News

May 28, 2023

Hippo fight breaks out on golf course while golfers look on

In the southeastern US, it’s not at all uncommon to see gators on golf courses.

In the southeastern US, it's not at all uncommon to see gators on golf courses. A territorial species, alligators have even been known to fight from time to time, right in front of golfers. Well, golfers halfway around the world in South Africa have similar experiences. Except instead of alligators, it's enormous, angry hippos.

For many here in the states, alligators and other reptiles are a major fear. Though that fear is largely unfounded, it's understandable. Gators are big, fast, and have mouths full of sharp teeth more than capable of cracking bone.

An alligator, however, has absolutely nothing on a hippo. Among the most dangerous animals on Earth, hippopotamuses are just as fast as gators while being bigger, stronger, and more aggressive.

Had this pair of hippo bulls not been distracted by each other, it would’ve been extremely unsafe for these golfers to be standing this close. Frankly, it was unsafe for them to be this close, regardless.

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Notoriously aggressive, hippos will pick a fight with anything that ventures into their territory – especially other hippos.

Though they’re a social species, each group of 10 to 30 individuals consists of just one dominant male. Should another male attempt to assert dominance, the resident male will fight to maintain dominion over his territory.

This fight likely broke out because one male had claimed the golf course pond for himself and a usurper came to challenge him. When this occurs, the two males don't fight with death as the end goal, but they don't hold back, either. As a result, the fights sometimes do lead to death.

Even in the instances where both hippos walk away, they don't do so without their fair share of injuries.

To initiate a fight, the opponents will stand nose to nose, sizing each other up and bellowing as loudly as possible in the enemy's face. In a display of dominance, each will open his jaws to its maximum width – 150 degrees – putting his series of jagged, sharp teeth on display, their individual 1.5-foot tusks in full view.

If neither backs down, the battle begins. The average hippo is 5 feet tall at the shoulder, 14 feet long, and over 3,500 pounds – roughly the weight of a small truck.

Using their teeth and tusks as weapons, the hippos slash at each other, butting heads in an effort to incapacitate their opponent.

Should either manage to close their jaws, the other would fall victim to a bite packing 1,800 pounds of pressure. Though not as strong as a crocodile‘s, a hippo's bite is more than strong enough to bisect a human in a single chomp.

Should the usurper survive his battle against the leader of the herd, he’ll move on and create his own. Survival, however, is never guaranteed.