Loutre à joues blanches vs Hippopotame

Aonyx capensis compared with Hippopotamus amphibius

Key Differences

Loutre à joues blanches is Near Threatened while Hippopotame is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Loutre à joues blanches	Hippopotame
Kingdom same	Animalia (animal)	Animalia (animal)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Mammalia (mammifères)	Mammalia (mammifères)
Order	Carnivora (carnivores)	Artiodactyla (Even-toed Ungulates)
Family	Mustelidae (Weasels & Otters)	Hippopotamidae (Hippos)
Genus	Aonyx	Hippopotamus (Hippos)
Species	Aonyx capensis	Hippopotamus amphibius

Evolutionary Relationship

Loutre à joues blanches and Hippopotame share a common ancestor at the Class level: Mammalia. (mammifères)

Afficher Class: Mammalia

Conservation Status

Loutre à joues blanches

NT — Near Threatened

Hippopotame

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~130.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Loutre à joues blanches	Hippopotame
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	40 years
Average Length	—	3.5 m
Average Weight	—	1.5 t

Habitat & Geographic Range

Loutre à joues blanches

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Hippopotame

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and flooded grasslands and savannas, among 5 distinct biome types within the Afrotropic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Colombia and Kenya. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Loutre à joues blanches

The African or Cape clawless otter (Aonyx capensis) is a species in the genus Aonyx. It is currently classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Hippopotame

Africa's most dangerous large mammal, common hippos can reach 3,200 kg and inhabit rivers, lakes, and wetlands of sub-Saharan Africa. Semi-aquatic, spending up to 16 hours daily submerged to keep cool, they graze on land at night. Despite appearing docile, hippos are extremely aggressive and territorial, responsible for hundreds of human fatalities annually. Vulnerable, with populations threatened by habitat loss and illegal hunting for ivory tusks.