Hippos are pretty cute with their rotund bodies,
short stubby legs and sly smirks. Aww.
But if you happen upon one, beware.
They're one of the most fearsome animals
in the world.
Hippos may seem harmless, but they're far from it.
In Africa, hippos kill around 500 people a year,
making them twice as deadly as lions.
They have a bite force of up to 12,600 kPa (1,827 psi).
A hippo could sever a person in two
as easily as we can snap a chocolate bar.
The hippopotamus
is the second-largest land animal on Earth,
following the elephant.
But surprisingly,
they're more closely related to whales
than they are to elephants.
Male hippos measure about 3.5 m (11.5 ft) long
and 1.5 m (5 ft) tall.
And they can weigh up to 3,200 kg (3.5 tons).
That's as heavy as three small cars.
And even at such an enormous size, they're pretty fast,
running at speeds of up to 40 km/h (25 mph).
These big animals also have big bites.
Do you know that a hippopotamus
can open its mouth 180 degrees?
Their giant pink maws are filled with huge ivory tusks
that can grow as big as 51 cm (20 in).
You'd think that with mouths and teeth that big,
they'd be maneaters.
But they're herbivores, feeding mostly on grass.
So if all they eat is grass,
why do they need those huge tusks
and 180-degree mouths?
To fight other hippos, of course.
Hippos are extremely aggressive and territorial,
which makes them dangerous to humans.
Many hippo attacks and human deaths
are caused by people entering hippos' territories,
hunting them or otherwise annoying them.
" Look at this little fella.
Hello there."
And while they won't eat you,
they will take you out,
especially if you aggravate them.
So if you haven't figured it out already,
it's best to steer clear of hippos.
Unfortunately, the notorious Colombian drug lord
Pablo Escobar did not heed this advice.
He famously kept hippos,
giraffes, elephants and other exotic animals
on his estate in northwestern Colombia.
When he was killed in 1993,
the Colombian government seized all his assets.
Most of his animals were transferred to zoos
and aquariums,
but his four hippos got into Colombia's waterways
and multiplied.
Good job Pablo.
Between 40 and 60 of their descendants
currently live in Colombia,
and they occasionally trample crops and charge at humans.
Even worse,
the hippos are contaminating Colombia’s waterways
with their toxic feces.
Their poop creates algae blooms
that reduce the oxygen available to fish
and they are threatening many native species.
And although hippos
are extremely dangerous to humans,
we are much more deadly to them.
Hippos are a threatened species.
They used to live throughout all of sub-Saharan Africa,
but now they are largely confined to protected areas
in East African countries.
And hundreds of hippos are shot each year
to minimize human-wildlife conflicts,
despite the fact that ditches or low fences easily deter them.
Humans also kill them for their fat and their ivory tusks,
which are in high demand.
Even though they're big and mean,
we don't want hippos to become extinct.
And if you want to meet one in person,
you can visit the Cincinnati Zoo
and safely say hello to Fiona.
Hello Fiona, who's a cute little hippo?
Opening their mouths 180 degrees
and taking toxic dumps is what hippos do.
And that's what makes them Crazy Creatures.