Unique Wood African Ornaments and Gifts - These wood carvings are made by artists scattered throughout Zimbabwe, mainly in remote rural areas. Much care as is taken in the crafting and finishing of a product and in the selection, maintenance and delivery of these fabulous one-of-a-kind sculptures.
A little goes a long way
During daylight hours, the hippo spends almost all its time wallowing in shallow water. In the evenings, after the hot sun has set, hippos come out of the water for a night of grazing—in fact, this goes on for about six hours! Despite their enormous weight, hippos eat an average of only 88 pounds (40 kilograms) of food a night. This amount is about 1 to 1.5 percent of their body weight. By comparison, the largest cattle eat 2.5 percent of their body weight each day. While hippos like to feed on patches of short grasses (called “hippo lawns”) close to water, they must sometimes travel several miles (kilometers) to find food, making long trips on land to new lakes or rivers. Their ears help them hear the sounds of falling fruit and their keen sense of smell helps them sniff out the tasty treats. Hippos are mostly inactive unless eating and this helps them conserve energy.
Rub-a-dub-dub, baby hippo in a tub
The breeding season for hippos is linked to the dry season so that most births happen during the wettest time of the year. Hippos prefer to breed in the water but can also do so on land. Amazingly, the hippo gestation period is just 8 months—slightly shorter than the human gestation period—yet the hippo calf is about 10 times larger than a human baby! When the female, called a cow, nears the time to give birth, she will leave the herd for one or two weeks to give birth to her young and create a bond with her calf. She is comfortable giving birth in water or on land. If the calf is born underwater, the mother needs to push it to the surface to breathe. Newborn hippos are only able to hold their breath for about 40 seconds at a time. The mother stays in the water with her newborn for several days without eating, and she waits until her baby is strong enough before they dare to go out at night to graze. Mothers will nurse their babies, even underwater, for about eight months.
What’s that I “herd”?
The hippopotamus is a social animal, living in groups of 10 to 30 animals. They have even been seen in much larger groups of up to 200 animals! The herd has several cows and several bulls (males), but there is one dominant bull. He has the right to mate with all cows in his herd, although he will sometimes allow subordinate bulls in and around his territory to mate. The dominant bull reminds other hippos of his territory by flinging his dung as far as possible with his fan-shaped tail! When rival bulls meet, they stand nose to nose with their mouths open as wide as possible, up to 150 degrees. This is called "gaping," a way to size each other up. Usually the smaller bull will then retreat without being pursued by the larger hippo. When two hippos do decide to fight, they slash out with their tusks or swing their enormous heads like sledgehammers while bellowing loudly. They have been known to die as a result of a very aggressive battle.
Cute, but not cuddly
Despite the hippos' cute appearance, they are among the most dangerous and aggressive of all mammals. Their canine teeth and incisors grow continuously, with canines reaching 20 inches (51 centimeters) in length. Bulls especially use their canines for fighting. To ward off enemies, a hippo may yawn, scoop water with its mouth, shake its head, rear up, lunge, roar, grunt, chase, and make a loud wheezing sound, all of which are threat displays. A hippo can kill people if it's provoked or feels threatened. But the impressive tusks and canine teeth are used mainly for defense or fighting with other hippos.
