Greater One-horned Rhino
Rhinoceros unicornis
Animal facts
The Greater One-horned or Asian Rhinoceros is a large mammal, equal in size to the white rhino in Africa; together they are the largest of all rhino species. Its main distinguishing feature is its single horn and folded skin.
- There are 2500 left in the wild. The overall population has slowly increased from as few as 200 at the beginning of the 20th century.
- The captive population in zoos is now stable and viable as an insurance policy in case of extinctions of the wild populations.
- Greater One-Horned rhino have the most folded skin of the 5 rhino species.
- Instead of using their horn to fight, the males use their long, sharp lower teeth.
- The Moghul emperors used to use the rhino in staged fights against elephant with often the rhinoceros winning the battle. Happily this no longer is practiced.
- They are very good swimmers although many drown each year in the annual floods and they spend up to 60% of the day wallowing.
- They have a folding upper lip that can grasp leaves and twigs but can fold it away to graze on the tall grass of the terrain.
Where they live
Nepal and North-Eastern India
Habitat
Tall grasslands and forests
What they eat
Their diet consists almost entirely of grasses
IUCN status
Vulnerable
Conservation work
One of ZSL’s main projects is the conservation of the Greater One-horned Rhinoceros, find out more: Greater One-Horned Rhino Conservation in Nepal
