Rhinos are found only in national
parks and protected areas of Nepal and India.
Habitat in Nepal:
1) Chitwan National Park in Nawalparasi and Chitwan District (2nd largest population)
2) Bardia National Park in Bardia District
3) Sukhlaphanta Wildlife Reserve in Kanchanpur District
1) Chitwan National Park in Nawalparasi and Chitwan District (2nd largest population)
2) Bardia National Park in Bardia District
3) Sukhlaphanta Wildlife Reserve in Kanchanpur District
Rhinoceros unicornis
(One-horned rhino)
Total
population present in Nepal only 435 (Source: UCN/SSC and TRAFFIC). On right-side image was taken at Chitwan National
Park during a college tour.
Name
origin:
Rhinoceros from the Greek rhino, meaning "nose" and
ceros, meaning "horn" and unicornis from the Latin
uni, meaning "one" and cornis, meaning "horn"
Distinguishing Characteristics: The rhino is grayish, with distinctive skin
folds that make the rhino appear to be wearing plates of armor. They are
hairless, except for eyelashes, ear tufts, and the tail tip. Also in common
with other rhinos is a superb sense of hearing and keen sense of smell - but
relatively poor eyesight.
Size: Rhinoceros unicornis, along with the roughly
equal-sized white rhino, is the largest species of land mammal after the
elephant. Their weight ranges from 4000-6000 pounds, and stands from 5.75-6.5
feet high at the shoulder. End-to-end, the rhino can be 10-12.5 feet in length.
Activity: The
rhino is fast and agile, running up to 25 mph for short distances and able to
make sharp turns when necessary. They may spend 60% of their day in the water.
They dive and feed under water; it is not uncommon to see just their snouts,
eyes, and ears above the water.
Life span: One can
live 30-45 years in the wild and the captive life span record is 47 years.
Conservation:
Conservation of rhinos in Nepal has been a success story. In the late 1960s,
their numbers had fallen to a mere 100. The situation wasn’t much better
elsewhere: the world population of the species totaled to about 600 at those
times.
How to help the
species/ How to conserve?
1. National parks
and wildlife conservation acts:
• Hunting is
banned (other than hunting reserve)
• Trade in
wildlife and its parts and derivatives is illegal
• Any person
committing an offence shall be punishable
2. Regional and
global cooperations:
• Transboundary
meetings at national and local level
• Organizing
global and regional workshops and meetings
• Building
partnership/collaboration (such as rhino expert group meeting)
3. Anti-poaching
activities:
• Co-operating
with agencies involved in anti-poaching and supporting agencies for controlling
illegal activities
4. Awareness among people:
• Publication of a conservation magazine to raise awareness among teachers,
students, forest and buffer zone user groups
• Field trip for students
• Rhino and tiger conservation workshop, with an emphasis on anti-poaching
training
• Poor people
living around the Chitwan National Park are involved in rhino habitat
destruction and poaching to generate money for livelihood. Without any
alternative livelihood options, it is hard to create awareness amongst local
people who are dependent on natural resources and wildlife hunting.
Rotaract Club of Rajdhani – RID 3292, NEPAL
