The Pygmy Hippo House
Is the pygmy hippo just a baby hippo? No, it is not. It is a relative of the larger hippo, not a young hippo. After all, we could not call it the pygmy hippo house if the little hippos became not so little. Enter the exhibit and you will find an African rainforest, the creature's natural habitat. They are normally found just resting and wallowing. However, this largely occurs on dry land rather than in water. As the pygmy hippo is not very large, their space can feature live plants, contributing to the climate as well as the overall environment.
Some statistics
- Total area: 640 m2
- Inside temperature: 20 °C
- Relative humidity: 80 %
A brief history
The Pygmy Hippo House was built in the early 1970s as a structure not open to visitors. In early 1990's, the Tropical Storm House was added, a new exhibit with public access. It was so called due to the tropical summer storms that occurred within it several times a day - it grew dark and rain fell whilst thunder and lightning raged.
In 2002, the house was totally refitted according to a design imitating tropical African forest, whilst bearing in mind issues of animal welfare and environmentally friendly operation. Additionally, some old sandy outdoor enclosures were renovated and substantially enlarged, forming grassy areas with large ponds of filtered water.
