Legend has it that the horn of the Javan Rhino had medical powers as did the blood of the mammal. At one time they were widespread throughout Asia however, they were nearly hunted to extinction in the 1930s for their horns. The Javan Rhinoceros is not only down to few in numbers – estimates in 2015 had about 60 in Java and Indonesia. One species of Rhino is one of the most endangered large mammals in the world. The Indian Rhino exists mostly now in protected areas in India and Nepal. The Indian Rhino weighs between 5,500 and 7,000-pounds with the female just slightly smaller in size. The Indian Rhino, also known as the Greater One-Horned Rhinoceros, has a single horn, where the White and Black species have two of varying lengths. The Indian Rhino is almost as big as the White Rhino. The White Rhino also has no teeth and pulls food from branches with its mouth in much the same way the Black Rhino does. The Black Rhino uses its pointed mouth to grab leaves, twigs and other vegetation when feeding. The Black Rhino is smaller than the White Rhino.Īn adult Black Rhino can weigh between 1,870 and 3,500 pounds. The subspecies names relate to the geographic regions these Black Rhinos can be found. The subspecies include the South-Central Rhino, the South-Western Rhino, the East African Rhino and the West African Rhino. There are four subspecies of the Black Rhino.Īlthough the name of the Black Rhino is confusing as it is not black, the name was chosen to distinguish it from the White Rhino. ![]() The female will weigh about 4,000 pounds. The White Rhino male is slightly larger than the female.Ī male White Rhino will weigh around 5,000 pounds. The coloring ranges from slate grey to a yellowish brown. The White Rhino has a huge body, large head with a short neck and a broad (wide) chest. ![]() The name for this species is believed to have come from either the Afrikaans word ‘wyd’ or the Dutch word ‘wijd’ which actually means ‘wide’ and describes the appearance of wide, square lips of this species. On the other hand, the Northern White is considered critically endangered with just two captive females known to exist. ![]() There happen to be two subspecies of this rhino – the Southern White and the Northern White and the Southern species had a recorded population in 2013 of well over 20,000. The White Rhinoceros is the most abundant rhino subspecies in the world. As the rhino has a stomach that permits fermenting of food, they can eat more fibrous material when required. Their diet is described as herbivorous which means leafy greens for the most part. Oddly enough, although they have such a massive presence, the rhino brain is quite small for a mammal of its size. Rhinos are some of the largest remaining megafauna with all species known to weight one ton or more. The five species of rhinos that still exist on the planet include the White Rhinoceros, Black Rhinoceros, Indian Rhinoceros, Javan Rhinoceros and Sumatran Rhinoceros. Adults, don’t generally have predators.ģ Species Critically Endangered – Javan, Sumatran & Black rhino.ġ Species Vulnerable – Greater One-Horned rhino Herbivores – Vegetation, fruit, grass, twigs, leavesĬrocodiles, big cats & hyenas can prey on baby rhino. Grasslands, floodplains, swamps, rainforestsĮast & southern Africa, India, Nepal, Malaysia & Indonesia. The word itself comes from the Greek rhinoceros, which translates to mean ‘nose-horned,’ rhinos (nose) and kerato/keras (horn). The name is often abbreviated to just Rhino. ![]() The word Rhinoceros is used to describe any one of the five extant species and several extinct species of the members of the family Rhinocerotidae.
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