Hippo Info

This study focuses on the Nile Hippopotamus Hippopotamus amphibius, one of the two members of the family hippopotamide. Hippos are amphibious mammals, remaining protected in the water during day, and venturing nocturnally to forage on land, where a single individual may consume 40 kg in only five hours of grazing. Hippos are very dangerous at this time, when they are estranged from the safety of the river, and may attack any creature that interecpts their path to water. They are one of the largest animals in Africa, with bulls weighing 1000-2500 kg, and the slightly smaller female weighing 1000-1700 kg.(5) The Nile Hippos have a barrel-shaped body and a broad, wide head. Their ears and eyes are located dorsally, an adaptation that allows them to remain almost entirely submerged. Hippos have powerful jaws that open 150 degrees to reveal large canine tusks. Hippos are covered with thin hairless skin that is sensitive to the sun and rapidly desicates. Several glands secrete a reddish fluid called "hippo blood" that functions to reflect UV radiation and reduce dehydration. They are antiodactylous and their webbed four-toed feet leave distinct prints forming two small parallel tracks on each path. Hippos reach sexual maturity between 6-8 years.

Hippos live together when in the water, but prefer to graze solitarily. The females form matriarchial social groups led by a dominant male. The females have a gestation cycle of 230 days, and retreat in solitude to calve. The newborn calves weigh between 22-55 kg at birth and remain alone with their mother for several weeks before rejoining the heard (5). Hippos mark their territory by spraying feces onto bushes and grass along the paths with their broad paddle shaped tails. There is evidence that territorality decreases as they move further from the water. In the past hippos have been brutally hunted by humans but presently they are protected by CITES on the appendix I, which bans any hunting of hippos or sale of their byproducts internationally.