![]() Our results show that Kruger’s black rhinoceroses are genetically more diverse than those from KwaZulu-Natal, with levels closer to those from the Zambezi Valley. We compared this diversity with the two source populations (KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Zambezi River, Zimbabwe) using data from previously published studies, and assessed changes in the relative contribution of source lineages since their reintroduction in the 1970s. In this study we used mitochondrial and microsatellite DNA collected from 110 black rhinoceroses ( Diceros bicornis minor) in Kruger National Park, South Africa, to determine levels of genetic diversity, inbreeding and relatedness. However, understanding the genetic implications of mixing gene pools is key to avoid the risk of outbreeding depression, and to maximise translocation effectiveness. Wildlife translocation is a valuable conservation tool to reintroduce species to previously occupied areas, or augment existing populations with genetically divergent animals, thereby improving the viability of endangered populations. Both processes contribute to an elevated risk of extinction, notably due to genetic factors related to inbreeding depression and a loss of adaptive potential. The black rhino once roamed most of sub-Saharan Africa, but today is on the verge of extinction due to poaching fueled by commercial demand for its horn.Globally, wildlife populations are becoming increasingly small and isolated. The horn is also valued in North Africa and the Middle East as an ornamental dagger handle. ![]() Many animals have been killed for the hard, hairlike growth, which is revered for medicinal uses in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. The prominent horn for which rhinos are so well known has also been their downfall. Females use their horns to protect their young, while males use them to battle attackers. Rhino horns grow as much as three inches a year, and have been known to grow up to five feet long. Rhino Horn and Threats to Survivalīlack rhinos boast two horns, the foremost more prominent than the other. They may find one another by following the trail of scent each enormous animal leaves behind it on the landscape. Rhinos have sharp hearing and a keen sense of smell. They often find a suitable water hole and roll in its mud, coating their skin with a natural bug repellent and sun block. Under the hot African sun, they take cover by lying in the shade. Their single calf does not live on its own until it is about three years old.īlack rhinos feed at night and during the gloaming hours of dawn and dusk. Females reproduce only every two and a half to five years. BehaviorĮxcept for females and their offspring, black rhinos are solitary. White rhinos graze on grasses, walking with their enormous heads and squared lips lowered to the ground. They use their lips to pluck leaves and fruit from the branches. Black rhinos are browsers that get most of their sustenance from eating trees and bushes. The difference in lip shape is related to the animals' diets. The black rhino has a pointed upper lip, while its white relative has a squared lip. ![]() They are different not in color but in lip shape. ![]() Both black and white rhinoceroses are actually gray.
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