This huge animal seems at first glance extremely awkward. However, anyone who has seen a hippo in the water will deny this assumption. Despite how much a hippopotamus weighs, in water it becomes very graceful, fast and even beautiful. What kind of animal is this, where does he live and what are his habits? The answers to these questions can be found below.
Origin
The name of the animal comes from two ancient Greek words: horse and river. It is easy to understand that you can call him a river horse. However, the hippo has nothing to do with horses. As with the pigs with which they are often compared. Surprisingly, his closest relative is a whale.
A long time ago, about 60 million years ago, the planet was inhabited by the ancestors of modern animals. At a certain moment, some of them remained on land, while some fell into the water. It happened about 55 million years ago. Despite the fact that hippos chose land, life without water is unthinkable for them, and it is necessary not only to quench their thirst.
hippopotamus
In general, this mammal belongs to the order of artiodactyls and belongs to the hippo family. Among land animals, it is the second most mass after elephants. Males reach from 3.2 to 4.2 meters in length. How much does a hippo weigh with such a body? About 1.5-3.2 tons. Females are smaller - in length they grow up to 2.7 meters, while they weigh only 2.5 tons.
In addition to the average, there is a record weight of a hippo. The maximum known to man is 4 tons. This male is a real giant. The skin of the animal is very thick, up to 5 centimeters. She gathers thick folds in the neck and chest. The hippo’s body is squat, its huge mouth has a deep cut. Newborn hippos are pink, while adults are already grayish-brown. There is no hair on the skin.
Hippos grow to a height of one and a half meters. By maturity, large specimens can reach 165 centimeters. The tail is about 50-55 cm. Despite how much the hippo weighs, it runs fast enough - it can reach speeds of up to 30 km / h. Unfortunately, its dimensions do not allow marathons, but a distance of 5-6 hundred meters at such a speed is quite affordable.
The hippo’s body structure is unique; it is created for a long stay in water. The eyes, ears and nostrils are high to stay on the surface even when the entire animal is immersed in liquid. This gives the hippo the opportunity to survey the surroundings while fleeing sunburn.
The jaw opens at an angle of 150 degrees. In the open mouth perfectly visible wonderful teeth of the animal. The height of the fangs is about 50 centimeters, while the incisors rise from the gums by only 30 centimeters. The upper incisors are short, while the fangs continue to grow throughout the life of the animal. Each of these colossal teeth weighs up to three kilograms. Milk teeth are replaced by constant about a year.
It is interesting that hippos cannot live without water - their skin dries and becomes covered with painful cracks. That is why giants are trying to spend as much time in water as possible.
Enemies
Actually, given how much the hippo weighs, we can say that it has no natural enemies. Even a hungry crocodile will not attack the hippo, although the reason for this is unknown - a large alligator could well cope with a hippo teenager.
The nature of the hippos is very aggressive. There are frequent cases when they attacked a person - they broke or turned over the boat. Despite all this, the abundance of the species is decreasing. Only in the last 15 years, Africa has become 10% smaller than these animals. Currently, there are about 150 thousand hippos left.
Despite government bans, the animal continues to be shot today. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, the natives believe that this is a harmful and unnecessary animal that is dangerous to humans. Secondly, he has tasty and very nutritious meat. Mostly due to these reasons, hippos are becoming smaller day by day.
Habitat
At the beginning of the last century, these animals were found almost throughout Africa: from the mouth of the Nile to Cape Town. Today, it’s rare to see hippos in the eastern or central parts of the continent. However, even these meetings most often occur in national parks protecting this species of mammals.
In the daytime, animals sleep in the water. They begin the search for food with the advent of darkness. They return to the pond just before dawn. Each hippopotamus has a personal trail along which he gets to pasture. The weight of a hippopotamus, on average 3 tons, is gained thanks to nutritious grass and aquatic plants.
Life expectancy and reproduction
The average life span of a hippo is 40-50 years. When kept in zoos, they can live up to 60 years. Tanga lived longer than other relatives - she spent 61 years in the Munich zoo . America currently has an elderly Donna Hippo, who is 60 years old.
Sexual maturity occurs in females by 5 years. They can bring offspring up to 55. Males reach puberty by 7-8 years. The gestation of the cubs lasts 8 months. The next conception is possible only after 18 months. Animals mate under water. The appearance of a small hippopotamus occurs there. Weight at birth is only 25 to 45 kg. A baby is born with a length of about 100 cm, a height of 50 cm.
As soon as he was born, the baby floats to the surface and inhales air. On land, labor rarely occurs; females prepare for them well in advance, trampling the ground in the alleged “maternity ward”. Most often, one baby is born, twins are extremely rare. About a year old cubs feed on mother’s milk, from which the weight of the little hippo grows very quickly, because milk has a high fat content. Submerging in water for feeding, the babies close their nostrils and press their ears tightly to the head to prevent water from entering.
Food
In search of food, animals can move up to 8 kilometers from water bodies. At least 4-5 hours have to be spent on the pasture to maintain the giant weight of the hippopotamus. An adult hippo is able to consume about 70 kg of vegetation per day. In rare cases, they can eat carrion, but this only happens when there is a lack of food.
The width of the trenches along which animals make their way to pasture is equal to its thickness. Hippos very zealously guard their territory, even divide the water spaces. The main male has a coastal area reaching up to 250 meters in length. Up to 15 females live with him along with the cubs of the last year. The grown males form their own groups.
Environmental impact
Although the natives do not see any benefit in these animals, they have a significant impact on the environment of water bodies and even on the lives of the people living in this area. It has long been proven that phytoplankton, which increases the biological productivity of living things, is actively multiplying in the reservoirs in which hippos live. That is, the more hippos in the lake, and the more lakes in the area, the greater the number of related animals, such as fish, can be found here. And the more this living creature, the more and more varied the food of people living nearby.
Pygmy hippo
In addition to the usual hippo, there is also a dwarf hippo. This animal weighs only up to 275 kg with a height of 75-85 cm. At the same time, its length reaches 150 cm. Such an animal can live in captivity for up to 55 years, while not everyone in the wild survives to 30. The habitat is swamps and Woodlands of West Africa. Ears, nostrils and eyes do not protrude so much on the head as those of huge brothers. The legs are noticeably longer relative to the body. The skin has a dark green or brown color. Dwarfs spend much less time in water. This subspecies totals only about three thousand individuals.