What is a pygmy hippopotamus? Virginia zoo gets mammal gifted for Christmas

The Metro Richmond Zoo in Virginia receives a rare pygmy hippopotamus ahead of Christmas. (Image via parks-recreations.com, Metro Richmond Zoo)
The Metro Richmond Zoo in Virginia receives a rare pygmy hippopotamus ahead of Christmas. (Image via parks-recreations, Metro Richmond Zoo)

Virginia’s Metro Richmond Zoo received an early Christmas gift in the guise of an infant pygmy hippopotamus who was born on December 6. The zoo released the news on Thursday, December 22. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature categorized Pygmy hippos as endangered.

Pygmy hippos are native to West Africa. The International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates that there are less than 2,500 adult pygmy hippos left in the world.

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The newborn at the Virginia Zoo is yet to be named. She was born after a 28-week pregnancy to Iris and Corwin.

According to the zoo, this baby hippo is the second pygmy hippo to be born in Virginia. The zoo further shared that the baby is growing rapidly. She weighed 16 pounds at birth and weighed 24.2 pounds only a week later. Zoo officials are guessing that she might weigh up to 600 pounds as an adult.

The newborn’s mother, Iris, is described by the zoo as:

“An experienced mother and very caring of her baby.”

The zoo said that both the baby and the mother are currently staying in a hay-bedded enclosure that is super cozy. Visitors will have a chance to see the adorable baby once the mother-child duo is transferred to the indoor pool area.


How the pygmy hippopotamus is different from a river hippo

A pygmy hippopotamus might look like a miniature version of the common hippo at first glance. However, the differences lie in their physical characteristics and behaviors. Though the pygmy hippo can adapt to staying in the water for some time, it’s much less aquatic than river hippos.

Like a common hippo, the pygmy hippopotamus’s ears and nose close underwater, too. But pygmies have rounder and narrower heads, proportionately longer necks, and their eyes are not located on the top of their heads.

River hippo vs. Pygmy hippo (Image via Adobe Stock, May Woon/SF Zoo)
River hippo vs. Pygmy hippo (Image via Adobe Stock, May Woon/SF Zoo)

Pygmies have longer legs than common hippos. They even have differences in their tooth settings. While the pygmy hippo only has two incisors, the river hippo has two to three pairs.

The pygmy hippopotamus has smooth, greenish-black skin as its top layer, which helps it reduce body temperature and stay cool in the humid rainforest. But this thin skin can make its body quickly dehydrate under the sun, so the pygmy hippo’s skin produces a pink fluid that looks like sweat beads and gives it a wet and shiny appearance. It's called "blood sweat," and it protects a pygmy hippo's sensitive skin from sunburn.

Newborn pygmy hippo at Virginia Zoo (Image via Metro Richmond Zoo)
Newborn pygmy hippo at Virginia Zoo (Image via Metro Richmond Zoo)

Pygmy hippos can be found in small numbers in Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and the Ivory Coast. There isn’t much information about their behavior in their native habitat in West Africa. But these nocturnal, shy herbivores are usually seen in pairs.

To drive away potential enemies, pygmy hippos usually yawn, displaying their intimidating teeth and tusks, and their cavernous mouths. Apart from yawning, they resort to shaking their heads, rearing, lunging, and scooping water with their mouths to stay safe. Unlike river hippos, pygmy hippos prefer to either hide or flee rather than fight.

Newborn pygmy hippo at Virginia Zoo (Image via Metro Richmond Zoo)
Newborn pygmy hippo at Virginia Zoo (Image via Metro Richmond Zoo)

Their usual resting places during the day are wallows and swamps. When it gets dark, pygmy hippos leave the water to feed on land.

Though not much is known about a pygmy hippopotamus’s diet, researchers believe that most likely these hippos feed on leaves, ferns, roots, grass, and fruits that are strewn on the ground or near streams and rivers.

Currently, the Metro Richmond Zoo is the only place in Virginia where people can see hippos. According to the zoo, since the pygmy hippopotamus is already endangered, zoological parks provide them with a better chance at survival than the wild. The recent birth of the new pygmy hippo at the zoo plays a significant role in contributing to the minimal population of these hippos.

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Edited by Somava
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