Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius)
| Common name | Scientific name | Average weight of adult male | Average length or shoulder height | Diet | How do they live | Feeding time | Gestation period | Number of young at birth |
| Hippopotamus | Hippopotamus amphibius | 1500 kg | 1,5 m | herbivorous grazer | herds | night | 8 months | single calf |
The Hippopotamus
Sound
Very large animals and one of the most dangerous as they can be very aggressive. They normally stay in the water during the day because they are very susceptible to sunburn and heat and only come out at night to graze. While grazing they can travel quite a distance from the water.
In the rural areas they often get into trouble for grazing the crops of farmers close to the rivers. In the past they were found in many rivers but they have been hunted to the point where they can only be found in game parks.
They can stay underwater for up to six minutes when alarmed and you normally see only their ears, eyes and nostrils when it is very hot. Mating takes place in the water and females can conceive from about the age of four years. Males reach puberty at seven years of age.