Friendship on the verge of fantasy: why crocodiles nurse little hippos (5 photos)

How crocodiles and hippos learned to live peacefully with each other.





The best places to observe African wild animals are lakes or streams where animals come to drink. But sometimes in such places you can see a very unusual neighborhood, namely hippos and crocodiles, peacefully enjoying water treatments. Considering that the crocodile is a predator and the hippopotamus is a herbivore, how do they manage to get along together?

Everyone understands everything

In fact, the crocodile understands that this is the most dangerous animal in Africa. By the way, why is the hippopotamus considered the most dangerous African resident? The crocodile simply does not risk attacking, because, most likely, the attack will turn out to be a complete failure. Once you look at the hippopotamus’s fangs, its thick skin and huge mouth, everything falls into place. Also, hippos usually live in packs and protect each other, so the crocodile has virtually no chance of winning.



However, the proximity of these two species is not just tolerance, it is truly mutually beneficial cooperation. For example, hippos are excellent at making their way through overgrown ponds, where it is then easy for crocodiles to swim. Also, both species actively protect water bodies from predators, driving them away. In turn, crocodiles hunt old and sick hippos. At first glance, this may not seem like a very nice thank you for friendship, but in fact, crocodiles make the hippo population stronger.





Hippos are curious about crocodile meals: they often watch how predators eat. Scientists have noticed that during severe droughts, hippos join in on such a meal: they usually eat the contents of the victim’s stomach.

Nurse Crocodiles

However, researchers have witnessed more incredible relationships between these two species. For example, a mother hippopotamus can leave her baby next to a crocodile while she goes off in search of food. The crocodile does not touch the baby, and other predators are afraid to approach the baby with such a dangerous nanny.



In turn, sometimes crocodiles sit on the backs of hippopotamuses. Perhaps this is how they sunbathe or remember their childhood when they rode on the backs of their parents. But of course, such cases are more the exception to the rule than the norm.