Hippos can fly when they move at high speeds over land, according to a new study.
This is the first time it has been discovered that the animals, which can weigh more than 2,000 kilograms (2.2 tons) and spend much of their time in water, lift all four limbs off the ground when moving quickly, according to a statement. from the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) in the United Kingdom.
After analyzing videos showing 169 movement cycles of 32 hippos, researchers found that the fastest-moving animals spend about 15% of each stride above the ground.
John Hutchinson, lead author of the study and professor of evolutionary biomechanics at the RVC, told CNN that very little was known about the way hippos move on land.
“Hippos were a big missing piece of the puzzle,” he said. “They are really difficult to study.”
Not only do they spend a lot of time in the water, but they are also “very aggressive and dangerous” and most active at night, Hutchinson said.
In the videos studied by the researchers, the hippos tended to move quickly when something motivated them, such as chasing a rival hippo or being chased by lions or rhinos, he said.
The team also found that hippos trot almost exclusively – with two diagonal limbs moving in the same direction at the same time, and then the other two diagonal limbs – regardless of the speed at which they move, while other mammals, such as horses, shift of position. walk at a trot to a gallop depending on your speed.
“Hippos are one of the few four-legged animals that just trot,” Hutchinson said. “That was a very interesting discovery.”
The results could help inform how hippos are kept in captivity, as well as help detect and monitor whether hippos suffer from physical problems, Huntchinson said.
A sample video that showed a baby pygmy hippo galloping provided Hutchinson with a starting point for future research, he said, adding that he wants to investigate whether small hippos, such as baby hippos and baby pygmy hippos, are capable of galloping but lose it. capacity when they grow.
O to study was published Wednesday in PeerJ magazine.
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