helping out at the sharp end

Rhino Recovery

Rhino Recovery is a fundraising group set up in 1998 to help tackle the problems faced by the world's remaining populations of rhino.

RHINO RECOVERY's chief goal is to help keep rhinos in the wild, where they belong.

RHINO RECOVERY concerns itself ONLY with fundraising, NOT campaigning, and the funds raised are used EXCLUSIVELY for the purchase and provision of EQUIPMENT. Ownership is retained where possible, thus enabling us to control, in principle, the manner and location in which our equipment is used. Funds raised are available to rhino projects in both Africa and Asia.

Rhinos in Danger

Rhinos are endangered mainly because they are hunted by poachers for their horns which are used in asian medicine and for ornament. Loss of natural habitat is also an issue. The five species of endangered rhinoceros throughout the world are listed below. Click on the headings for more information on them from Wikipedia.

• White Rhinoceros

  The White Rhinoceros or Square-lipped rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) is one of the five species of rhinoceros that still exist and is one of the few megafaunal species left. It has a wide mouth used for grazing and is the most social of all rhino species.

  The White Rhino consists of two subspecies: the Southern White Rhino, with an estimated 17,480 wild-living animals at the end of 2007 (IUCN 2008), and the much rarer Northern White Rhino. The northern subspecies may have eight remaining worldwide - all in captivity

• Sumatran Rhinoceros

  The Sumatran Rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) is the smallest rhinoceros, standing about 120-145 centimetres (3.9-4.76 ft) high at the shoulder, with a body length of 250 centimetres (8.2 ft) and weight of 500-800 kilograms (1,100-1,800 lb). Like the African species, it has two horns; the larger is the nasal horn, typically 15-25 centimetres (5.9-9.8 in), while the other horn is typically a stub. A coat of reddish-brown hair covers most of the Sumatran Rhino's body.

  They are now critically endangered, with only six substantial populations in the wild: four on Sumatra, one on Borneo, and one in the Malay Peninsula. Their numbers are difficult to determine because they are solitary animals that are widely scattered across their range, but they are estimated to number fewer than 275.

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• Black Rhinoceros

  The Black Rhinoceros or Hook-lipped Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), is a species of rhinoceros, native to the eastern and central areas of Africa including Kenya, Tanzania, Cameroon, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Angola. Although the Rhino is referred to as black, it is actually more of a grey/brown/white color in appearance.

• Asian (or Indian) Rhinoceros

  The Indian Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) is also called Greater One-horned Rhinoceros and Asian One-horned Rhinoceros. Listed as a vulnerable species, the large mammal is primarily found in parts of north-eastern India and in protected areas in the Terai of Nepal, where populations are confined to the riverine grasslands in the foothills of the Himalayas. Weighing between 2260 kg and 3000 kg, it is the fourth largest land animal and has a single horn, which measures 20 to 57 cm (7.9 to 22 in) in length.

• Javan Rhinoceros

  The Javan Rhinoceros or Lesser One-horned Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus) belongs to the same genus as the Indian Rhinoceros, and has similar mosaicked skin which resembles armor, but at 3.1-3.2 m (10-10.5 feet) in length and 1.4-1.7 m (4.6-5.8 ft) in height, it is smaller than the Indian Rhinoceros, and is closer in size to the Black Rhinoceros. Its horn is usually less than 25 cm (10 inches), smaller than those of the other rhino species. Once the most widespread of Asian rhinoceroses, the Javan Rhinoceros is now critically endangered, with only two known populations in the wild, and none in zoos. It is possibly the rarest large mammal on earth.