DESCRIPTION OF RHINOCEROS. 373 



horned white rhinoceros.* It is with regard to their horns 

 that the two species chiefly differ from each other ; for while 

 the anterior horn of the Monoohoo has an average length of 

 two or three feet, curving backward, that of the Kobaaba 

 not unfrequently exceeds four feet, and is slightly pointed for- 

 ward, inclining from the snout at about an angle of forty-five 

 degrees. This rhinoceros is also the rarer of the two, and is 

 only found in the more interior parts of South Africa. 



The chief distinguishing characteristics of the white rhi- 

 noceros are its superior size, the extraordinary prolongation 

 of its head, which is not far from one third of the whole 

 length of the animal's body, its square nose (hence also 

 designated " square-nosed rhinoceros"), and the greater length 

 of the anterior horns. 



The " black" and the " white" rhinoceros, though so nearly 

 allied to each other, differ widely in their mode of Uving, 

 habits, &c. The chief sustenance of the former animal con- 

 sists of the roots of certain bushes, which it plows up with 

 its strong horn, and the shoots and tender boughs of the 

 "wait-a-bit" thorn; while the "white" rhinoceros, on the 

 contrary, feeds solely on grasses. 



In disposition, also, there is a marked distinction between 

 them ; for while the " black" is of a very savage nature, the 



* Only the horns of this species haA^e been described by naturaHsts. 

 Dr. Gray, of the British Museum, seems to be one of the first who 

 drew attention to the Kobaaba as a distinct rhinoceros. In the " Pro- 

 ceedings of the Zoological Society," No, ccl., p. 46, the following de- 

 tails appear. They were obtained from a pair of horns (of which the 

 wood-cut in the opposite page is an excellent likeness) presented by Mr. 

 Oswell to Colonel Thomas Steele, of Upper Brook Street : 



"The front horn is elongated and thick ; but, instead of being bent 

 back, as is the general character ofR. bicornis, or erect, as in R. simus, 

 it is bent forward, so that the upper surface is worn flat by being rubbed 

 against the ground. The front horn is thirty-one inches long, flat, 

 square, rough and fibrous in front, rounded and smooth behind. The 

 hinder horn, eleven inches in length, is short, conical, and sub-quad- 

 rangular." 



