Hungry, Hungry (Pygmy) Hippos

The hippopotamus, despite being regarded as one of the most dangerous animals in Africa, has always been a favorite of mine: rotund, rubbery-bodied, stubby-legged, and perpetually sporting a mammoth grin from ear to swiveling tiny ear - they just look jolly! Defying that sly smile, however, common hippos (Hippopotamus amphibius) are known for being mightily aggressive* - a result of strong territoriality, protectiveness over their young, and sheer grumpiness; a few hundred people are killed by them each year in Africa (more than crocs, lions or elephants can boast). To keep their sensitive skin hydrated and out of the sun, hippos spend the majority of their days lounging in cool river water and mud, but they are actually deceptively fast on land - a top speed of around 20mph can easily outrun a human - and even while soaking, ornery hippos are more than game to overturn boats and drown unsuspecting tourists and fishermen if mood strikes. Of note, adult hippos are actually not buoyant and cannont actually "swim", instead they propel themselves underwater by literally running along river bottoms, surfacing to breath every 3-5 minutes.

*The exception to this rule is undoubtedly Jessica, a now 10 year old, semi-wild hippo that lives part-time with the humans who rescued her after she was orphaned by a flood. Jessica lets herself in and out of the house, enjoys snacks with the family dogs, and even, on occasion, gets massages before bedtime...

While the 3,000 - 4,000lb common hippo, prevalent through much of southern Africa, tops out as the third largest land animal in the world (the first being the elephant, and the second, the white rhino), and demands the utmost caution when observed in the wild, it's petite cousin, the pygmy hippo (Choeropsis liberiensis), is a compact 400-600lbs and is considered a rare and endangered species; estimates place it's numbers in the wild at only around 3,000. This shy and nocturnal creature is found in the forests and swamps of western Africa, and rather than living in gregarious herds, the pygmy hippo is solitary, or limited to family groups of 2 or 3. Unlike the exceptionally territorial common hippo, pygmies move to new wallowing and feeding spots with regularity, and will ignore each other if they cross paths.

Physically, pygmy hippos look very similar to common hippos, with a few important differences: since pygmies spend more time on land than their hefty cousins - and must navigate dense forest vegetation, as opposed to grassland - their bodies are slightly forward sloping, their legs are proportionately longer, heads proportionately smaller, and their orbits (eye sockets) and nostrils are less pronounced. Both species secrete what is known as "blood sweat", an oily liquid (neither blood nor sweat) that acts as both natural sunscreen, and a sort of antibiotic ointment; the substance is composed of two highly acidic compounds that inhibit the growth of bacteria - a most important defense against infection, since hippos frequently sustain wounds from jostling and fighting with each other, then marinate the injuries in a stew of murky river water. The acidic compounds in blood sweat also turn it bright red, and eventually brown, within minutes of exposure to air, hence the misnomer.


(Images above: top - a very old photograph of a common hippo, date unknown; bottom - from the American Museum of Natural History, the skeleton of a Pleistocene pygmy hippo from Madagascar (Hippopotamus madagascariensis - an extinct hippo species thought to be closely related to today's pygmy hippo) next to the enormous skull of a common hippopotamus - note the higher placement of the eye socket and proportionately larger front dentition in the common hippo {from analysis of butcher marks on most of the fossilized specimens of H. Madagascariensis, it is likely that humans played a part in the demise of this ancient species}; Images below: top left - a vintage photo of the rare circus hippopotamus; top right - hippos gracing the cover of a 1959 Berlin Zoo guidebook; bottom left - a Tanzanian postage stamp featuring a pygmy hippo; bottom right - Monifa, a baby pygmy born at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, in 2008)


The painting at the top of this page is of the pygmy hippo at the FPZ; this portly little lady shares her display with a pair of lovely, large, gray vultures, and while it isn't visible, she does have a pool to toddle around in. Pygmy hippos have been bred quite successfully in captivity, their numbers more than doubling in the last 30 years. While great care is taken in most captive breeding programs to maintain genetic diversity, most pygmy hippos in U.S. zoos can trace one celebrated individual as a common ancestor - William Johnson Hippopotamus. "Billy", as he was known, was gifted to president Calvin Coolidge back in 1927 by Harvey Firestone, the great rubber baron of Firestone Tires. Billy was captured in Libera by workers at a Firestone latex plantation, and since there was little room for him at the White House, he was donated to the Smithsonian National Zoological Park (the National Zoo). Though zoos in the early 1900s were still largely just exotic menageries with little to no informed wild animal husbandry skills, Billy was a robust specimen who thrived in captivity, and in 1929 was joined by a female, Hannah. The two were mated multiple times, though the first three calves did not survive. It was rumored that Hannah was simply a poor mother, though once the pair was moved out of the same building as the lions, Hannah easily delivered and skillfully reared a healthy baby pygmy - the first of many.

Billy, along with his offspring (from Hannah and another female named Matilda), was one of the first success stories of the National Zoo; his flourishing lineage helped to plant the seeds (pun intended) of a whole new era of zoological parks as tools for wildlife study and conservation awareness. He also outlived Coolidge by 23 years, eventually passing away in 1955. Strangely, the Zoo decided to give all of Billy's calves the same name, Gumdrop, differentiating each one by Roman numerals. Billy's last baby was born 5 months after his passing and was crowned Gumdrop XV111. The Life website has a wonderful vintage photo archive and I managed to find a series a stellar images of wee Gumdrop (number not mentioned) going about his roly-poly business at the National Zoo. And rest assured, as evidenced by comparing the photo of Monifa above (most certainly a descendent of Billy) to little Gumdrop, the smooshy cuteness of baby pygmy hippos has not diminished in the slightest after eight decades of captive reproduction...


For a little more vintage hippo fun, check out this crazy image of a common hippopotamus from the Central Park Zoo, circa 1883 - the animation was made using stereoscopic photos from the New York Public Library archives...