unicornis appear in the Middle Pleistocene. The extant family, the Rhinocerotidae, first appeared in the Late Eocene in Eurasia, and the ancestors of the extant rhino species dispersed from Asia beginning in the Miocene. Mitochondrial DNA comparison suggests the ancestors of modern rhinos split from the ancestors of Equidae around 50 million years ago. Several specimens were described since the end of the 18th century under different scientific names, which are all considered synonyms of Rhinoceros unicornis today: Īncestral rhinoceroses first diverged from other perissodactyls in the Early Eocene. As type locality, he indicated Africa and India. Rhinoceros unicornis was the scientific name used by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 who described a rhinoceros with one horn. The Latin word ūnicornis means "one-horned". The generic name Rhinoceros is a combination of the ancient Greek words ῥίς ( ris) meaning "nose" and κέρας ( keras) meaning "horn of an animal". Nearly 85% of the global Indian rhinoceros population is concentrated in Assam, where Kaziranga National Park contains 70% of rhino population. However, poaching remains a continuous threat, as more than 150 Indian rhinos were killed in Assam by poachers between 20. Since then, numbers have increased due to conservation measures taken by the government. In the early 1990s, between 1,870 and 1,895 Indian rhinos were estimated to have been alive. Indian rhinos once ranged throughout the entire stretch of the Indo-Gangetic Plain, but excessive hunting and agricultural development reduced its range drastically to 11 sites in northern India and southern Nepal. Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Assam has the highest density of Indian rhinos in the world with 84 individuals in an area of 38.80 km 2 (14.98 sq mi) in 2009. ![]() Kaziranga National Park alone had an estimated population of 2,048 rhinos in 2009. As of August 2018, the global population was estimated to comprise 3,588 individuals, including 2,939 individuals in India and 649 in Nepal. Moreover, the extent and quality of the rhino's most important habitat, the alluvial Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands and riverine forest, is considered to be in decline due to human and livestock encroachment. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, as populations are fragmented and restricted to less than 20,000 km 2 (7,700 sq mi). A.The Indian rhinoceros ( Rhinoceros unicornis), or Indian rhino for short, also known as the greater one-horned rhinoceros or great Indian rhinoceros, is a rhinoceros species native to the Indian subcontinent. Rhinoceros hybrids > With the influx of Europeans into Asia during the 19th century, the pressure on rhinos from hunting greatly increased. Please do what you can to protect these rare, beautiful and precious animals. The hides of these animals, too, were once used there in the manufacture of armor. In China, where it is widely believed that rhinoceros horn has healing properties, a single kilogram of horn can bring as much as $30,000 on the black market. And the Chinese demand for their horns for medical purposes keeps the pressure on. Loss of habitat, especially during the Vietnam War, has also led to their decimation. There are no Javan rhinoceroses in captivity, and the birthrate of wild Javan rhino babies is down to only a couple of calves a year.ĭutch hunter with dead Javan rhinoceros (Ujung Kulon, 1895)įormerly hunting, and now poaching, have been the primary cause of the Javan rhino's sad decline. A second population in Vietnam is now thought to be extinct. But now it's critically endangered, perhaps the rarest large mammal on earth, with the Ujung Kulon herd being the single known population in the wild. ![]() It lived on the islands of Java and Sumatra, throughout Southeast Asia, and was even found in India and China. ![]() "Now we just need to ensure their protection."Īt one time the Javan Rhinoceros ( Rhinoceros sondaicus), also known as the Sunda Rhinoceros, was the most common rhinoceros in Asia. "This is wonderful news," Widodo Ramono, head of conservation group the Indonesian Rhino Foundation, told AFP news agency. All reside in Ujung Kulon, which lies on the extreme western tip of Java (see map right). The total number of surviving animals worldwide is now 60. The three are two more than the number of Javan rhino babies spotted in 2014. No word on how the moms are doing, but we have to assume they, too, are fine. The tubby ones were each born to different mothers, and each looked healthy. The darling babies were captured on film in Ujung Kulon National Park, sometime between April and July (see video above). ![]() Three Javan rhinoceros calves born in an Indonesian national park. But now it’s time to celebrate the birth of other babies. And so were the natural hatchlings of Galapagos tortoises reported last week. Sure, Prince George and Princess Charlotte are great. Range of the Javan Rhinoceros ( Rhinoceros sondaicus), past and present
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