Hippos are the second largest land animals in the world, only eclipsed in size by the elephant and can be seen quite easily in Uganda. Most of the lakes and rivers in the country are habitats for hippos. As a company Mirama Hills Safaris we welcome you to take you around Ugandan national parks to encounter these wild animals. The full name hippo is hippopotamus and derived from Greek to mean river horse.
The highest concentrations of hippos in Uganda in Queen Elizabeth National Park at the Kazinga channel.
Hippos spend most of their time in the water. Their unique skin needs to be wet for a large portion of the day. If a hippo is out of the water for too long, they can become dehydrated. Hippos don’t have true sweat glands instead; they secrete “blood sweat,” which is a thick, red substance
.Hippos takes the same path for grazing in the evenings. The feeding area can expand to as far as 2 miles from the water, they feed in a circle pattern and this pattern keeps getting wider and wider.
Many people think that hippos eat meat because they’re so large in size. However, hippos are actually herbivores, meaning they only feed on plants. The majority of their diet consists of short grasses, but they will eat fruit if it’s available.
Even though the hippos stay together in groups and also mate from the water, they do prefer feeding individually. They follow these feeding trails every day to feed and trace back when the sun comes up high.
Hippos feed during the night because they need protection from the hot savannah sun. Hippos have no sweat glands and therefore the hot sun is bad for their skin.
This is why they hide in water for much of the day, and also why they secret a pinkish around their ears and eyes. Here is a good article we made about hippo facts that can give you further interesting insight.
Hippos are polygamous, meaning they mate with multiple mates throughout life, and males may mate with multiple females in a single season. Females have a gestation period of about 324 days (8 months) and give birth in water away from their herd.
The second-largest land mammal on land the Hippo has nothing to be afraid of any other animal except for elephants and of course themselves. They are not even afraid of adult white rhinos. They are big bullies which are not afraid of anything. They sometimes even charge at bull elephants.
Hippos are known for their aggressive and dangerous behavior. In an encounter with a hippo, a human has an 86.7% chance of fatality. Because of their large size and weight, hippos are not as fast as other animals and will often rely on aggression as a primary defense mechanism.
.Hippos of Africa is the most dangerous animals. The wild animals are unpredictable, aggressive when an intruder comes into their territory, which they defend, of course. When they feel threatened, they will attack the animal or human. As a territorial wild animal, they want to protect their turf and pod/family.
The hippo’s biggest enemies are; Nile crocodiles, lions, and spotted hyenas are known to prey on young hippos. Beyond these, adult hippos are not usually preyed upon by other animals due to their aggression and size. Cases where large lion prides have successfully preyed on adult hippos have been reported, but it is generally rare.
One is that the African sun is very hot and so they keep cool in the water. The second is their weight problem. Hippos are extremely heavy, so when they are submerged the water provides buoyancy and takes some of the weight off their legs. Hippos usually leave the water and do their grazing at night.
Despite their enormous size, hippos are great swimmers and can hold their breath for up to five minutes underwater. When completely submerged, their ears and nostrils fold shut to keep water out. 7) Hippos usually live in family called a school of around ten to 20 individuals, led by one large dominant male.
What is this? Their surprising agility for such massy beings has long been a source of intrigue. Some have even clocked speeds of up to 30km/hr.
A hippo’s lifespan is typically 40 to 50 years in capacity.