Gravely Endangered Rhino Teetering on the Brink of Extinction

Kenya is home to 2 rhino species; the black and the white. Interestingly though, these names have nothing to do with the skins of these species and both can be anything from brown to dark gray...

In fact, the name has everything to do with the shape of their mouths! The white species gets its name from "weit," the Dutch word for "wide" on account of its broad and square mouth which is ideal for grazing.

The white species is larger than its black counterpart. In fact, when fully grown, it weighs in excess of 2,550 kg (5,622 lb) and is the world's second largest terrestrial mammal after the African elephant.

Because it is a browser rather than a grazer, the black species has a hooked lip, which is great for grasping branches and leaves. Compared to its black counterpart, the white species falls in the feather weight category as it is only able to muster a maximum of 1,600 kg (3,527 lb) when fully grown.

Habitat

These intriguing Kenya animals characteristically live in areas with dense, woody vegetation but also very close to water and mud wallows.

In Kenya, your best bet for seeing them is a range of national parks.

Diet

Although both black and white species are herbivores, the human equivalent of vegetarians, there are important differences in the diets of the 2 species.

The white species is a grazer and loves its grass. The black species, on the other hand, is a browser and has a more diversified diet that consists of plants, leaves, buds, shoots and succulent tree branches.

Gravely Endangered

As is the case elsewhere in the world, the rhino is severely endangered even though, ironically, it has no natural predators. This is because it has been poached to near-extinction for its horn, mistakenly prized in China as an aphrodisiac and in Yemen as a sword sheath.

The mammal's predictable behavior does not help its case. Because it frequents the same waterholes and wallows every single day, it is easy for the callous poachers to lie in wait for them.

The above factors are compounded by the fact that these herbivores breed very slowly. With gestation lasting 16 months, it takes a long long time for populations to recover.

Our Rhino facts contains more fascinating facts on these gorgeous creatures so be sure to check it out.

Rhino Safari in Kenya

Fortunately, the story about one of the "Big Five" is not all doom and gloom, certainly in Kenya's case.

Thanks to relentless and innovative efforts by the wildlife authorities, the herbivore's populations in the country are on the up and their plummeting population graph may well have bottomed out.

Below are probably the most rewarding destinations for a rhino safari in Kenya:

• Lake Nakuru National Park. This park, which is only 2 hours' drive from the capital of Kenya, Nairobi, is home to 50 black and 50 white species, by far the largest population in the country.

  The park also offers several vantage points to take pictures of this incredible mammal against the scenic background of the flamingo-crammed Lake Nakuru.

• Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary in the eastern end of Tsavo National Park. This fenced off 90 sq km (35 sq mile) haven is home to about a dozen tagged black species which are under surveillance 24/7.

• Aberdare National Park. Besides being world-renowned as the place where then Princess Elizabeth became Queen of England, Aberdares is much visited for its several dozen black rhinos.

• Masai Mara National Reserve. The Mara is home to a decent population of these herbivores although it is more famous for its "Bigs Cats" and the annual wildebeest migration spectacle.
• Nairobi National Park. This is home to tens of the black species. The beauty of this wildlife park is that it is a stone's throw from the city center, a distinction that led Nairobi to be fittingly christened as the "safari capital of the world."

• David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. The charity runs an animal orphanage on the edge of the Nairobi National Park. Even though this primarily caters for orphaned baby elephants, it is a great place to get unnervingly close to 2 of these herbivores; Maalim an animated calf and Maxwell, a blind bull which is confined to its pen for its own safety.

Remember though that these herbivores are innately temperamental so be sure to steer well clear of them. The experience of 2-ton rhino charging at you can't be a particularly pleasant one.

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