A major market for rhino horn has historically been in the Arab nations to make ornately carved handles for ceremonial daggers called jambiyas. The black rhinoceros had been pushed to the brink of extinction by illegal poaching for their horn, and to a lesser extent by loss of habitat. The only rhino that has recovered somewhat from the brink of extinction is the southern white whose numbers now are estimated around 14,500, up from fewer than 50 in the first decade of the 20th century. In 2011 the IUCN declared the Western black rhino extinct. ![]() In 2002 only 10 West African rhinos remained in Cameroon, and in 2006 intensive surveys across its putative range failed to locate any, leading to fears that this subspecies was extinct. According to the International Rhino Foundation, the total African population had recovered to 4,240 by 2008. In the early 1990s the number dipped below 2,500, and in 2004 it was reported that only 2,410 black rhinos remained. During the latter half of the 20th century their numbers were severely reduced from an estimated 70,000 in the late 1960s to only 10,000 to 15,000 in 1981. Around 1900 there were probably several hundred thousand living in Africa. An excellent sense of smell alerts rhinos to the presence of predators.įor most of the 20th century the continental black rhino was the most numerous of all rhino species. ![]() Their ears possess a relatively wide rotational range to detect sounds. Black rhinos have poor eyesight, relying more on hearing and smell. Such behaviour was originally thought to be an example of mutualism, but recent evidence suggests that oxpeckers may be parasites instead, feeding on rhino blood. Their skin harbors external parasites, such as mites and ticks, which are eaten by oxpeckers and egrets that live with the rhino. Their thick-layered skin protects the rhino from thorns and sharp grasses. This key differentiation is further illustrated by the shape of the two species mouths : the "square" lip of the White rhinoceros is an adaptation for grazing, and the "hooked" lip of the Black rhinoceros is an adaptation to help browsing. The black rhinoceros can also be distinguished from the white rhinoceros by its size, smaller skull, and ears and by the position of the head, which is held higher than the White rhinoceros, since the Black rhinoceros is a browser and not a grazer. The white rhinoceros has square lips used for eating grass. The black rhino is smaller than the white rhino and has a pointed and prehensile upper lip, which it uses to grasp leaves and twigs when feeding. Skin color depends more on local soil conditions and the rhinoceros's wallowing behavior than anything else, so many black rhinos are typically not truly black in color. These horns are used for defense, intimidation, and digging up roots and breaking branches during feeding. Sometimes, a third, smaller horn may develop. The longest known Black rhinoceros horn measured nearly 1.5 m in length. Two horns on the skull are made of keratin with the larger front horn typically 50 cm long, exceptionally up to 140 cm. An adult typically weighs from 800 to 1,400 kg, however unusually large male specimens have been reported at up to 2,199–2,896 kg. The amount of poaching has increased in recent years.An adult black rhinoceros stands 132–180 cm high at the shoulder and is 2.8–3.8 m in length, plus a tail of about 60 cm in length. Threats toward the subspecies is mainly illegal poaching. At present the number is overall increasing, though decreasing regionally (Zimbabwe). Over the last 50 years they have experienced a 90% decline in numbers. This has raised to about 2,200 in 2010, with 1,684 in South Africa, 431 in Zimbabwe and a few specimens in the other countries. The south-central black rhino population was at 9,090 in 1980 but due to a wave of illegal poaching for its horn their numbers decreased to 1,300 in 1995. Its status in Mozambique is uncertain at least one specimen has been seen there since 2008. The south-central black rhino was extinct in but has been reintroduced to Malawi, Botswana, and Zambia. ![]() Today its stronghold is South Africa and to a lesser extent Zimbabwe, with smaller numbers remaining in Swaziland, and southern Tanzania. It also probably occurred in southern Democratic Republic of the Congo, northern Angola, and eastern Botswana. It once ranged from western and southern Tanzania through Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Moçambique to the northern and eastern parts of South Africa. Like other Black Rhino subspecies it has a prehensile lip and lives in savannah habitat. Although it is the most numerous of the black rhino subspecies it is still listed as critically endangered by the IUCN red list. The south-central black rhinoceros ( Diceros bicornis minor) is a subspecies of the black rhinoceros.
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