Sumatran Rhino

Fascinating facts about the Sumatran Rhino

• There are fewer than 80 Sumatran rhinos left on Earth, so few that scientists can name individual animals and track them by their DNA. The last male died in 2019, leaving only females of breeding age. This means the species now exists in a state of biological limbo: alive, but running out of time to reproduce naturally. Every calf born is a potential lifeline; every death is a crisis.
• A Sumatran rhino's skin is covered in hair, the only living rhino species that kept this feature from its ancient ancestors. The hair is sparse and reddish-brown, thickening into a mane along the neck and back. Over 55 million years of evolution, other rhinos shed their coat. This one never did, a living fossil that carries its Miocene ancestry on its skin.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the Sumatran Rhino

In the mist-shrouded forests of Sumatra, the majestic Sumatran Rhino moves with deliberate slowness, its grey hide glistening with dew as it navigates the dense undergrowth with a quiet reverence. With a prehistoric air, this most endangered of creatures roots through the forest floor, its sensitive upper lip twitching as it searches for the tender shoots and leaves that sustain it. As it disappears into the shadows, its very existence seems a poignant reminder of a world that is rapidly fading, a world of primeval beauty and wonder.

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