Scientific Name: Rhinoceros sondaicus
IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered (CR)
Trophic Level: Herbivore
Diet: Shoots, twigs, young foliage and fallen fruit of diverse plant species.
Habitat: It inhabits dense, low-land rain forests, grasslands, and reed beds
with abundant rivers, large floodplain, or wet areas with many mud wallows.
Threats: Reduced Genetic Diversity, Habitat Degradation, Natural Disasters &
Diseases.
Height: 4.6 – 5.8 feet
Weight: 1,984 – 5,071 pounds
Length: 10 – 10.5 feet
Population: Around 60
Fact
- It is also known as Sunda Rhinoceros or the lesser one-horned rhinoceros.
- The genus name Rhinoceros is a combination of the ancient Greek words
ῥίς (ris) meaning 'nose' and κέρας (keras) meaning 'horn of an animal'. - Sondaicus is derived from sunda, the biogeographical region that
comprises the islands of Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and surrounding smaller
islands. - Javan rhinos are the most threatened of the five rhino species, with only
around 60 individuals that live only in Ujung Kulon National Park in Java,
Indonesia. - The Javan rhino is smaller than the Indian Rhinoceros, and is close in size
to the black rhinoceros. - It is the largest animal in Java and the second-largest animal
in Indonesia after the Asian Elephant. - No substantial size difference is seen between genders, but females may
be slightly bigger. - The rhinos in Vietnam appeared to be significantly smaller than those in
Java, based on studies of photographic evidence and measurements of
their footprints. - Like the Indian rhino, the Javan rhinoceros has a single horn (the other
extant species have two horns).
- Its horn is the smallest of all extant rhinos, usually less than 20 cm (7.9 in)
with the longest recorded only 27 cm (11 in). - Only males have horns.
- Female Javan rhinos are the only extant rhinos that remain hornless into
adulthood, though they may develop a tiny bump of an inch or two in height. - The Javan rhinoceros does not appear to often use its horn for fighting but
instead uses it to scrape mud away in wallows, to pull down plants for
eating, and to open paths through thick vegetation. - The Javan rhino has a long, pointed, upper lip which helps in grabbing food.
- Its lower incisors are long and sharp; when the Javan rhino fights, it uses
these teeth. - Behind the incisors, two rows of six low-crowned molars are used for
chewing coarse plants. - Like all rhinos, the Javan rhino smells and hears well, but has very poor
vision. - Its hairless, splotchy gray or gray-brown skin falls in folds to the shoulder,
back and rump. - The skin has a natural mosaic pattern, which lends the rhino an armoured
appearance. - The neck folds of the Javan rhinoceros are smaller than those of the Indian
rhinoceros, but still, form a saddle shape over the shoulder. - Because of the risks of interfering with such an endangered species,
however, the Javan rhinoceros is primarily studied through faecal sampling
and Camera trap. - They are rarely encountered, observed or measured directly.
- The Javan rhinoceros is a solitary animal with the exception of breeding
pairs and mothers with calves. - They sometimes assemble in small groups at salt licks and mud wallows.
- Wallowing in mud is a common behaviour for all rhinos, which allows them
to maintain cool body temperatures and helps prevent disease and parasite
infestation. - The Javan rhinoceros does not generally dig its own mud wallows,
preferring to use other animal’s wallows or naturally occurring pits, which it
will use its horn to enlarge. - Salt licks are also very important because of the essential nutrients the
rhino receives from the salt. - Male territories overlap each other less than those of the female.
- It is not known if there are territorial fights.
- Males mark their territories with dung piles and by urine spraying.
- Scrapes made by the feet in the ground and twisted saplings also seem to
be used for communication. - Members of other rhino species have a peculiar habit of defecating in
massive rhino dung piles and then scraping their back feet in the dung. - The Sumatran and Javan rhinos, while defecating in piles, do not engage in
the scraping. - This adaptation in behaviour is thought to be ecological; in the wet forests
of Java and Sumatra, the method may not be useful for spreading doors.
- The Javan rhino is much less vocal than the Sumatran; very few Javan
rhino vocalizations have ever been recorded. - Adults have no known predators other than humans.
- The species, particularly in Vietnam, is skittish and retreats into dense
forests whenever humans are near.
Though a valuable trait from a survival standpoint, it has made the rhinos
difficult to study. - When humans approach too closely, the Javan rhino becomes aggressive
and will attack, stabbing with the incisors of its lower jaw while thrusting
upward with its head. - The rhino eats an estimated 50 kg (110 lb) of food daily.
- Like the Sumatran rhino, it needs salt in its diet.
- The salt licks common in its historical range do not exist in Ujung Kulon but
the rhinos there have been observed drinking seawater, likely for the same
nutritional need. - The main factor in the continued decline of the Javan rhinoceros population
has been poaching for horns, a problem that affects all rhino species. - The horns have been a traded commodity for more than 2,000 years in
China, where they are believed to have healing properties. - The rhinoceros hide was used to make armour for Chinese soldiers, and
some local tribes in Vietnam believed the hide could be used to make an
antidote for snake venom. - Loss of habitat because of agriculture has also contributed to its decline,
though this is no longer as significant a factor because the rhinoceros only
lives in one nationally protected park. - Deteriorating habitats have hindered the recovery of rhino populations that
fell victim to poaching. - Even with all the conservation efforts, the prospects for their survival are
grim. - Because the population is restricted to one small area, they are very
susceptible to disease and inbreeding depression. - Conservation geneticists estimate a population of 100 rhinos would be
needed to preserve the genetic diversity of this conservation-reliant
species. - A Javan rhinoceros has not been exhibited in a zoo for over a century.
- In the 19th century, at least four rhinos were exhibited in Adelaide, Calcutta,
and London. - At least 22 Javan rhinos have been documented as having been kept in
captivity; the true number is possibly greater, as the species was
sometimes confused with the Indian rhinoceros. - The Javan rhinoceros never fared well in captivity.
- The oldest lived to be 20, about half the age that the rhinos can reach in the
wild. - No records are known of a captive rhino giving birth.
- The last captive Javan rhino died at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia in 1907,
where the species was so little known that it had been exhibited as an
Indian rhinoceros. - Javan rhinos once lived throughout northeast India and Southeast Asia.
- Vietnam’s last Javan rhino was poached in 2010.
- This species is a dusky grey colour and has a single horn of up to about 10
inches. - Its skin has a number of loose folds, giving the appearance of Armor
plating. - The Javan rhino is very similar in appearance to the closely-related greater
one-horned rhinoceros, but has a much smaller head and less apparent
skin folds. - The population in Ujung Kulon National Park represents the only hope for
the survival of a species that is on the brink of extinction. - Until the late 19th century and early 20th century, Javan rhinos existed from
northeast India and the Sundarbans, throughout mainland Southeast Asia,
and on the island of Sumatra. - If we lose the population in Java, the entire species will disappear.
- Javan rhinos are found only in one protected area of the world.
- They are extremely vulnerable to extinction due catastrophes, habitat loss,
diseases, poaching and potential inbreeding. - Javan rhinos were killed by trophy hunters during colonial times.
- They were also killed as agricultural pests and also for their horn, which is a
highly prized commodity in traditional Asian medicine. - Low genetic diversity and inbreeding can make it difficult for a long-term
survival for this species. - The coastal Ujung Kulon National Park is highly vulnerable