Northern white rhinoceros habitat skin#
Northern white rhinoceros habitat full#

If there is no wallowing place available, they will roll in dry dust They need water for drinking every 2-4 days.

Northern white rhinoceros habitat skin#

Much of their resting time is spent wallowing to keep cool and to get rid of skin parasites. In hot, dry weather they routinely rest during the hottest part of the day.

Daily Activity: White rhinoceroses feed and rest alternately during day and night.

The calf stays with mother for around three years The calf begins grazing at two months, weaning occurs at around one year of age. Mother and calf become inseparable the calf usually moves in front of its mother and immediately responds to the mother’s behaviour. Calves stand up within one hour, immediately attempting to suckle. Pregnant females will leave their crash shortly before the parturition and stay apart for several days afterwards. The interval between calving is 3-4 years. Females usually give birth for the first time at the age of 6.5-7 years. Records of captive breeding in zoos vary between 480 and 548 days’ gestation.

Gestation and birth: White rhino have a gestation period of approximately 16 months.

Mating is remarkably prolonged, lasting from 20 minutes to one hour Finally, the cow will stand still, with tail curled, and allow copulation. The courtship lasts up to a day, characterised by the male resting his chin on the female’s rump and attempted mounting.

Northern white rhinoceros habitat full#

He at first accompanies the female by keeping a fair distance, until she comes into full oestrus and allows him to approach.

Mating and courtship: when the urine test (sensed through scent glands) reveals a cow approaching oestrus, the territorial bull will join the female for up to 20 days.

Sounds and calls: White rhinos can communicate vocally, using a wide range of sounds from calf squeaking to snarling or wailing of adults.

Marking by urine spraying is mostly displayed along territorial boundaries All animals add their deposits there, but only territorial males scatter the dung with ritualised kicks and spray urine. The collective dung heaps, or middens, are usually located at territory boundaries and serve as the communication and marking points.

Scent-marking: as with other rhino species, white rhino home ranges are scent-posted with dung heaps used by both sexes.

When the mother calves again, it seeks another companion, preferably of similar age and the same sex A juvenile stays with the mother for around three years. They associate typically in pairs, usually a female with her latest calf.

Female Territory: females’ home ranges vary between 6-20 km 2, and usually overlap several males’ territories.

Territorial bulls are far more aggressive to foreign bulls than to resident satellite bulls The territory owner ignores these satellite bulls, as long as they behave submissively. Each territory is held by a mature male, often with between one and three resident satellite bulls. The size depends on many factors, including the quality and availability of food and water in a particular area.

Male Territory: bulls’ territorial ranges are relatively small, averaging between 1-3 km 2.

Sexual Maturity: females reach sexual maturity at around 6-7 years old, males at between 10-12 years old.

Stable groups (commonly known as ‘crashes’) of up to six animals can be commonly observed, (although this is sadly a rarer sight these days, due to poaching), while larger groups are the result of temporary aggregations, due to availability of food, watering, or resting conditions Adult bulls are basically solitary and associate only with females in oestrus.

Sociability: White rhinos are sedentary, semi-social and territorial.

Rhinos are known for their distinct ‘prehistoric’, solid look an appropriate labelling for one of the oldest land mammal species in the world The front horn is usually much larger than the inner horn. White rhinos have two horns on the end of their nose. The head hangs down, low to the ground they look up only when alarmed.

Distinctive characteristics: their outline is characterised by a pronounced hump.

Hair: White rhinos have hair only on ears, tail tips and eyelashes.

There is no difference in the skin colour of white and black rhinos, despite their names

Skin colour: the colour of their skin is grey.

Weight: adult males weigh between 1,800 and 2,500 kg and females 1,800-2,000 kg.It has a bigger head, due to the muscles that support its neck, as the animal feeds from the ground with its head lowered for much of the day Size: the white rhino is the larger of the two African species.Northern white rhinos: Ceratotherium simum cottoni (only two animals remain) Physical characteristics Southern white rhinos: Ceratotherium simum simum The white rhino is also known as the Square-lipped rhino due to the shape of its mouth compared with its African cousin, the black rhino.