[2] It is closely related and possibly ancestral to the large European species Hippopotamus antiquus.

[5][6] H. gorgops grew substantially larger than the living hippopotamus (H. amphibius),[7] with an estimated body mass of over 4,000 kilograms (8,800 lb).

[1] Isotopic analysis of specimens from the Lake Turkana Basin suggests a high consumption of C4 plants.

[11] The elevated orbits have led to suggestions of a more aquatic lifestyle than H. amphibius,[12] though its robust limbs indicate that it was probably capable of moving efficiently on land, like H.

[9] Remains with cut or fracture marks from sites across Africa from the Early Pleistocene indicate that H. gorgops was butchered by archaic humans.