![]() Mating and birth both occur in the water. Territorial bulls each preside over a stretch of water and a group of five to thirty cows and calves. Hippos inhabit rivers, lakes, and mangrove swamps. Despite its stocky shape and short legs, it is capable of running 30 km/h (19 mph) over short distances. Hippos are recognisable for their barrel-shaped torsos, wide-opening mouths with large canine tusks, nearly hairless bodies, pillar-like legs, and large size: adults average 1,500 kg (3,300 lb) for bulls (males) and 1,300 kg (2,900 lb) for cows (females). ![]() ![]() Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, the closest living relatives of the hippopotamids are cetaceans ( whales, dolphins, porpoises, etc.), from which they diverged about 55 million years ago. It is also the largest extant land artiodactyl. Its name comes from the ancient Greek for "river horse" ( ἱπποπόταμος).Īfter elephants and rhinos, the hippopotamus is the next largest land mammal. It is one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae, the other being the pygmy hippopotamus ( Choeropsis liberiensis or Hexaprotodon liberiensis). ![]() ![]() The hippopotamus or hippo ( / ˌ h ɪ p ə ˈ p ɒ t ə m ə s/ HIP-ə- POT-ə-məs PL: hippos, hippopotamuses or hippopotami Hippopotamus amphibius), further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. ![]()
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