hooked-lipped Rhino- Hluhluwe Pen
hooked-lipped Rhino
|
Hook-Lipped (Black) Rhino
is a browser, with a triangular-shaped
upper lip ending in a mobile grasping point. It eats a large variety
of vegetation, including leaves, buds and shoots of plants, bushes
and trees.
Although smaller then the the white rhino, it is more dangerous
The black, or hooked-lipped, rhino, along with all other rhino
species, is an odd-toed ungulate (three toes on each foot). It
has a thick, hairless, gray hide. Both the black and white rhino
have two horns, the longer of which sits at the front of the nose.
The skin of the rhinoceros is extremely thick, nearly hairless
in most species, and deeply folded in some. The legs are stout
and short and end in broad feet, each with three toes
Most live near water and like to wallow in mud; all swim well.
They have poor vision but good hearing and a good sense of smell
Mostly solitary animals, they feed by night and in the early
morning and evening; they rest in shade during the heat of the
day.
They are often accompanied by small tickbirds (oxpeckers) that
feed on parasites in their skin and, with their cries, alert them
to danger. |
