Nature · Common hippopotamus · upper shoulder-height reference
How tall is Hippopotamus?
The selected common hippo reference is up to about 1.6 meters at the shoulder, following San Diego Zoo’s published size range.
≈ 1.6 m
Sourced measurement- Measurement
- Reported upper shoulder height · approximately 1.6 meters
- Subject or version
- Common hippopotamus · upper shoulder-height reference
- Using this value
- A starting value for the illustration, not a universal or confirmed height.
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A little more perspective
The zoo lists a shoulder height up to 1.6 meters, alongside a rounded 5.2 feet. This record selects the metric upper reference. It does not describe a typical calf or the smaller pygmy hippopotamus, and it is not a measurement of a named individual.
A land pose exposes the feet and makes the shoulder endpoint readable. Water can hide much of a hippo’s body, so an above-water silhouette would be unsuitable for this standing-height comparison. Length and mass are separate quantities and are not inferred from the artwork.
Quick facts
A common hippopotamus can reach about 1.6 meters at the shoulder in San Diego Zoo’s size reference. This standing land view compares shoulder height, not body length or the portion visible above water.
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Sources and measurement notes
Use the shoulder and foot-contact baseline, not a waterline or open mouth.
Source review recorded . Maintained by Ishan Karunaratne. Suggest a correction with a source and the exact measurement being compared.