Wildlife: Mammals -
Hippopotamus 2/3
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Wildlife
Hippopotamus Amphibius, Hippopotamus, Seekoei, Nilpferd.
Life history
Gestation takes a long time and will last up to 227 days. The female
hippopotamus will only bear one child at a time. The children are born at any
time in the year. In the Kruger National Park however 70% of all births occur in
October to March with a peak in January and February. The baby's weigh only 30
kilogramms at birth, not a lot compared to the weight of adults, it starts
grazing after 8 weeks of age and weans at 14 months. There is only one birth
with each female in 2 or 3 years. Females become mature at 5 years of age, males
a bit later up to 8 years of age. Females will age up to 35 years. Under ideal
conditions the hippopotamus population will grow 8% a year. Crocodiles and lion
will take young specimens for prey on occassion.
 Behaviour
Most of its day is spent resting in the cool waters to be
protected from the warm sun and insects. At times they leave the
water to play and to sunbathe. The sweat of the hippopotamus
contains a pigment that acts as a sun blocker. During the
evening and night it will be on the shore to graze for up to 8
hours. This is when the hippopotamus is extremely dangerous, it
will crush anything on its path. Since they have territories
often there are savage fights in which the tusks will at times
cause the death of individuals. They are also the only mammals
in Southern Africa to mate in water. They can also cause severe
pollution to waterways since they produce dung and urine having
a great influence on water quality. On three occasions
hippopotamus's have been witnessed to rescue other animals from
being dragged into the water by crocodiles. Crocodiles and
hippopotamus's live in a permanent cease-fire but at times
violence may erupt. Especially during dry seasons when water
becomes scarce.
Field Signs
The trails of hippopotamus should be avoided at all times and
can be recognised by two parallel ruts. Often dung is heaped
next to the path.
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