A human with a gun can kill a hippo, and a pack of lions can take down a hippo with hard teamwork. Some people say a rhino can kill a hippo, but there is much debate about that. Another of several astonishing hippo facts is that these beasts can chomp down with a brutal force of about 2, pounds per square inch. To understand how powerful of a bite that truly is, compare it to the human bite force of pounds per square inch. There is an ongoing debate about who would win in a rhino-versus-hippo battle.
Some people say the rhino would triumph because of its larger size, vicious horn, and faster speed. Others claim the hippo has more advantages that include its enormous mouth that can dole out lethal damage. The hippo can see better since rhinos have poor eyesight, and a bull hippo has much more experience fighting from defending his harem opposed the rhino who lives a solitary life.
A rhino could stand a better chance of killing a hippo away from water because if a hippo can pull the rhino into its territory, it could be history for the rhino. Although it is not common, bull hippos do attack and kill hippo calves. By changing up the ecosystem like this, hippos construct shelter and habitats for smaller creatures. Hippos eat on land and poop in the water, providing nutrients to aquatic life.
For example, the hippo dung fertilizes water plants, and some fish directly eat the hippo dung while other fish eat insects that have previously fed off it. Want to know why? Habitat loss and unregulated poaching and hunting are the top reasons why hippo numbers are declining. Hippos are often killed because they pose such a dangerous threat to people competing for fresh water. They are also hunted and killed for their meat and ivory tusks and teeth which sell for big bucks on the black market.
Once upon a time, hippos roamed as far as Asia and Europe. Today, their overall population is limited to Africa, with their numbers estimated between , and , Currently, the Africa countries of Zambia and Tanzania are home to the largest hippo populations.
A group of hippos is called by many different terms by various people. They include herds, schools, pods, dales, and bloats. You could say that hippos love hanging out with their bloats. Hippos are social and usually hang out together in groups of 10 to 30 individuals , but some groups may include up to members. No matter how small or large a group, all hippo herds are led by a single, dominant bull.
Many of these herds contain females, but bachelor hippos are allowed inside the community as long as they know to respect the bull hippo and not flirt with any of the females. Juvenile crocodiles sometimes fall victim to carnivores such as leopards, jaguars, otters, and pythons. Would you believe a hippopotamus cannot swim? You would think that an animal that spends a majority of its time in the water could swim, but hippos cannot.
However, calves are buoyant. Hippos sink to the bottom of the water and then move by walking, trotting, jogging or running. When they are ready to return to the surface, they kick their hind legs to push off from the bottom and propel themselves upward. Adult hippos can stay underwater for up to five minutes at a time. They need to resurface every 3 to 5 minutes to breathe.
Baby hippos need to breathe every 2 to 3 minutes. Here are some more amazing hippo facts for you: Surfacing and breathing are automatic for hippos. They can even do it in their sleep without even needing to wake up. People do eat hippo meat even though the sale of it is illegal.
Hippopotami are generally moody and unpredictable. So when you do spot these giants in their natural habitat, always remain respectful and mindful that you are in their space. Hippos are a spectacular part of the African kingdom and the things they can do underwater are truly remarkable. If you are keen to see these large river horses in real life, book a safari.
Now that you know how long a hippo can hold its breath, check out other fascinating things about them. Editorial Team at Africa Freak is a group of expert Africa writers and influencers. We're all about safari and celebrating wild Africa. Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Join us as we celebrate wild Africa , inspiring positive change in the people we reach. How long can a hippopotamus hold its breath underwater?
Celebrate Wild Africa With Us! Though they are among largest terrestrial vertebrates in the world smaller only than elephants and some rhinos and are distributed widely across sub-Saharan Africa, they remain largely cloaked in mystery.
Perhaps this is because they spend most of their lives submerged and peering from the surfaces of murky ponds and waterways, often only emerging under the cover of darkness. Unfortunately, hippos have been eradicated from most of their historic African range, though healthy populations can be found in protected areas, especially in Tanzania and Zambia. In the interest of shedding a little light on this enigmatic creature, here are a few interesting hippo facts to consider when you encounter a pod on your next safari:.
The areas in green are where hippos can be found today. According to the African Wildlife Foundation, hippos kill around 3, people annually. To put that in perspective, lions kill about 70 people per year on average and last year there were fewer than fatal shark attacks worldwide. Hippo attacks can occur in water or on land, often without obvious provocation. Still, not surprisingly, humans are for more dangerous to hippos than they are to us.
Hippos prefer to breed in the water but can also do so on land. Amazingly, the gestation period for such a large mammal is just 8 months—slightly shorter than the human gestation period—yet the hippo calf is about 10 times larger than a human baby! When the female nears the time to give birth, she leaves the herd for one or two weeks to give birth to her young and create a bond with her baby.
She is comfortable giving birth in water or on land. If the baby is born underwater, the mother needs to push it to the surface to breathe. Newborn hippos are only able to hold their breath for about 40 seconds at a time. The mother stays in the water with her newborn for several days without eating, and she waits until her baby is strong enough before they dare leave the water at night to graze. Mothers nurse their babies, even underwater, for about eight months.
Hippos are surprisingly noisy: some hippo vocalizations have been measured at decibels, about the same volume as being 15 feet away from the speakers at a rock concert! He arrived here in August , becoming the first hippo to be cared for by a zoo on the West Coast. He became quite the sensation. Rube and Ruby were popular from the moment they arrived in as youngsters from the Calcutta Zoo in India. The pair produced 11 offspring during their time together, with their first calf born in By , the Zoo's year-old hippo habitat was showing its age, and a decision was made to close it until it could be replaced with an up-to-date facility.
That facility became a reality when a new hippo habitat opened at the Zoo in It continues to offer millions of people a safe way to get an up-close-and-personal view of hippos. Zoo visitors can observe hippo behavior on the beach and underwater all year long, as their habitat features feet Thanks to the temperate San Diego weather, the water in the pool does not need to be heated or chilled.
Although hippos are not yet endangered, their habitat has been greatly reduced over the last years. Once common to all of Africa, hippos are now abundant only in East Africa. Male hippos stake a claim to a stretch of river and all the females in it.
It is his job to protect the group from intruders. An unsuspecting human boater who enters hippo territory risks an aggressive response. Female hippos, especially mothers with calves, can be equally dangerous and unpredictable. Sometimes, it is the hippo that invades human areas like local farmlands, devouring crops.
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