#Hippos Can Fly While Running: Amazing Discovery
Discovering Hippo Flight
Scientists at the Royal Veterinary College (RVC-UK) have just announced a surprising discovery: Hippos, the second heaviest animal in the world, can fly into the air while running at maximum speed. The discovery is presented in the article “Footstep patterns and typical stride parameters of terrestrial hippos”, published in the scientific journal PeerJ.
New Findings From Research
According to the study, hippos are capable of flying into the air for as short as 0.3 seconds when they run at high speed. Scientists analyzed videos from 169 movement cycles of 32 hippos in dangerous situations such as confrontations with lions, rhinos, or when fighting with other hippos. The results showed that hippos spent about 15% of their time running without touching the ground.
What Makes Hippos Different? – Significance of the Finding
“This finding is absolutely remarkable,” said John Hutchinson, professor of evolutionary biomechanics at RVC. He explained that hippos typically run at a slow pace, but when they accelerate, they can “hover” in the air, an ability that has not been documented in other large animals such as elephants, rhinos, or horses.
Hippos are dangerous animals with a ferocious nature and the ability to attack with great force. There are an estimated 115,000 to 300,000 hippos living in the wild, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa. Although they are herbivores, they are also dangerous, with about 500 fatal attacks each year. These findings not only provide new insights into hippo behavior, but could also influence how zoos keep and design their enclosures.
The findings from the Royal Veterinary College study shed light on an interesting aspect of hippo locomotion. Their ability to soar through the air while running at high speeds is not only a curious feat, but also a striking example of the diversity in how animals adapt and evolve.
