The Rhinoceros. 163 



RHINOCEROS (Rhinoceros bicornis] 

 (The black rhinoceros). 



NATIVE NAMES. 

 Chinyanja - - Chipembere. | Chingoni - - Chipimbere. 



Approximate weight, <? yooolb. 



Good average front horn, <? i8in. 



The rhino, as he is generally called, is fairly abundant in 

 some parts of the country where there is a good supply of 

 thorn trees and bushes, as this variety does not eat much 

 grass ; in fact, some naturalists say he never eats any grass, 

 although, judging from the contents of the stomach of one 

 I opened, I think that on occasions he feeds on it. His 

 food is bark and twigs torn from thorn bushes, and he 

 must have extremely powerful digestive organs to thrive 

 on such food. 



The natives seem to fear the rhino more than they do 

 the elephant, buffalo, and lion ; why, I fail to know, as he 

 is not usually a dangerous animal to go near. 



He has a fussy appearance, and, as he has the habit of 

 knocking about his dung, the natives think this proves him 

 to be bad-tempered. He has certainly a weird, antedilu- 

 vian appearance, with his armed head and small, pig-like 

 eyes, and. his mouth has what one might term a dyspeptic 

 look ; and I can hardly blame him, for a breakfast, lunch, 

 and dinner of thorn and bark must be a most unsatisfactory 

 diet. Perhaps the rhino feels annoyed that Nature has not 

 given him an appetite for more succulent vegetation, like 

 the eland, sable, and kudu. 



As thorn bushes are often found on rough, stony hills 

 the rhino is frequently seen in such places, and they are 

 interesting beasts to track, as on hard ground they some- 

 times leave a very faint spoor. The Machinga Mountains 

 in North-Eastern Rhodesia are full of rhino, and they 

 wander down to the valley of Luangwa River, where their 

 footprints will often be seen. Here they are very easy to 



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