RHINO

FAMILY: RHINOCEROTIDAE

Rhinoceros belong to the group known as the perissodactyls, or odd-toed ungulates, which includes horses and tapirs. Characterised by their large size – all species can weigh more than a tonne – rhinos have one or two horns, a thick skin made of collagen arranged in a lattice structure and a relatively small brain. 

Most rhino species lead largely solitary lives although home ranges sometimes overlap, with shared feeding grounds, water holes and wallows. The closest relationship is between a female and her calf, lasting from two to four years; as calves mature they leave their mothers and may join other females and their young temporarily, before living completely on their own. Males are territorial to varying extents, often marking their territory with middens of dung.  

Rhinos, especially black rhinos, can appear rather ill-tempered – particularly in areas where they are hunted or regularly disturbed – and have poor eyesight, which might explain why they sometimes charge without apparent reason. They have an extended vocabulary of growls, grunts, squeaks, snorts and bellows.

Wild rhinos have a lifespan of 30-50 years. Pregnancy lasts 15-16 months and the 63kg newborn calf relies on its mother’s milk for up to two years.

*International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world’s main authority on the conservation status of species.