Hippopotamusamphibiousmeans "river horse." The hippo, weighing 1 800 kg (4,000 pounds) and more, lives in Africa, south of the Sahara and along the length of the Nile river, although its range once included Asia and large parts of Europe. Hippos prefer rivers with deep water and nearby reed beds and grasslands, but are also found in salt-water areas near river mouths, and in lakes in Central Africa. They are hoofed vegetarians, feeding on grass, fallen fruit, and occasionally on cultivated crops such as sugar cane or corn during the night. They spend most of the day in the water.

The hippo is the third biggest land animals, slightly smaller but heavier than awhite rhino(the elephant is the biggest). In spite of its huge size - 3 metres (12 feet) in length, 1,5 metres (five feet) tall, with a mouth measuring a half metre (two feet) across - the hippopotamus can outrun a human. Thebellowingof a bull hippo measures an ear-splitting 115 decibels, sounding like the roar of a lion.

Nearly all of the famous African explorers and hunters - Livingstone, Stanley, Burton, Selous, Speke, DuChaillu - had boating mishaps with hippos. All considered the hippo to be awantonlymalicious beast. Spencer Tyron, a hunter, was killed while hunting near the shores of Lake Rukwa, Tanzania. A bull hippo turned over the dugout canoe from which Tyron was shooting, and bit off his head and shoulders.

Recent DNA evidence suggests that the hippopotamus is more closely related to cetaceans (whales and dolphins) than it is to any otherartiodactyl(even-toed hoofed mammal).