Hippos

Thousands of years ago, hippos roamed through Europe, Asia, and Africa. But today, they are only in Africa. Pygmy hippos are found in the forests of West Africa. The huge common hippos live near lakes and rivers in the grasslands of East and Central Africa. Common hippos spend most of their time in the water, so all four toes on each hoof are close together to help them swim more easily. Each toe works to support the hippos tremendous weight out of the water. Pygmy hippos spend less time in the water than common hippos. Their toes are spread out to help them move more freely on land. When swimming, hippos tuck their short front legs under their bodies and kick with their rear legs.

When diving, a hippo presses its ears flat against its head. This keeps out most of the water. When it surfaces, it shakes out the rest by wiggling its ears really hard. Before they dive, hippos take a deep breath and close their nostrils tightly. Adult hippos can stay under water for as long as five or six minutes. When they come up, they exhale loudly, snorting and hissing as air blasts out their nostrils.   When grazing, hippos stay close to the water. The farthest they walk to feed is about six miles. Usually they only go half that far. Hippos graze on the same land as buffaloes, elephants, antelopes, and wart hogs. But because they eat mainly at night, they usually graze by themselves. Only at dusk are all the animals together.

For their size, hippos eat very little. Cows, for example, eat almost twice as much as hippos do. Scientists think that hippos eat less because they are experts at saving energy. In a bad drought, hippos can live for many weeks without food, water. or shade. But they must stay in mud holes. To avoid wasting energy, they barely move at all.

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