header: Great Indian Rhinoceros
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line Rhinoceros unicornis Linnaeus, 1758

INTRODUCTION

The Great Indian Rhinoceros has a single black horn, and a grey brown hide with skin folds, which gives it an armoured appearance.11 It is the largest of the three Asian Rhinoceros with a head-body length of 310-380 cm, and a shoulder height of 148-186 cm. Solitary by nature rhinos show no true territoriality, although breeding males occupy loose territorial ranges of 2 to 8 km.2 Temporary associations of a few sub-adults or adult males sometimes form at wallows or on grazing grounds.11 The Indian Rhino originally occurred mainly in alluvial plain grasslands, where the grass can grow up to 8 metres tall, but was also found in the adjacent swamps and forest.11 The range of this species has now become so restricted by human modification of its habitat that it often uses cultivated areas, pastures and modified woodlands.11 The Great Indian Rhinoceros has a diet mainly of grass, but it also includes reeds, twigs, fruit and cultivated crops.8,11


Map


Females are fully grown by 6.5 years with males not becoming fully mature until approximately 10 years of age.8 Females are sexually mature at between 5 and 7 years and gestation periods range from 462 to 491 days. The single offspring is active soon after birth, remaining with the mother until the birth of her next calf.11 There is an interval of about three years between calves.11


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