In the early 1800’s the black rhinoceros was the most numerous of the entire world’s rhino species the estimated population was several hundred thousand. The Asian rhinos divergence took place millions of years earlier. Approximately 5 million years ago, today’s African rhinos diverged from a common ancestor to their present day form. 15,000 years ago, Europe was home to the wooly rhinoceros. There were many forms of the present day rhino 50 million years ago and their range was very extensive compared to that of today. The black rhino is one of the surviving representatives of a biological category that was at one time much more diverse and abundant. Except for the South-western black rhino, they prefer scattered open woodlands. This species is a little larger and its horns tend to be straighter than other species. For example the South-western black rhinoceros lives in the desert and dry savannah areas of Namibia and south-western South Africa. In general though, the different subspecies inhabit very ecologically different areas. Unlike the Northern and Southern white rhinos that have very separate ranges in Africa, the black rhino species boundaries do overlap in some areas. His natural history collections were massive and he is credited with having described many “new” species as a result of his explorations. Burchell (1782-1863) was an accomplished naturalist and one of the greatest early African explorers. Another explanation is that it was first seen by William Burchell along the banks of Black Umfolozi River in South Africa. The name might also be a result of black being opposite of white, to distinguish between the two species of African rhino. However the color of wallowing mud can vary from yellow-brown to rust to black throughout the animals range. Some say it is because it is from the dark colored mud covering its skin after wallowing. Several explanations are given for the origin of the name “black” rhinoceros. The black rhino is close in color to the white rhino with a grayish brown color to its skin. It is also known as the “hook-lipped rhinoceros”, once again referring to its prehensile lip. The black rhinoceros is also commonly known as the “prehensile-lipped rhinoceros” because the upper lip is adapted to browsing on trees and shrubs and this is one of its most distinguishing characteristics. There are 4 subspecies of black rhinos the Western (Diceros bicornis longipes) Eastern (Diceros bicornis michaeli), Southwestern (Diceros bicornis bicornis) and South Central (Diceros bicornis minor). The name “rhinoceros” is derived from Greek, meaning “nose horn”. The scientific name, Diceros bicornis, originates from Greek “di” which means “two”, “ceros” which means “horn”, and from Latin “bi” which means “two” and “cornis” which means “horn”. Today there are 5 species and 11 subspecies of rhinos surviving on earth.
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