Dangers HereHippos: Africa's most dangerous large animal
Hippos kill more people in Africa than lions, leopards and buffalo together. They are territorial, extremely fast over short distances on land, and dangerous in a way that surprises visitors who have only seen them dozing in a river with their ears flicking.
- 8High risk
- 2Medium
- 0Low
- 10Zones tracked
Two ways people get killed
On the water, a hippo capsizes or bites through a boat it regards as an intrusion into its stretch of river — most fatal incidents involve small craft. On land, a hippo grazing at night is cut off from the water by someone walking between it and the river, and it charges through whatever is in the way to get back. Both situations are about blocked routes, not hunger.
They are not slow
A hippo can run at around 30 km/h on land. You cannot outrun one in the open; the advice is to get behind or up something solid — a tree, a termite mound, a vehicle — rather than to sprint for distance.
How to avoid it
- Never position yourself between a hippo and the water, especially after dark.
- Keep well away from riverbanks and lake edges at night, when they come ashore to graze.
- Use experienced local boatmen who know where the pods sit, and stay in deep channels away from them.
- Treat a yawning hippo as a threat display, not a photo opportunity.
- Camp away from hippo paths — the worn trails running from water into grassland.
Where we track it
10 zones in the Dangers Here hazard database, by danger level.
High
- Botswana — Okavango Delta
- Kenya — Mara River & Lakes
- Malawi — Shire River & Lake Malawi
- Mozambique — Zambezi Delta & Lakes
- South Africa — Kruger & St Lucia
- Tanzania — Serengeti & Rufiji
- Uganda — Nile & Lake Systems
- Zambia — Zambezi & Luangwa Rivers
Medium
- Colombia — Magdalena River (Invasive)
- West Africa — Niger & Gambia Rivers
Questions
Where are hippos a risk?
We track 10 zones for this hazard. 8 are rated high risk, including Botswana — Okavango Delta, Kenya — Mara River & Lakes, Malawi — Shire River & Lake Malawi, Mozambique — Zambezi Delta & Lakes, South Africa — Kruger & St Lucia. 2 are rated medium and 0 low.
How do you avoid hippos?
Never position yourself between a hippo and the water, especially after dark. Keep well away from riverbanks and lake edges at night, when they come ashore to graze. Use experienced local boatmen who know where the pods sit, and stay in deep channels away from them.
Two ways people get killed
On the water, a hippo capsizes or bites through a boat it regards as an intrusion into its stretch of river — most fatal incidents involve small craft. On land, a hippo grazing at night is cut off from the water by someone walking between it and the river, and it charges through whatever is in the way to get back. Both situations are about blocked routes, not hunger.
Get the alerts on your phone
Dangers Here warns you when you enter a hazard zone — even offline, even with the app closed. No account, no tracking, free.
Other hazards
- Africanised bees
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