Nile Hippopotamus

You will be able to spot these heavyweights of Equatorial Africa just before the tram crosses into the Asian Riverine Forest. They’re way bigger than our family of pygmy hippos at Singapore Zoo. To keep their massive bodies cool in the blistering African heat, hippos can spend up to 16 hours a day submerged in water.

They consume few, if any, aquatic plants, and are absolutely dependent on vegetation surrounding permanent water bodies. At sundown, they leave the water, travelling overland along single-file pathways to forage for food.

Nighttime feeding takes place over 5-6 hours, usually within a close range of 1-3 km to their home watercourse. Coarse, tufty grass is passed over for short, creeping grass species that can be grasped with their lips and torn off a side-to-side head movement.

In this way, “hippo lawns” are created by continued grazing. If threatened on land, hippos will make a dash back to the water. At a speed of 30km/hr, they can match a human's speed for short distances!

The hippo’s canines and incisors grow continuously. The long lower canines are kept sharp through constant vertical wear against the shorter upper canines and used for fighting. These tusk-like teeth can grow to 50 cm in males - twice the length of the females’.

Their jaws are hinged far to the back, allowing for an enormous gape of 150°, compared to only 45° in humans. The yawn is a threat display to establish dominance. It is also used by males to attract females.