Hippos are a tier 3 animal in Franchise mode and one of the most satisfying habitats to get right. They're big, they're appealing, and once they start breeding they bring in plenty of conservation credits. The one thing that catches everyone out is plant coverage: hippos want much less of it than you'd expect.
Buying hippos
- Look for one male and a few females. A group of four cost me about $12,000, so save up before you build.
- Check ages. Animals around 10–12 years old are good breeders.
- Send them to quarantine first. I forgot once and went straight to the habitat. Quarantine is cheap insurance against disease.
- Make sure there's a staff gate and a staff path to the habitat, or the crates can't be delivered.
Shortcut: blueprints
There's an African semi-aquatic habitat blueprint for about $10,000, and the Workshop has hippo rock sculptures, hippo fountains and even a full hippo house. Blueprints save a lot of time, but you'll still need to adjust the plants (see below).
Plant coverage: less is more
This is the big lesson. The plant bar has a target range, and too much is a problem. A lush blueprint habitat failed the hippo plant check. The fix:
- Select the blueprint foliage.
- Use split group so you can delete single bushes instead of the whole cluster.
- Delete plants until coverage sits near the bottom of their range. About 38% worked for me.
Use wetland, lake and river and grassland plants.
Water
- Hippos need a big pool, and the water must stay clean. That means water pumps connected to the filtration network.
- If a pump breaks down, the water gets dirty and hippos can get sick. A mechanic will be requested. Mark it urgent.
- Adding an extra pump gives you a buffer. Draining and refilling the water also resets it to clean.
- Add drinking points too, even with a pool.
Shelter and terrain
- Hippos need about 140 m² of shelter for a group.
- Paint sand near the water.
Enrichment
- Large tyre
- Mud pit
- Feeders, a watermelon feeder and a big rolling feeder
Education
Hippos are a great education species. A hippo height sign, a hippo bench, a nearby education board and an animal talk point with an educator all help your guest education rating.
Research
Put a vet on hippo research as soon as they arrive. Research unlocks disease resistance, new enrichment and education topics, and eventually the thriving requirements.