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hippopotamus: Quick Facts

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Facts

Also Known As common hippopotamus • Hippopotamus amphibius • hippo • water horse

Photos

A hippopotamus stands at the edge of a watering hole, with several other hippos partially submerged in the water, surrounded by green vegetation in Botswana, Africa.
A large hippopotamus sits covered in mud on the riverbank in morning sunlight, with dry grass in the background at Chobe River, Botswana.
Close-up of a hippopotamus face partially submerged in water, with reflections visible on the wet skin and water surface.
A hippo walking underwater
A herd of hippopotamuses (Hippopotamus amphibius) partially submerged in the South Luangwa River in Zambia, with one hippo in the center opening its mouth wide.
Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) in the Okavango Delta, Botswana, standing in shallow water with its mouth wide open showing large teeth; another hippo is partly visible behind.
A hippopotamus at Kruger National Park in South Africa
Map of Africa showing where populations of common hippopotamuses and pygmy hippopotamus live.
A pygmy hippopotamus stands in shallow water among submerged logs, looking upward with its mouth slightly open in a forested area in Liberia, West Africa.
The second largest land animal
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