The Sumatran Rhino
(Dicerorhinus Sumatrensis)
The Sumatran Rhino is also referred to as the Hairy Rhinoceros due to its long, shaggy hair in contrast to the other rhino species that appear to be hairless. It is also known as the Asian Two-Horned Rhinoceros, being the only two-horned rhino of the Asian region.
Its scientific name, Dicerorhinus Sumatrensis comes from:
Greek “di”—two
Greek “ceros”—horn
Greek “rhons”—nose
“Sumatrensis”—Sumatra (Latin “ensis” meaning locality)
Physical Features
Size—
Weight: 1,300 - 2,000 pounds (600 - 950 kg)
Height: 3 - 5 feet (1.0 -1.5m)
Tall at shoulder
Length: 6.5 - 9.5 feet (2.0 - 3.0m) length of body
Horn—
Sumatran rhinos have two horns. The front (anterior) horn is larger and measures 10 - 31 inches (25-79 cm) long. The second horn is smaller, generally less than 3 inches (10 cm).
Other—
-Fringed ears and reddish-brown skin, variably covered with sparse long hair (sparse to sometimes dense)
The Sumatran rhino is the most endangered of all rhinoceros species because of its rapid rate of decline (but not so much because of its number of surviving members). Numbers have decreased more than 50% over the last 15 years due to poaching. It is believed that only around 200 Sumatran rhinos survive in very small and highly fragmented populations in Southeast Asia. Indonesia and Sabah, Malaysia hold the only significant populations. The persistence of populations in Peninsular Malaysia is questionable. Sumatran rhinos exist only is protected areas where they are physically guarded from harm by Rhino Protection Units. The continuation of this protection provides the best possible hope for the species’ survival.
- Lives in dense tropical forest, both lowland and highland, mainly on the Indonesian island of Sumatra and on Borneo—populations in peninsular Malaysia are thought to have undergone losses in the past few years, and intensive surveys need to be conducted to confirm their continued existence
- Browsers with a very varied diet—an opportunistic feeder, consuming a wide variety of plant species in the tropical forest
- Sumatran rhinos live between 35 and 40 years
- Gestation lasts approximately 15-16 months—mothers give birth to one calf every 3 years
- Females reach sexual maturity between 6 and 7 years of age
- Males mature at approximately 10 years of age.
Sumatran rhinos are generally solitary in nature—they don’t come together much.
