Historical ecology and biogeography of the hippopotamus in Egypt

Historical ecology and biogeography is a composite discipline that requires the compilation of data concerning the presence of an animal in a country or in a specific region, to enable its distribution over a long period of t ime to be traced. To do this, the biogeographical analysis establishing the history of the distribution of populations calls upon certain ecological c oncepts, hence the double name of the discipline. This paper presents an hi storical ecology and biogeography of the hippopotamus in Egypt, from the La te Pleistocene until today, and includes a map showing the evolution of its population distribution in Egypt. It appears that the disappearance of thi s pachyderm in that country was principally caused by human hunting.