# Black Rhinoceros — Facts, Threats & Conservation

*Diceros bicornis*

> The black rhinoceros is a large African rhino with a hooked upper lip for browsing shrubs, weighing 800–1,400 kg (1,750–3,100 lb) despite its name referring to soil colour, not hide. Critically endangered from poaching for horn, fewer than 6,500 remain across scattered eastern and southern African reserves.

**IUCN status:** Critically Endangered  ·  **WARN range:** Africa

## Quick facts
| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Scientific name | Diceros bicornis |
| Diet | Herbivore — leaves, branches, and woody browse |
| Habitat | Savannas, scrub, and dry woodland of eastern and southern Africa |
| Lifespan | 35–50 years in the wild |
| Weight | 800–1,400 kg (1,750–3,100 lb) |
| Top speed | Up to 55 km/h (34 mph) in charge |
| Conservation status | Critically Endangered (IUCN) |

## Scientific classification
- **Kingdom:** Animalia
- **Phylum:** Chordata
- **Class:** Mammalia
- **Order:** Perissodactyla
- **Family:** Rhinocerotidae
- **Genus:** Diceros

## Conservation status
- **Status:** Critically Endangered (IUCN Red List)
- **Population:** See the IUCN Red List assessment
- **Trend:** Increasing
- **Assessed:** 2020
- **CITES:** See CITES appendices
- Key documented threats: Poaching for horn; Illegal horn trade; Small, fragmented populations.

## Key facts: Black Rhinoceros
- The prehensile pointed upper lip lets black rhinos strip leaves from thorny acacia and succulents that grass-eating white rhinos cannot exploit.
- Black rhinos are more solitary and aggressive than white rhinos, with bulls maintaining territories and cows accompanying calves.
- Rhino horn — made of keratin like fingernails — is illegally traded for traditional medicine and status symbols, driving poaching despite international bans.

## How does a black rhino eat?
The prehensile pointed upper lip lets black rhinos strip leaves from thorny acacia and succulents that grass-eating white rhinos cannot exploit. They have poor eyesight but acute hearing and smell, charging threats they detect downwind. The hooked lip is the field mark that matters: if the animal is ploughing grass with a square mouth, it is a white rhino.

## Are black rhinos solitary?
Black rhinos are more solitary and aggressive than white rhinos, with bulls maintaining territories and cows accompanying calves. Mothers are fiercely protective — most human injuries involve surprised animals on foot. Poor eyesight plus a willingness to charge is why walking safari rules exist. They are not mindless; they are defending space they cannot see clearly.

## Why were black rhinos poached?
Rhino horn — made of keratin like fingernails — is illegally traded for traditional medicine and status symbols, driving poaching despite international bans. Black rhino numbers crashed 96% between 1970 and 1990; recovery is slow but ongoing in well-guarded reserves. Horn has no proven medicinal value. Demand, not biology, is the reason the species came so close to extinction.

## Where are black rhinos recovering?
Intensive anti-poaching, dehorning programmes, and translocations support populations in Namibia, Kenya, South Africa, and Tanzania. Critically Endangered globally, the species illustrates both the devastation of illegal wildlife trade and the impact of committed conservation funding.The related appeal explains potential support and the current funding status; this guide does not confirm a WARN grant. Presence on that list is not the same as a dedicated black-rhino field unit.

## Does WARN run a black rhino programme?
WARN does not operate a dedicated black rhinoceros field programme. The rhino appeal funds partner-led anti-poaching and veterinary response in South Africa, Kenya, India, Nepal and Indonesia — countries that hold rhino species, including black rhinos in Kenya and South Africa. This guide remains an educational profile; it does not claim WARN rangers in every reserve named above.

## What WARN does
WARN publishes this guide for education and is developing support through assessed animal-welfare grants. A species range, source citation or photograph does not establish a recipient or funding agreement. Check /about/where-your-money-goes/#grant-register for published grant and payment records; records not yet published must not be read as zero activity. Browse /appeals/ for the purposes currently available to support.

If clear, science-based wildlife guides like this help you understand and value animals, please consider supporting the World Animal Rescue Network's educational and rescue work so we can keep producing them.

## Frequently asked questions: Black Rhinoceros
### Black rhino vs white rhino?
Black rhinos are smaller, hook-lipped browsers holding their heads high. White rhinos are larger, square-lipped grazers of grass. 'Black' and 'white' are mistranslations of Dutch/Afrikaans words, not skin colour.

### How many black rhinos are left?
Roughly 6,000–6,500 in the wild after decades of poaching — up from a low of about 2,400 in the 1990s thanks to protection.

### Why are rhinos poached?
For their horns, sold illegally despite being made of keratin with no proven medicinal value. Demand in some Asian markets drives the trade.

### Are black rhinos dangerous?
They charge when threatened and have poor eyesight, making close approaches on foot extremely risky. Respect park rules and ranger guidance.

### Where do black rhinos live?
Scattered protected areas in Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Zambia — absent from most of their historic range.

### What do black rhinos eat?
Black rhinos are herbivores that browse leaves, branches and woody shrubs, using a hooked upper lip to strip thorny acacia and succulents that grass-eating white rhinos cannot exploit.

### How long do black rhinos live?
Black rhinos live 35–50 years in the wild. Females are fiercely protective of calves, and most human injuries involve surprised animals encountered on foot.

### How big is a black rhino?
Black rhinos weigh 800–1,400 kg (1,750–3,100 lb) and reach about 3.5 m in length. Despite the name referring to soil colour rather than hide, they can charge at up to 55 km/h when threatened.

## Sources
- [IUCN Red List — Black Rhinoceros](https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/6557/152728945)
- [Wikipedia — Black Rhinoceros](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_rhinoceros)
- [Wikidata — Black Rhinoceros](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q26487)

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Full guide: https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/wildlife-guides/black-rhino