Baby hippos can even swim as soon as they’re born. They won’t leave their mothers until they reach the age of seven to eight weeks, however, after which they are on their own. Although hippos have very sharp teeth and are very large animals, they are in fact herbivores which means they do not eat meat, only plants. They're only related in that they're both mammals - you might as well ask if either can have a baby with you! Would you like to merge this question into it? Young hippos can stay underwater for about 30 seconds. MERGE CANCEL. Hippos have 4 feet. In fact, they have 36 teeth that include one canine, two incisors, three premolars, and three molars on each side of their jaws. Merge this question into . Experts suggest that one reason for this is that hippos in the wilderness leave shorter lives is he fact that they are attacked by other animals.However, these attacks are happening only when the hippos are still young. Hippos tend to live in groups, which can be as large as 100. With appropriate habitat, hippo survival rate is very high. There are two types of hippos: common hippopotamus from south Sahara in East Africa (the big one) and the small one named Pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis of liberiensis) which comes from West Africa, and it is less common. If they are living in the wilderness, they have a shorter life expectancy of around 30 years.. already exists. Hippos protect themselves by living in groups called herds, which can be between 10 and 30 hippos in size. Lions have been known to take down hippos, but it depends upon how many lions, the age of the hippo, and how far it is from the water. Crocodiles, lions, hyenas, and leopards are all potential threats while growing up—but … How Many Feet Do Hippos have? A group of hippos is usually called a bloat, pod, or herd. Though they feed on land, hippos do many other activities in the water, including mating and birthing. MERGE CANCEL. This enables baby hippos to play in a group. Hippos live in areas of water, dams, rivers and estuaries How do Hippos breath underwater? I think it's really cool that they are born knowing how to swim. They are certainly not the same thing! After three weeks, babies even have the strength to climb onto their mothers’ backs to nap and to munch on grass. But these days, most attacks from Hippos come in the water when boats get too close to them. To make up for this deficit, hippos do have extremely thick skin, consisting of about two inches of the epidermis and only a thin layer of underlying fat—there's not much need to conserve heat in the wilds of equatorial Africa. Fun Facts About the Hippopotamus. But what do we really know about baby hippos and how they come into this world? Hippos can not breath under water they breath with their nostrils when above the water and their nostrils close when under the water. Hippos are artiodactyls (even-toed ungulates) in the family Hippopotamidae. The milk of a Hippo can also be ejected below the surface of the water, unlike other mammals. Of course, hippos have teeth. Common Hippopotamus Diet. already exists. 6. Once on land, Hippos can run very fast, much faster than the average human. It is the second heaviest land animal after the elephant. 10) In the wild hippos live for around 40 years. Would you like to make it the primary and merge this question into it? How many baby can a hippo have at a time? During the dry season, the dominant male chooses a partner, and then the other males fight each other for the remaining females. already exists as an alternate of this question. Soon after birth, the mother and her baby join up with other cows and calves for protection against predators, such as crocodiles, lions and hyenas. They are almost forty hippos in a group, which is composed of a dominant male hippo, female hippos and their young. About the weight of a large adult dog! exists and is an alternate of . already exists as an alternate of this question. How long do hippos live in the wild? Where do Hippos Live? But simply reaching adulthood is a challenge. In … How long do hippopotamuses live? Would you like to make it the primary and merge this question into it? However, a pod tends to have about 30 hippos.