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Hippopotamus
A river giant of Africa — it spends its days submerged, grazes by night, and is among the continent's most dangerous animals.
How to spot it
An enormous barrel-bodied animal with a huge head and short legs, its eyes, ears and nostrils set high so it can rest almost fully submerged. The near-hairless skin oozes a reddish oily fluid — a natural sunscreen. Big males weigh well over a tonne and a half.
Where it lives
Rivers, lakes and wetlands across sub-Saharan Africa. It spends the hot day resting in water and comes out at night to graze on land, following well-worn paths to its grazing lawns.
What it eats
A herbivore that leaves the water after dark to graze on grass, eating surprisingly little for its size. For all the plant diet, its huge tusk-like canines are formidable weapons.
Behaviour & life
Lives in groups presided over by a dominant male. It cannot truly swim — it walks and pushes off along the bottom — yet it is fiercely territorial in water and, taken together, hippos kill more people in Africa than most large predators.
Conservation
Classed as Vulnerable, threatened by habitat loss and hunting for its meat and ivory teeth. In India the hippopotamus is found only in zoos.
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