Pygmy hippopotamus Pygmy hippopotamus The pygmy hippopotamus ("Choeropsis liberiensis" or "Hexaprotodon liberiensis") is a small hippopotamid which is native to the forests and swamps of West Africa, primarily in Liberia, with small populations in Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Ivory Coast. The pygmy hippo is reclusive and nocturnal. It is one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae, the other being its much larger relative, the common hippopotamus ("Hippopotamus amphibius") or Nile hippopotamus. The pygmy hippopotamus displays many terrestrial adaptations, but like the hippo, it is semiaquatic and relies on water to keep its skin moist and its body temperature cool.
Spined pygmy shark and insular slopes. It may also be found over outer shelves, but avoids central ocean basins. The range of this species does not overlap that of the pygmy shark, which has a similar ecology, and is also largely separate from that of the cookiecutter shark. One of the world's smallest sharks, the spined pygmy shark attains a maximum recorded length of for males and for females. This species has an elongated, spindle-shaped body with a long, bulbous, moderately pointed snout. The eyes are large, with the upper rim of the orbit almost straight. Each nostril is preceded by a short