Greater One-Horned Rhino (Rhinoceros unicornis)

Greater One-Horned Rhino

Common Names

  • Greater one-horned rhinoceros: referring to the single large horn
  • Indian and/or Nepalese rhinoceros: referring to the species'  range

Scientific Name and Origin

  • Rhinoceros unicornis
  • Rhinoceros: from the Greek “rhino”, meaning "nose" and “ceros”, meaning "horn" and “unicornis” from the Latin “uni”, meaning "one" and “cornis”, meaning "horn"

 
IUCN Red List:  Endangered
CITES:  Appendix I

The greater one-horned rhino is one of the two greatest success stories in rhino conservation (the other one being the southern white rhino in South Africa). With strict protection from Indian and Nepalese wildlife authorities, greater one-horned rhino numbers have recovered from fewer than 200 earlier in the 20th century to around 2,500. However, poaching pressure has remained high and this recovery is precarious without increased and accelerated support for conservation efforts in India and Nepal.

Current Greater
One-horned Rhino Numbers
and Distribution

There currently are approximately 2,619 greater one-horned rhinos surviving.

Biology

The greater one-horned rhino lives in northern India and southern Nepal. In both areas, the species mainly inhabits riverine (flood plain) grasslands and occasionally utilizes some adjacent woodland.

Greater one-horned rhinos are grazers, although occasionally they consume browse. When not grazing on land, animals like to immerse themselves in water, where they also graze on aquatic grass-like plants. This species is the most amphibious of the living rhinos.

Gestation lasts approximately 15-16 months, and mothers give birth to one calf every 1-3 years.

Females reach sexual maturity between 5 and 7 years of age; males mature at approximately 10 years of age.

Greater one-horned rhinos are usually solitary except for females with young. Males maintain loosely-defended territories.


Additional Information

Physical Characteristics

Size

  • Weight: 4,000-6,000 lbs
    (1,800 - 2,700 kg)
  • Height: 5.75 - 6.5 feet
    (1.75 - 2.0 m) tall at shoulder
  • Length: 10- 12.5 feet (3.0-3.8m) length of head and body

Horn

  • As the name suggests, greater one-horned rhinos have a single horn 8 to 24 inches (20 to 61 cm) long.

Other Features

  • Brownish-gray, hairless, with folds of skin that resemble plates of armor with rivets. The upper lip is semi-prehensile, well-adapted to grasping branches and leaves.