Said
he to the English speaking world: You may consider me 'real
hip'
which
means I
am well informed.
Knowledgeable and cognizant I also am!
Inhabitating the rivers and swamps in Africa's sub-saharan,
the
Greek called us Hippopotamus
which
to them meant River
Horse.
The
name, disliked by my father ~ he called us simply Hippos!
We're large semi-aquatic mammals;
our bodies, not only large, are barrel-shape.
We have short legs and enormous heads!
Our skin is greyish to muddy brown
fading into pale pink on our undersides.
The largest land mammal on Earth (first place to the Elephant),
we males measure about 3.5 metres tall and weigh up to 3200 kg.
(That's as much as 3 small cars)
and on occasion, we can run up to 23 km/hr.
Staying cool in Africa's heat,
we Hippos spend most of the day in our watery homes.
Our eyes, noses and ears located on the top of our heads,
we can SEE and BREATHE when water-submerged.
Protecting our skin from drying out, we sweat a liquid, oily red
that 'sunblocks' our skin above water.
We spend up to 16 hours in the water per day
and then at night, we hunt for food.
Travelling about 6 miles overland, grazing along single paths,
we consume some 600 pounds of grass.
With a mass of food eaten, we can go 3 weeks without another morsel.
Despite our enormous size, great swimmers we are ~
holding our breath underwater for up to 5 minutes.
When completely submerged,
our ears and nostrils fold shut to keep out the water.
We
live in groups called herds
(about 10 to 20 hippos)
led
by one dominate
male.
The other members are females...their young...and a few males
non-breeding.
The
dominate
males of
the herd are protective of all in the herd.
To
ward off 'rival mouths' ~ we open our
mouths
to display our long curved and viciously sharp ivory canines!
We make loud grunts ~ and aggressively splash water upon them.
Now,
I must relate how I met Potamus.
Her
father, the dominate
male
of his herd,
requested that upon his death (due to prolonged illness),
I supervise his daughter ~ and raise her as my own.
Loving and kind ~ she was admired by all in my herd.
Females
hippos (called cows)
give
birth every 2 years
usually
a single calf...as
told to me by Potamus.
Soon
after birth, the mother and babe unite with other cows
and
calves
for protection from predators: crocodiles, lions and hyenas.
The
calves
at
birth weigh nearly 100 pounds ~
and can suckle on land or under water by closing their ears and
nostrils.
Potamus
contentedly
lived with my herd in nearby waters.
When of age, she yearned for a babe to honour her Pah.
I sought for a male who'd love her and care ~
and
who, in the future would become a dominate
offering her stability and status within his herd.
* * * * * * *
Hippos once had a wider distribution
but now live in Eastern, Central and Southern Sub-saharan Africa
where their population is seriously in decline.
Wild hippos live for around 40 years.
In captivity they may live up to 50 years.
Sadly, populations have further declined due to habitat loss
and now are largely contained in protected areas of East African
countries.
One tourist, describing hippos said,
“They
are big, bulky ~ and with one serious chomp ~ they can deliver!”
Notations:
A hippo's size is compared to a 6-foot man.
Predators, like crododiles and lions, are safer when avoiding the
most aggressive animal on Earth
the
Hippopotamus!
Tanzania is reported to sell nearly 4 tons of 'hippo ivory'
(the world fearing it'll lead to more poaching)
Author: Merle Baird-Kerr...written June 11, 2018
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