Watering Hole Drama Occurs When a Rhino Tries to Intimidate the Wrong Hippo

Why would a rhino pick a fight with a hippo, and who has the advantage? Do hippos and rhinos usually get along? Despite their seemingly calm demeanor as they float through the water, hippos are actually much more aggressive than rhinos. Hippos are a danger to humans and are responsible for 500 deaths per year. This is often because they have a tendency to attack and capsize boats. Rhino attacks on humans are rare, and typically occur when the animal feels threatened, often involving charges at vehicles or people. Who would win in a hippo versus rhino fight? Let’s find out.

Where Do Rhinos and Hippos Live?

Both rhinos and hippos live in the wild in Africa and often run into each other at watering holes. There are two species of hippopotamuses: the common river hippo and the smaller pygmy hippo. There are five species of rhinoceroses in the world today. The two species that live in Africa are white rhinos and black rhinos.

A captivating video out of the Hlane Royal National Park in Swaziland shows a showdown between a white rhino and a common river hippo. The video can be found on YouTube on redthing99’s channel.

How Big Are Rhinos Compared to Hippos?

Both animals are barrel-shaped with thick skin and strong bodies. Hippos are massive animals. They can weigh anywhere from 2,200 to 9,900 pounds. Rhinos are also very large, but a little smaller than hippos. White rhinos weigh around 3,168 to 7,920 pounds. Both hippos and rhinos are herbivores and eat grass, leaves, roots, and twigs.

Hippos and Rhinos Near the Watering Hole

In redthing99’s video, hippos and rhinos are hanging out by a watering hole in the Hlane Royal National Park. This park is a nature sanctuary for diverse African wildlife, including lions, elephants, leopards, giraffes, vultures, marabou storks, hippos, and white rhinos. Visitors to the park can take guided tours, safaris, walks, and even self-drives through lion-free areas.

In the video, guests in safari jeeps are getting quite a show as a rhino runs up to a smaller, possibly juvenile hippo, challenging it. The little hippo runs away to the safety of its herd. This was the wise choice as a larger hippo is not putting up with the threat from the rhino.

A much larger hippo charges at the aggressive rhino, opening its large jaws and showing its impressive teeth. That’s all it took to convince the rhino to back down. It runs off and joins the rest of its group as the victor stares it down from the watering hole.

Both hippos and white rhinos are social animals, and the females live in family groups. The older members of the group will protect the younger and smaller ones from danger.

Who Would Win in a Hippo Vs. Rhino Fight?

If a hippo and a rhino were to engage in a serious fight, both would end up with major injuries. This is likely why the smaller hippo in the video knows to run away from the rhino, and why the rhino then flees from the larger hippo. Although little skirmishes may occur among the species, a true fight between the two is incredibly rare.

However, if a hippo did go up against a rhino, which animal would win? Let’s take a look at some of their differences.

Hippo Vs. Rhino: Temperament

Hippos are known to be aggressive. Their behavior can be unpredictable, and humans are advised to keep a safe distance when encountering hippos. White rhinos, on the other hand, are a much more docile species. A rhino will charge if it feels threatened, but they are much less likely to act aggressively than a hippo.

Hippo Vs. Rhino: Horns and Teeth

Rhinos have impressive horns averaging nearly three feet in length, although the record was measured at 59 inches. They will lower their heads and charge with their horns facing their enemy to intimidate, threaten, and display dominance.

Hippos are equally intimidating. Although they may not have horns, they do have incredibly strong jaws filled with sharp, long teeth. A hippo’s teeth can grow nearly 20 inches long. A hippo’s bite force is 1,800 pounds per square inch (PSI). That’s stronger than a jaguar’s bite force at 1,500 PSI. To really understand how strong that is, a human’s average bite force is 162 PSI.

Hippo Vs. Rhino: Defense

A hippo’s jaws may be intimidating, but rhinos have incredibly thick skin. At two inches thick, their leathery skin protects against attacks. And yet, hippo skin is just as thick at two inches.

Hippo Vs. Rhino: Overall

Although hippos have the size advantage with an impressive bite, rhinos have thick skin to ward it off and sharp horns. No matter who was the victor, neither animal would fare well from a showdown, which is likely why they both wisely avoid getting into full-blown attacks against each other.