What do Hippos Eat

 

Hippos are semi-aquatic animals which spend most of their time in water and some on land. Hippos can weigh anywhere from 1300-1800kg (2900-4000lb), with females weighing less than male hippos. Hippos are on the verge of extinction due to hunting of their ivory and meat. This article will answer the question what do hippos eat and give six fast and interesting facts about hippos.

First, let’s look at the question what do hippos eat. Firstly, hippos are usually herbivores, which means that they eat no meat. The hippo diet consists mainly of grasses. Hippos love grass and it is their number one nutrition source. Hippos will also eat most plants, and occasionally eat aquatic plants. Rarely, hippos have been seen eating carcasses of dead animals. There are also reports of hippos eating other animals and even other hippos (cannibalistic behaviour) but this has very very rarely been observed. The hippo stomach is not suited to eating meat and it is only done in rare circumstances. Now you know the answer to the question what do hippos eat. Now let’s look at six quick hippo facts!

Fact 1: Hippos are one of the largest mammals in the world. They grow to around 3.5m long (11ft) and 1.5m tall (5ft).

Fact 2: Hippos typically live for 35 to 50 years. The oldest living hippo reported in the wild lived to be 61 when it died in 1995.

Fact 3: Most of a hippos day is spent in the water or in the mud. Nearly the only thing a hippo does on dry land is eat.

Fact 4: Hippos have been known to be extremely aggressive towards humans.

Fact 5: At maximum speed, hippos have been known to run faster than Olympic sprinters. Hippos have been recorded at 48km/h (30mph).

Fact 6: Hippos live in groups of up to 40 hippos.