Yawn like a hippopotamus.
- A hippopotamus is also known as a ‘hippo’, and is from the family Hippopotamidae, the family of hippotamuses.
- The term ‘hippopotamus’ comes from the words for ‘river horse’ in Ancient Greek, and its scientific name is Hippopotamus amphibius.
- Hippopotamuses are large cylindrical-shaped mammals, with a big round body, large teeth and short legs.
- Hippopotamuses are native to the rivers and other aquatic areas of Africa, and live for 40 to 50 years in the wild, on average.
- In the water hippopotamuses are territorial, and are said to be the most dangerous large animal in Africa, where hundreds of people are killed by them annually.
Hippos
Image courtesy of National Geographic
- Hippopotamuses are generally found in groups of 10-30, mainly consisting of females and children with one dominant male, but they can live in herds of up to a hundred.
- Hippopotamuses can grow to 3.3 to 5.5 metres (11 to 17 feet) in length and weigh, on average, 1,300 to 1,800 kilograms (2,900 to 4,000 pounds), although one was recorded weighing 4,500 kilograms (9,900 pounds).
- Hippopotamuses can run at speeds of 30 km per hour (19 mph) on land, and swim at speeds of 8 km per hour (5 mph).
- Hippopotamuses can stretch their mouth up to 180° and they sharpen their teeth by grinding them together.
- Hippopotamuses are generally a mix of purple, brown and black in colour, and they excrete a thick, red-pink coloured liquid through their skin to protect them from the sun.
Bibliography:
Hippo, 2013, San Diego Zoo, http://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/hippo
Hippopotamus, 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippopotamus
