Rhino
The rhinoceros (family Rhinocerotidae) is a safari hallmark, a profile unmistakable in the wild and synonymous with bushveld and adventure. This massive creature is one of the famous
Big Five, and is a beloved image to safari goers and park rangers alike - a huge, impressive “bush tank”, the rhino is a beautiful sight, not to be trifled with!
Rhino species are found in mostly in Africa, as well as Asia, and these lumbering great creatures can grow to huge sizes. Heights range from 1.5 (in the relatively diminutive Javan rhino) to 2 metres at the shoulder (in White rhinos, the largest in the world). Head-and-body lengths measure up to 4.6 metres, from about about 3 metres in a smaller rhino. Most notably, they can reach weights of up to and over one ton each, and, luckily for those who encounter these massive, horned, armor hided creatures, they are also strictly herbivorous. Next to the elephant, the White (Square-lipped) Rhinoceros is the largest remaining land animal in the entire world.
African rhinoceroses grind their way through a leafy diet with the use of huge premolar and molar teeth, as well as powerful jaw muscles. Its notoriously thick skin (an average of 1.5–5 cm thick) is the result of collagen positioned themselves in a lattice structure, over time, accumulating to produce an armoured hide.
Rhinoceros vary in shape, size, coloration and habitat, quite drastically from region to region (and continent to continent). Evolutionarily very similar, however, the black and white rhinoceros (Africa’s species) are so closely related that they can actually mate, and successfully reproduce. The chief physical difference between these two species (aside from the fact that the white rhino is, as a rule, much larger than the black) is the shape of their upper lip - black rhinos use a pointed upper lip to remove foliage from hardy plants, while white rhino, typically grazers, have broad flat lips, perfect for their particular diets.
A large and controversial issue with rhino populations, especially in Africa, is the seemingly increasing spate of rhino poaching. The issue comes down to a demand for powdered rhino horn, largely used in Asian medicines and remedies. The horns are removed from tranquilised animals in remote or slightly removed areas of national parks, and the animals are left wounded and traumatised at the scene. Chiefly, these animals do not survive the encounter. The horn is also used in Yemen dagger handles, the product itself fetching a huge street value on the blackmarket. In 2010, the total number of poached rhinos in South Africa was 333 (323 black rhino, 10 white), and SANParks have since anounced plans to bulk up security and anti-poaching measures drastically in response to this increased threat.
Taxonomically, rhino varients include white, black, Javan, Indian and Sumatran rhinoceros, and all of these date back to the Hyrachyus eximus fossial, itself hornless and much smaller than modern species.