Animal lovers often get engrossed with wildlife species. Whether they want to admire wild animals from a distance or have a close encounter under guidance, learning about them is always interesting. The rhinoceros is one of the famous wildlife animals that most people want to know more about before opting in for a wildlife safari. Below you will find eight of the most interesting facts about the wild rhinoceros.
Interesting Facts About Wild Rhinoceros
- In all, there are five types of rhinoceros. Mainly it’s the white and the black rhino that mostly stays in Africa. Additionally, there are the Indian, Javan and the Sumatran Rhinoceros. You will find them in the tropical swamps and forests of Asia.
- Wild rhinoceroses are famous for their massive horns that grow directly from the snouts. The name rhinoceros means “nose horn.” You will find the Indian and Javan Rhinoceros to have one horn. On the other hand, the remaining three have two horns.
- The vast size of the rhinoceros might make many feel that they eat other animals for food. That’s far from the truth. Even though they are massive beasts, rhinos are herbivores, with their main diet comprised of plants and grasses.
- Rhinoceroses are solitary animals. They, for the most part, want and prefer to avoid one another, but there are exceptions. The wild white rhino often roams and lives in groups. These groups are called a “crash.” Generally, crashes include a female and her calf.
- A wild rhinoceros is one of the largest animals in the world, with the white rhino being the biggest of the five types of rhinoceros. This species can be as tall as 6 feet (1.8 meters) and can weigh as much as 5,500 pounds (2,500 kg), equaling the body weight of about thirty men.
- The male rhinos are called bulls. Bulls prefer to stay in isolation and are only seen with a female rhino when there’s a need to breed. Bulls are highly territorial and keep their areas well-marked. It’s interesting to note that rhinoceroses utilize the pongy piles to interact with each other because the dung of every rhino has its own distinctive smell.
- The wild rhinoceros is commonly seen with tick birds, also called the Oxpeckers on their backs. These birds feed on the parasitic insects that inhabit the rhinos’ thick skin. Tick birds give out loud cries that help to alert the big rhinoceros about a lurking danger ahead.
- During the daytime heat, the rhinoceros is mostly found sleeping under a shade. Rhinos also wallow in muddy pools which helps them cool down. Sometimes, Rhinos love to get thoroughly mucky. The mud secures their skin from the scorching heat of the sun and also helps keep the biting bugs away.
Conclusion
Today, because of poaching, the total count of rhinos are said to be decreasing. The only way to stop this is by taking a stand against poaching and by contributing to better living conditions where the wild rhinoceros can thrive.
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Featured Image: Image: Indian Rhino, by Darren Swim [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], from Wikimedia Commons
MY QUESTION FOR YOU:
Have you ever been up close and personal to a rhino?
Her own animal experience is vast, having raised and rescued Alpine Goats, Chickens, Turkeys, Vietnamese Pot Bellied Pigs, Turtles, Raccoons, Cats, Dogs, and even an Opossum and Bearded Dragon.
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Interesting and thanks for sharing
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