……you might want to watch out for Rhino tracks. These are easy to identify as a Rhino has a big foot but only three toes. You might also sense one is in the area as they drop up to 50lbs of dung each day. wow.
Also be on guard for the ‘crash’ …. this is what one calls a ‘group’ of rhinos. Rhinos might have small brains and poor eyesight, BUT they have an excellent sense of smell and extremely fast for a creature of this size. Once they start a charge, you won’t be able to stop them because at full pace their 2500lbs body is going 35mph. So we advise you not to disturb them – but if you do – we suggest you get out of their way!
On a more tender side, you may notice the Rhino has a few Oxpecker ‘friends’ on board. Rhinos have a very special relationship with this lean, white bird who stands about 14inches high. The Oxpecker sits on the Rhino’s back and eats unwanted ticks and insects. The bird is much more in tune to what is happening in the bush and will sound an alarm to the Rhino if trouble may be on the way.
Apart from the big tummy covered with excessive hide, little ears and even smaller eyes, there is no doubt that a Rhino’s horn is the unforgettable feature. The horn is not made of bone as one would think, but of Keratin, the same matter that is in our fingernails and hair. A myth that the substance in the Rhino horn has some amazing healing powers has tormented these beasts. If this were true, than we could all chew our fingernails, and eat our hair instead of needlessly killing these wonderful creatures! Yes – sad but true – if we don’t do something PDQ, there is over a 50% chance that this tough, odd but loveable mass will be extinct well before the end of this century.
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