This two-horned rhino is the smallest and most threatened of the five living rhinoceros species. It is sometimes referred to as the ‘hairy rhino’ because of the long coarse hair that covers its body. The species leads a solitary life deep in the rainforests of South East Asia, where it has survived virtually unchanged for a million years. Sadly, human activities have brought the species to brink of extinction. Extensive deforestation and poaching for the horn have caused a dramatic decline in rhino numbers, and it is estimated that fewer than 275 individuals survive today in very small and highly fragmented populations.
Evolutionary Distinctiveness
Order: Perissodactyla
Family: Rhinocerotidae
Together with equids (horses, zebras and asses) and tapirs, rhinos are the only surviving members of an ancient and formerly diverse group of ungulates, which originated in the Eocene around 50 million years ago. The Sumatran rhino is the only surviving member of the most primitive group of rhinos, the Dicerorhinini, which emerged during the Miocene, 15-20 million years ago. It is closely related to the extinct woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis), which lived in Europe and Asia until 10,000 years ago. Ancestral members of this clade are thought to have migrated into Africa and evolved into the two species now found in this continent, the black rhino and the white rhino. The Sumatran rhino is therefore thought to be more closely related to these species than to either of the one-horned Asian species.
Order: Perissodactyla
Family: Rhinocerotidae
Together with equids (horses, zebras and asses) and tapirs, rhinos are the only surviving members of an ancient and formerly diverse group of ungulates, which originated in the Eocene around 50 million years ago. The Sumatran rhino is the only surviving member of the most primitive group of rhinos, the Dicerorhinini, which emerged during the Miocene, 15-20 million years ago. It is closely related to the extinct woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis), which lived in Europe and Asia until 10,000 years ago. Ancestral members of this clade are thought to have migrated into Africa and evolved into the two species now found in this continent, the black rhino and the white rhino. The Sumatran rhino is therefore thought to be more closely related to these species than to either of the one-horned Asian species.
Description
Size: Head and body length: 236-318 cm
Size: Head and body length: 236-318 cm
Shoulder height: 112-145 cm
Weight: 600 - 950 kg
Often referred to as the ‘hairy rhino’, the Sumatran rhino is the smallest of the five living rhinoceros species. It has a sparse covering of long coarse hair on its body and tufts of hair on its ears. The skin is reddish-brown and deeply folded behind the front legs and in front of the hind legs. It is the only Asian rhino to have two horns, although the posterior horn is usually very small and often absent in females.
Ecology
The species is a browser, feeding on a wide variety of plant material, including fruit, leaves, bark, shrubs and vines. Most of the 50 kg of food the rhino consumes each day comes from saplings, which it breaks down in order to reach young leaves and shoots. The rhino is particularly fond of wild mangos, bamboo and figs, and obtains essential minerals from salt-licks. Individuals prefer to travel and feed at dawn or dusk or during the night, when it is cooler. Days are usually spent resting and wallowing in mud to keep the skin cool and insects at bay. The rhinos are solitary creatures and tend avoid each other, coming together only for breeding. Females maintain stable, partially overlapping home ranges, while males are slightly more nomadic. The large ranges of males overlap extensively, but there appear to be small, exclusive core areas. Both sexes mark their territories with faeces, urine and soil scrapes. In some areas the rhinos have been seen to exhibit seasonal movements, moving to higher ground during the wet season to escape flooding and descending again once the rains have finished. The lifespan of the Sumatran rhino is thought to be similar to that of other rhinos, at around 35-40 years. Sexual maturity is reached at 6-8 years of age and females give birth to a single calf every 3 to 4 years.
Weight: 600 - 950 kg
Often referred to as the ‘hairy rhino’, the Sumatran rhino is the smallest of the five living rhinoceros species. It has a sparse covering of long coarse hair on its body and tufts of hair on its ears. The skin is reddish-brown and deeply folded behind the front legs and in front of the hind legs. It is the only Asian rhino to have two horns, although the posterior horn is usually very small and often absent in females.
Ecology
The species is a browser, feeding on a wide variety of plant material, including fruit, leaves, bark, shrubs and vines. Most of the 50 kg of food the rhino consumes each day comes from saplings, which it breaks down in order to reach young leaves and shoots. The rhino is particularly fond of wild mangos, bamboo and figs, and obtains essential minerals from salt-licks. Individuals prefer to travel and feed at dawn or dusk or during the night, when it is cooler. Days are usually spent resting and wallowing in mud to keep the skin cool and insects at bay. The rhinos are solitary creatures and tend avoid each other, coming together only for breeding. Females maintain stable, partially overlapping home ranges, while males are slightly more nomadic. The large ranges of males overlap extensively, but there appear to be small, exclusive core areas. Both sexes mark their territories with faeces, urine and soil scrapes. In some areas the rhinos have been seen to exhibit seasonal movements, moving to higher ground during the wet season to escape flooding and descending again once the rains have finished. The lifespan of the Sumatran rhino is thought to be similar to that of other rhinos, at around 35-40 years. Sexual maturity is reached at 6-8 years of age and females give birth to a single calf every 3 to 4 years.
Habitat
Mainly found in hilly country near water. It inhabits both tropical rainforest and mountain moss forest. The species is thought to prefer lowland secondary forest, where the canopy is broken and the smaller shrubs and vines on which it feeds are more abundant. Individuals can, however, be found in a wide variety of habitats. An agile climber, it is sometimes forced up into higher altitudes due to lowland flooding or human pressures. The rhino is quite capable of surviving in such areas providing there is sufficiently thick undergrowth and a salt-lick (essential for every home range).
Distribution
Once found throughout south-east Asia, the species now exists only as small, highly fragmented populations scattered throughout its former range. The largest concentration of the western subspecies is thought to be in Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia (with possibly a few surviving in Thailand along the border with Malaysia). There have also been unconfirmed reports of the rhinos in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. The eastern subspecies is currently found only in Sabah in Malaysian Borneo, although there is also speculation that it may exist in the neighbouring state of Sarawak and in Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo). The subspecies D. s. lasiotis is probably extinct, although a few individuals may possibly survive in the forests of Burma.
Mainly found in hilly country near water. It inhabits both tropical rainforest and mountain moss forest. The species is thought to prefer lowland secondary forest, where the canopy is broken and the smaller shrubs and vines on which it feeds are more abundant. Individuals can, however, be found in a wide variety of habitats. An agile climber, it is sometimes forced up into higher altitudes due to lowland flooding or human pressures. The rhino is quite capable of surviving in such areas providing there is sufficiently thick undergrowth and a salt-lick (essential for every home range).
Distribution
Once found throughout south-east Asia, the species now exists only as small, highly fragmented populations scattered throughout its former range. The largest concentration of the western subspecies is thought to be in Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia (with possibly a few surviving in Thailand along the border with Malaysia). There have also been unconfirmed reports of the rhinos in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. The eastern subspecies is currently found only in Sabah in Malaysian Borneo, although there is also speculation that it may exist in the neighbouring state of Sarawak and in Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo). The subspecies D. s. lasiotis is probably extinct, although a few individuals may possibly survive in the forests of Burma.
Population Estimate
The population size is critically low. There are thought to be as few as 275 Sumatran rhinos surviving in the wild.
Population Trend
Numbers have halved over the last decade, although this decline appears to have been slowed and numbers seem to be stabilising in most of the core areas.
Status
Both the Eastern and Western Sumatran rhino are classified as Critically Endangered on the 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and D. s. lasiotis is classified as Extinct. The species is listed on Appendix I of CITES.
Threats
Hunting has been a major factor in the decline of the species. Rhino horn, along with various other body parts, has been used in traditional Asian medicine for centuries to treat a variety of ailments, including fevers and strokes. Although hunting is now illegal, poaching continues, with animals continuing to be trapped and killed for their horns. Loss of habitat as a result of logging and conversion of land to other uses is the other main threat. As areas of suitable habitat become fewer, the rhino populations are pushed together into small, fragmented subpopulations that may be too small to be viable. Stranded in these remaining pockets of forest, the rhinos become even more susceptible to disease, environmental disasters and poaching.
Conservation Underway
Surviving rhino populations are being intensively protected by anti-poaching patrol teams, which have proved very effective at reducing illegal poaching. The teams are also involved in monitoring rhino populations, with the information gathered being used by the Indonesian and Malaysian governments to develop effective management programmes. Some of these programmes have involved creating breeding sanctuaries where the rhinos can be protected and maintained under conditions most suitable for reproductive success. The governments are assisted in their work by several national and international conservation organisations which are also restoring habitat in heavily encroached areas.The IUCN/SSC Asian Rhino Specialist Group (AsRSG), the co-ordinating body for rhino conservation work, has developed an Action Plan for conservating this species. This plan recognises the importance of involving local communities in their work, so that they can learn about the rhino's plight and benefit from its conservation. Such communities are also being encouraged to adopt sustainable methods by which they can effectively manage natural resources without causing further harm to the rhino or its habitat. In addition to these measures, conservation groups are trying to reduce the demand for rhino horn by conducting awareness campaigns in consumer countries, and investigating possible alternatives to rhino horn in traditional medicine. At present, all trade in rhino horn is prohibited, and the extent of illegal trade is investigated by TRAFFIC (the wildlife trade monitoring network of the WWF and IUCN).
The population size is critically low. There are thought to be as few as 275 Sumatran rhinos surviving in the wild.
Population Trend
Numbers have halved over the last decade, although this decline appears to have been slowed and numbers seem to be stabilising in most of the core areas.
Status
Both the Eastern and Western Sumatran rhino are classified as Critically Endangered on the 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and D. s. lasiotis is classified as Extinct. The species is listed on Appendix I of CITES.
Threats
Hunting has been a major factor in the decline of the species. Rhino horn, along with various other body parts, has been used in traditional Asian medicine for centuries to treat a variety of ailments, including fevers and strokes. Although hunting is now illegal, poaching continues, with animals continuing to be trapped and killed for their horns. Loss of habitat as a result of logging and conversion of land to other uses is the other main threat. As areas of suitable habitat become fewer, the rhino populations are pushed together into small, fragmented subpopulations that may be too small to be viable. Stranded in these remaining pockets of forest, the rhinos become even more susceptible to disease, environmental disasters and poaching.
Conservation Underway
Surviving rhino populations are being intensively protected by anti-poaching patrol teams, which have proved very effective at reducing illegal poaching. The teams are also involved in monitoring rhino populations, with the information gathered being used by the Indonesian and Malaysian governments to develop effective management programmes. Some of these programmes have involved creating breeding sanctuaries where the rhinos can be protected and maintained under conditions most suitable for reproductive success. The governments are assisted in their work by several national and international conservation organisations which are also restoring habitat in heavily encroached areas.The IUCN/SSC Asian Rhino Specialist Group (AsRSG), the co-ordinating body for rhino conservation work, has developed an Action Plan for conservating this species. This plan recognises the importance of involving local communities in their work, so that they can learn about the rhino's plight and benefit from its conservation. Such communities are also being encouraged to adopt sustainable methods by which they can effectively manage natural resources without causing further harm to the rhino or its habitat. In addition to these measures, conservation groups are trying to reduce the demand for rhino horn by conducting awareness campaigns in consumer countries, and investigating possible alternatives to rhino horn in traditional medicine. At present, all trade in rhino horn is prohibited, and the extent of illegal trade is investigated by TRAFFIC (the wildlife trade monitoring network of the WWF and IUCN).
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