I guess we can blame it all on Jaws. Steven Spielberg's absolute classic 1975 film made everyone so afraid of sharks that not only do people assume the seafaring creatures kill enormous amounts of people every year, but they even get their own week on TV! You might be surprised to know, however, that sharks are barely even in the top ten of the world's most dangerous animals.
The hippopotamus, on the other hand, is easily in the top five. The massive mammals might look cute and cuddly, but they are beasts when frightened. Extremely unpredictable and very aggressive, the hippo kills many more humans around the world per year than any type of shark.
Most common in Africa, the hippo is the third largest land mammal and can weight up to 3 tons, but that doesn't stop the stocky wild animals from being able to easily outrun a human. While they don't spend the majority of their time in water, hippos do like a good dip in rivers, lakes, and swamps to cool off and grab a quick drink.
As you'll see in this video, however, just when you think you're safe to take a boat out on the Chobe River in Botswana, you should probably check your surroundings to make sure there's not a hippo floating around.
While on a Pangolin Photo Safari, David Jackson managed to capture this absolutely astounding video on his iPhone. He sees the hippopotamus dipping in and out of the river as he speeds by in his boat. But, before he knows it, the enormous beast is upon him and makes a huge charge through the water, emerging like Jaws himself in that Spielberg classic.
Luckily for David, he was able to escape the massive creature. Luckily for us, he was able to capture the event in a stunning slow-motion video.
Not only is this one of the craziest (and coolest) things we've ever seen, but it's proof positive that hippos deserve their own week on TV!
Hey, David… "You're gonna need a bigger boat…"
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