, which was thought to be a male for 22 years, turned out to be a female

At the Tenoji Zoo in Osaka, Japan, staff were in for a surprise when they discovered that a hippo brought from Mexico seven years ago and thought to be a male was actually a female. Doubts about the sex of the animal arose due to the lack of behavioral characteristics characteristic of males. It is reported t4.com.ua

DNA testing was performed to determine the sex, as it is very difficult to determine the sex of hippopotamus visually. The results showed that the 22-year-old hippo, known as Gen-chan, is actually a female.

Despite the unexpected discovery, the zoo staff and its visitors took the news in stride and decided to keep Gen-tian her name, regardless of the gender change.