Rhinoceros is one of the largest representatives of mammals. Only an elephant exceeds it in size, a hippopotamus is slightly smaller than a rhino. The main difference between the animal is the horn located on the nose. Hence the name - rhino.
Where does the rhino come from?
Scientists certainly cannot determine when the rhino horn appeared. The origin of this part of the animal’s body lies in the multimillion-dollar history of its existence. All rhinoceros fossils found have traces of the presence of a horn. This growth is not bone, in structure resembles horn tissue, but actually consists of keratin. Keratin is a material, the basis of hair and nails. In appearance, it seems that the rhino horn is a plexus of a large number of thick hair. The first, a large horn, grows from the bones of the nose, and the second, small, from the skull. These formations grow throughout the life of the animal.
Rhinoceros Horn Size
In modern times, five species of rhino are known. They all have horns. The average growth size of the most common rhinos - white and black - from forty to eighty centimeters. The record for the size was broken by the length of the white rhino horn - as many as one hundred fifty eight centimeters! This is the largest process recorded in modern representatives of this species. The horn of a woolly rhino - extinct during the ice age, was larger. Its average length ranged from sixty to one hundred and fifty centimeters. What is the role of the horn in life? Why did nature reward the animal with such a process?
Rhino horn - a symbol of power
Many centuries ago, people worshiped rhinos as deities. In ancient drawings you can find this animal, its horn is depicted as unnaturally large, decorated with flowers. Once upon a time, people believed that a rhino horn is its decoration and indicator of power. They made dishes - containers for drinking and storing liquids. It was believed that this attribute has healing properties and gives the owner incredible power and strength.
Horn like a weapon
Rhino is a very large animal. In appearance, he seems clumsy and slow. This is not at all true. The rhino is capable of speeds up to forty-five kilometers per hour, but this is not enough to escape from the predator. Many believe that the rhino horn is its weapon from the attack of hungry carnivorous animals. This is also not entirely true. Rhino has no enemies in the world of predators. His appearance is so formidable that few lioness and hyena will decide to pounce on him, trying to catch him as food. If in the very hungry time there is a brave man who is trying to attack a healthy man, then the rhino should be once shaken by the horn in the direction of the encroachment on his life, and the predator runs away. There is still an opinion that rhinos use horns to fight other males. In the mating season, when everyone wants to attract the attention of the most healthy and beautiful female, rhinos begin to struggle for an advantage. But to prove their strength, they do not use horns at all, but teeth. Males attack each other, biting the enemy and knocking down their entire body. And the fact that a rhino can be planted on horns is generally from the realm of fantasy. This is the most peaceful and calm animal. He avoids meeting with a person, and if they meet, he will hasten to flee and hide, very rarely attack. Unfortunately, this cannot be said of people. They are the main enemy of the rhino, killing the species.
Horn for tags on the territory
In nature, you can see a picture of a rhino rubbing horns against a tree, after which huge scars remain on the bark. So the animal marks its territory, leaving traces and smell. Rhinos are loners. They do not like the company of their relatives. If there is a tree on the animal’s path that smells of another rhinoceros, this will be a reason not to linger on this site for a long time. In a pair of rhino can be seen only in one case - this is a mother and a cub. The female raises the baby up to two years, and then they part.
Why hunt rhinos?
Poachers are always chasing after prey, profit. So, through the fault of the hunters, more than one thousand elephants died, whose tusks are valued in the market. This is a valuable material from which a variety of jewelry, figurines, dishes are made. But how did people like the rhino horn? In order to get this growth, thousands of animals are annually exterminated. The thing is that since ancient times people believe in the miraculous properties of a powder made from a rhinoceros horn. Allegedly, adding this powder to food and drink, you can be cured of many diseases. Impotence is considered the most common indication for use. All over the world, men believe that drugs based on powder from the horn can restore their former strength. They also make creams from old age, which attract many female consumers. They say that the rhino horn is able to restore youth and give a long life. In Yemen, ancient traditions have been preserved, according to one of which young men who have reached adulthood are presented with a dagger, the hilt of which is made of a rhino horn. But all the properties attributed to these horns are just a myth. Science has not proved the therapeutic and anti-aging effects of the powder, but the price of the product is growing, and people are buying it. In many countries, the price of a horn is such that you can buy a luxury car or a house. In South Africa, one copy costs more than two hundred thousand dollars. This is the price for the life of a huge endangered beast.