Happy Hopping Hippos Hop Happily Quiz

Answer: Grass

The large majority of a hippo's diet consists of grass. An adult hippopotamus can eat 100-150 pounds of grass in one night. Due to their slow metabolism, hippos can go three weeks without eating and can store over two days' worth of grass in their stomachs before digesting it. Hippos do almost all of their eating at night and only rarely leave the vicinity of their watery homes.

Answer: False

This is completely false. The hippo is one of the most dangerous animals in Africa and causes more human deaths every year than crocodiles or lions. Never approach a hippopotamus in the wild as it may attack you, stomp you, or drown you. Their powerful tusks can be seen in this photo.

Answer: Cannot run

Although hippos look very cumbersome and heavy, they can easily outrun a human. Over short distances, an adult hippo can reach speeds of 19mph (30 km/h). They do have a heavy barrel shaped body, with short legs, and do not have fur.

Answer: It helps with temperature regulation and protection from sunburn.

The hippo has webbed feet which help it maneuver around in the water. Because the hippo does not have fur or scales for protection, it uses water to help it regulate its body temperature and protect its skin from sunburn. Hippos also produce a red oily sunblock that led to the ancient belief that they sweated blood.

Answer: True

The hippo is usually listed as being the third largest land animal on the planet. Hippos can weigh up to 8,000 lbs. (3628 kg). Only the elephant and the white rhinoceros can be larger.

Answer: River horse

The word 'hippopotamus' is a combination of two ancient Greek words. The word 'hippo' meaning horse and 'potamus' meaning river were combined together to make hippopotamus or river horse. The word is often shortened to hippo.

Answer: Africa

Historically, hippos were found living in most areas of the African continent. On this map, the areas in red show where they used to be found. The small areas shown in green are where they live today. Like many of the wild animals of Africa, their populations have become threatened or endangered.

Answer: Pygmy hippopotamus

Small areas of west Africa are home to the pygmy hippopotamus. This very rare animal only grows to about 600 lbs. It has longer legs and a smaller head than its cousin. It also sweats a white oily secretion instead of red. They tend to be solitary and are often seen in wooded areas near water. At the turn of the 21st century there were less than two thousand pygmy hippos in the wild.

Answer: Calf

A baby hippopotamus is called a calf. It is born underwater after which the mother pushes it to the surface so that it can breathe. Hippos usually have a single calf that weighs about 100 pounds. Hippo calves nurse underwater and often rest on their mother's back.

Answer: Dominant male with a harem of females and their babies.

Hippos live in male-dominated herds of 10-30 individuals. There is usually one breeding male with a harem of females and their offspring. Hippos are very territorial when in the water and will fight to the death for their harem and their territory. While other males may live in the group only the ranking male gets to mate.