Rhino
Possible bio facts to use: rhino skull, rhino skin, rhino dung,
camel dung, rhino diet
Theme ideas
1. Rhinos are endangered due to poaching for their horns.
2. Rhinos are odd toed ungulates and some may even consider
them odd looking.
Bio fact details
Rhino diet: Public can handle.
They are fed twice daily totaling a bale and a half a day each
plus alfalfa pellets. They also enjoy sweet potatoes as a treat.
Camel dung: Public can handle. Compare with rhino dung,
notice size difference.
Who do you think better digests their food, rhino or camel?
Camels, Camels are also great at conserving water so their dung
comes out very dry as opposed to rhino dung with is very wet.
Droppings are burned as fuel in Mongolian cultures.
Why do you think that is? Since you can still see the hay in the
rhino dung, it is not fully digested.
Camels are ruminates they make better use of their food by
chewing it twice.
Has your mom ever told you, “You look like a cow who is chewing their cud”? Food is chewed and swallowed then goes into
the rumen where micro organisms are mixed in. It is then regurgitated and chewed again. Once swallowed the second time it
goes through the reticulum and onto the omasum where digestion begins.
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Rhino dung: Public can handle
What can a scientist tell if she came across this ‘scat’ in the
wild?
1. this animal eats grass
2. food is not digested completely so it probably eats large
volumes of grasses.
3. it is well formed and there is no blood or parasites present, the animal is healthy.
The rhino keeper removes about 800 lbs of rhino dung each day.
We have a manure pile where hoofstock dung plus sawdust and
hay is composted. It is then spread on our fields as fertilizer.
Rhino teeth: Keep in container. Compare to adult teeth on
skull. These are molars. Baby teeth.
Rhino skin: Keep in container.
Greater one-horned Indian Rhino.
?What does their skin remind you of? Their skin folds aid them
in cooling their body since they spend much of their time in and
around water.
Hoofstock Headgear
Horns are only in the Bovid family. Horns are un-branched,
permanent, and grow continuously from base. They can be present in both sexes, males are usually bigger. Horns have a bony
core covered with a keratin sheath and an animal grows just one
set in a lifetime.
Horned animals at the zoo: urial, goat species, sheep species,
zebu, markhor, gazelle, oryx, addax
Horned animal in the museum: bongo, cape buffalo, bison, gazelle, dik dik, eland, goat species, sheep species
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Giraffe horns are permanent protrusions from the skull, covered
with skin and hair.
Pronghorn horns are unique in that they have horns that have an
the outer keratinous sheath which is shed annually. The sheath
shows a prong however the bony core is not branched. Pronghorns
are the exception to the horn rule. The sheath is called a casque.
Antlers are also solid; they have branches and are shed each year
during the winter. They grow from an extension of the frontal
bone called a pedicel. A burr marks separation between pedicel
and antler. Branched and covered in velvet once the blood vessels
and nerves die the velvet is rubbed off leaving a solid bony structure. These bony antlers are used during rut. The blood vessels
and nerves then die at burr and the antlers fall off. Antlers are
grown every year with the # of tines increasing with age but dependant on environment and nutrition.
Animals with antlers at the zoo: deer (note: our white tailed deer
are females and they do not grow antlers.)
In the museum: deer, elk, moose, caribou (note: females also have
antlers)
All of the world’s rhino species are endangered. Fewer than
11,000 African rhinos have survived the slaughter for their
horns. Fewer than 3,000 of the Asian species of rhinos are
alive today.
Reasons for endangerment. Horns are used primarily as a medicine in China and neighboring countries of the Far East.
Horns are ground into a powder and swallowed as a potion.
They were also used as an aphrodisiac in a region of west
India but this proactive is no longer of much importance.
Rhino dagger handles are a prized symbol of manliness in
North Yemen.
Rhino horn: Rhino horns differ from true horns because there is
no core or sheath. They are made up of a multitude of epidermal
cells and bundles of dermal papillae (extensions of the dermis or
skin).
Cells from each papilla form a horny fiber similar to thick hair.
These fibers, which are held together by the mass of epidermal
cells, are not true hairs. True hair grows from follicles that extend into the dermis, whereas rhino horns grow from dermal
papillae which extend up. The rhino horn is situated over the
nasal bones. In species that have two horns, the second horn
lies over the frontal bones. Rhino horns commonly curve posterior.
Horns can grow about 3” per year in the first 3 years of the rhino’s
life. They grow slower as the rhino ages.
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SOUTHERN WHITE RHINOCEROS
Phylum: Chordata, Class: Mammalia, Order: Perissodactyla, Family: Rhinocerotidae
Ceratotherium simum simum
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to 35 mph.
Rhinos enjoy wallowing in the mud. The mud creates a coating
on their skin to protect them from sunburn and insect bites. Mud
wallowing is also an effective method of heat loss.
White rhinos have a hump on their backs, just in front of their
shoulder blades. The hump is a mass of muscles that helps support the long, heavy head of the rhino. The head of a white rhino
may weigh as much as 500 - 800 pounds.
White rhinos have high-crowned molars specially adapted for
grinding up ingested grasses. They have no incisors.
The white rhinoceros is the third largest land animal (African and Asian
elephants are the first and second largest). White rhinos really aren’t
white. They are actually a gray color. Their name is derived from the
Afrikaans word describing their mouths - weit, meaning wide.
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Weight: 5,000 - 7,000 lbs.
Lifespan: up to 45 years
Diet in the wild: The white rhinoceros is a grazer and eats the short
turf grasses of the African savannah.
Height (at shoulder): 5 - 6 feet
Habitat: African grasslands (savannas)
Range/distribution: 96% of the wild southern white rhino population
is found in South Africa.
Status:
 ENDANGERED
Threats to survival: Poaching poses the greatest threat to white rhinos. Their horns are used for traditional Asian medicines and to make
dagger handles in Yemen.
Special features:
 The white rhinoceros has wide, square lips, specially adapted for
grazing.
 All African rhinos have 2 horns. Rhino horn is made of thousands
of tiny strands of keratin, the same material that makes up human
fingernails. Rhino skulls have a bony ‘bump’ on the front that
helps anchor the horn to the head.
 White rhino horn can grow 3.5 - 4 inches per year, until the animal
is approximately 7 years old. After that time the horn continues to
grow at a slower rate.
 Rhinos have poor eyesight, but well-developed senses of hearing
and smell.
 Rhinos walk and run on their toes, making them similar to horses.
In spite of their size, rhinos are able to turn quickly and run fast - up
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Social Structure:
 Adult males are somewhat territorial and basically solitary.
 Other males, known as subordinate males may occasionally graze
in the same area as “satellites” to a dominant bull.
 The ranges of females often overlap. Females typically are found
in pairs consisting of the cow and her calf.
Breeding & Care of young:
 Males become sexually mature at 10 - 12 years; females at 6 - 7
years
 Dominant males will often fight with each other over a breeding
female.
 Gestation = 485 - 518 days (16 - 17+ months)
 Calves weigh around 150 pounds at birth.
 Calves will remain with their mothers for two years, or until another calf is born.
Efforts to save Southern white rhinos:
There are currently a little over 120 individuals in the Southern white
rhino SSP. The American Zoo and Aquarium Association’s SSPs
(Species Survival Plans) are special programs designed by a team of
zoo and wildlife professionals. The plans outline breeding plans,
work to increase public awareness and education, help conduct research, and in some cases, organize programs to reintroduce captive6
bred wildlife into secure habitats. In the wild, Southern white rhinoceros populations have been increasing due to protection in reserves and
parks in southern Africa.
Other African rhinos:
Northern white rhinoceros: The future looks rather bleak for the
Northern white rhino. Their populations have been reduced by 80%
since 1979. An estimated 31 animals survive in the wild and are found
only in Garamba National Park in Zaire. Those animals are protected
by armed guards. Only 9 individuals are held in captivity.
Black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) :
Black rhinos prefer the brush and open woodlands of Africa. Like the
other types of African rhinos, they have become endangered primarily
due to poaching for their horns. Just 20 years ago, an estimated 65,000
black rhinos were found in the wild. Today only 2,400 individuals survive in the wild. There are 97 black rhinos in the American Zoo and
Aquarium Association’s black rhino SSP.
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Threats to survival: Greater one-horned rhinos are endangered due
to poaching and habitat loss. Their horns are used for traditional
Asian medicines and to make dagger handles in Yemen. Indian rhinos
are also threatened by habitat loss. India and Nepal are very densely
populated areas and the ever-increasing human population continues
to encroach on wildlife habitat. The floodplains where the rhinos live
are often used for agriculture. The remaining areas of the flood plains
are subject to severe floods and are not suitable year-round habitats
for the rhinos. Continued destruction of forests increases the severity
of the annual flooding.
Special features:
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GREATER ONE-HORNED (INDIAN) RHINOCEROS
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Phylum: Chordata, Class: Mammalia, Order: Perissodactyla,
Family: Rhinocerotidae
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Rhinoceros unicornis
The Greater one-horned rhinoceros is the second largest species of rhinoceros. The Greater one-horned rhino is commonly referred to as the
Indian rhino.
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Weight: 3,500 - 6,000+ lbs.
Horn length: 8 - 24 inches
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Height (at shoulder): 5.5 - 6 feet
Lifespan: up to 40 years
Habitat: forests and floodplains; prefers to be near swamps and rivers
Range/distribution: Greater one-horned rhinos are found in parks and
reserves in Nepal and India.
Diet in the wild: primarily a grazer, but will consume some browse
Status:
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ENDANGERED
As few as 2,000 Greater one-horned rhinos survive in the wild.
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The Greater one-horned rhinoceros has a semi-prehensile upper
lip, specially adapted for grasping branches, twigs, and other food
sources.
The skin of Greater one-horned rhinos is covered with many
round bumps. Their skin forms folds that give the animal the appearance of being covered in armor plating.
Rhino horn is made of thousands of tiny strands of keratin, the
same material that makes up human fingernails. Rhino skulls
have a large bump on the front that helps anchor the horn to the
head. Rhino horn can grow 2 - 3 inches per year.
Greater one-horned rhinos are excellent swimmers and can cross
wide rivers.
Greater one-horned rhinos have high-crowned molars and two
tusk-like incisors on the lower jaw.
In the wild, the Greater one-horned rhino’s habitat is an everchanging ecosystem. During the rainy season, large parts of its
home range may flood. During the dry period, small sources of
water may completely dry up or become cut off from large rivers.
Social Structure:
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Scent marking is important in rhino communication. Greater onehorned rhinos mark the paths of their territories with secretions
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from special glands that are found above and behind the ball of the
foot on all 4 legs. Rhinos will also mark their areas with urine or
dung.
Aside from a cow and calf pair, Greater one-horned rhinos are basically solitary animals. Occasionally temporary groups will form.
Greater one-horned rhinos will become highly aggressive towards
one another if their population density becomes too high. Dominant bulls are usually the aggressors.
There are dominant and inferior bulls in the Greater one-horned
rhino social hierarchy. However, they usually do not live in a fixed
home range that they defend as a strictly defined territory.
The continuous seasonal changes make it virtually impossible for a
bull to defend a strictly defined territory. A bull will, however,
enforce dominance as he shifts his main areas of activity. He will
scent mark his area and challenge other dominant or inferior bulls
as they approach.
Breeding & Care of young:
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Females become sexually mature at 5 -7 years of age; males at 10
years.
Dominant males will often fight with each other over a breeding
female.
Gestation = 15 - 16 months
Other Asian Rhinoceroses:
Javan rhino: Javan rhinos look like a small version of the Indian rhino. Their population has been reduced to a small number of individuals
living at the western tip of Java. Fewer than 100 individuals survive.
There are no Javan rhinos in captivity.
Sumatran rhino: Sumatran rhinos differ greatly in appearance from
all other rhinos. Whereas other rhinos have hair only on the tips of their
ears and tail, the Sumatran rhino has hair all over its body. The Sumatran rhino is often called the “woolly rhino”. Like the African rhinos,
but unlike the other two species of Asian rhinos, the Sumatrans have
two horns. Sumatrans are the smallest rhinos, weighing around 1,600
pounds. Fewer than 400 individuals survive in the wild. Fewer than 30
individuals are in captivity.
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