Vijaysudar's Blog

No, the hippo’s skin exudes a red, oily liquid that keeps the skin moist and protected when it is out of water. The liquid has lead to a myth that the hippo sweats blood.

I know it’s too close a shot to be comfortable to view. These Hippo images are not closely cropped or resized. It’s the camera ready original size. Taken at Mysore Zoo; the Hippo suddenly appeared before me from no where. I was focusing on a far off Hippo. It took me by surprise and clicked a few shots with my mounted 55-250 mm lens from 5 ft distance. Of course I was other side of concrete fence and safe. You can see the blood like fluid oozing out from the head. In fact I noticed it only after viewing on my computer and was curious to know and found the given below results from the net. Please view large. (View in large size to see the blood like substance oozing out on head in the first image.)

Some Interesting facts:

Hippopotamus amphibious means “river horse.”

The hippo’s yawn is not a sign of sleepiness or boredom but is actually a threat gesture, displaying long, thick, razor-sharp canine teeth, or tusks, with which it is capable of biting a small boat in half. Being fearlessly protective of their turf and young, hippos have killed hundreds of people in Africa – more than any other wild animal.

The ears and nostrils – located at the top of the head – close automatically when the animal is under water. It has practically no hair, and its smooth skin is quite delicate.

The tusk-like incisors and canines grow continuously. They are ivory, valued even more highly than an elephant’s because they do not turn yellow with age. George Washington’s false teeth were not made of wood, as is commonly believed, but were carved from the tusks of a hippopotamus.

One young is born at a time, after a gestation of around 230 days. Births usually occur in months of heavy rainfall, but can occur year-round. Young hippos will also bask on their mother’s back. A group of hippos is called a “bloat.”

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