Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus Amphibius) Extinction aka the River Horse

Facts about your animal

• Hippopotamuses can close their nostrils and can hold their breath for up to 5 minutes or longer without feeling the need to come up for air• Hippopotamuses eyes and nostrils are located on the top of their heads

so they are able to see hear, see, and breathe while remaining mostly submerged in water• Male hippos often kill baby hippos out of jealously because; the babies

are receiving too much attention from the mothers • Hippopotamus teeth are made of ivory, similar to those of an elephant• It is estimated that they have killed more humans than any other animal

Why is it going extinct?

• Hippopotamuses are threatened by hunting • One of the main causes of hippopotamus extinction is due to poachers

killing them for their ivory tusks • Loss of habitat is another factor; humans are pushing them out of their

habitats• Humans are grazing the land the hippos live on and taking away their

water sources for farming • War in regions which the hippos live in is also taking a toll on the

hippopotamus population

How can humans protect it?

• In order to protect the hippopotamuses we can avoid buying products made from their ivory tusks • We can create protected spaces; animal sanctuaries • Humans can stop running the hippos out of their own habitats for

their own selfish needs

Why should humans protect it?

• Hippopotamuses are good for our environment without them to regulate fish populations in bodies of water the populations would crash due to lack of nutrients• Their feces provides an important source of food for the fish that share the

water with them • Essentially hippos also provide people like vegetarians with food because;

there are healthy fish to eat• Without fish to sell the fish trading industry would crash alongside the fish

population without the hippopotamuses• Hippopotamus feces also fertilizes soil which helps to grow which creates

more oxygen for us as well as absorbs carbon dioxide

By: Noah Anderson