Bulls and also cows were observed using the same defecation places over and over again, and spreading the dung with their hind legs in the well known manner. Obviously this behaviour serves to mark the home range of an individual, which, however, often overlaps with that of a neighbour. We have observed cows, but not other bulls, using the defecating place of a bull.
Ngorongoro Crater in Northern Tanzania is one of the few places left in Africa where the black rhinoceros is still frequent and can be regularly seen and photographed by the visitor. The crater floor, an area of 100 square miles, is the home of a great v
The rhinos were counted in January, 1958, by Grzimek & Grzimek (1960) who located. 19 and quoted Molloy's estimate of 42 in March, 1959. These figures are not contradictory, for during our two-year observation we have found great fluctuations in the numb
The overall sex ratio of the permanent residents including calves and subadults was 17 males to 17 females, that of the adults 11 males to 14 females.
Ngorongoro, Tanzania - Diceros bicornis . Rhinos are known to browse and graze as well. Food specimens and dung were collected for subsequent analysis and determination, the results of which will be published elsewhere. In addition to the stated feeding habits, we found rhinos also to be coprophagous, i.e. dung eating, a most unusual habit in a wild herbivore. For several days a group of four animals was observed repeatedly eating wildebeest droppings. During the time these observation were made, several hundred wildebeest were feechng in the area, which, following a grass fire, had only a very short grass cover of up to three inches long. T'he rhinos selected fresh or superficially dried dung. They picked a whole heap of dung from the ground and chewed it, losing parts of it in the process, but swallowing most of it. Whilst engaged in this action, they did not feed on any plant, but walked determinedly from one dung heap to the next. The reason for this extraordinary behaviour is not known, but possibly a mineral or other deficiency is balanced in this manner.
Of the 101.6 square mites of the crater floor, approximately four are covered by the soda lake. This leaves a feeding area of 97 square miles to the rhinos, of 3.9 square miles to each of the residents (disregarding suckling calves).
In 1963 there were no new-born calves in the population, and only one animal was considered subadult. During the two years eight calves were born in the resident population, all during the rainy season (December to May). On the average, according to these figures, 28 % of the females bred per year. This is a remarkably high reproductive rate, as the rhinos are slow breeders, taking about five years to reach maturity, and having a gestation period, according to records from zoological gardens, of over 18 months. If, for a few years, conditions remain as favourable as they seem to be now, and if poaching can be suppressed, the population can be expected to increase, thus maleing the area even more attractive to visitors and also, by the emigration of individual animials, stocking up the surrounding areas.
Ngorongoro, Tanzania. Rhinos are known to browse and graze as well. Food specimens and dung were collected for subsequent analysis and determination, the results of which will be published elsewhere.
Ngorongoro, Tanzania. Rhinos are known to browse and graze as well. Food specimens and dung were collected for subsequent analysis and determination, the results of which will be published elsewhere.
Ngorongoro, Tanzania - Diceros bicornis . Rhinos are known to browse and graze as well. Food specimens and dung were collected for subsequent analysis and determination, the results of which will be published elsewhere. In addition to the stated feeding habits, we found rhinos also to be coprophagous, i.e. dung eating, a most unusual habit in a wild herbivore. For several days a group of four animals was observed repeatedly eating wildebeest droppings. During the time these observation were made, several hundred wildebeest were feechng in the area, which, following a grass fire, had only a very short grass cover of up to three inches long. T'he rhinos selected fresh or superficially dried dung. They picked a whole heap of dung from the ground and chewed it, losing parts of it in the process, but swallowing most of it. Whilst engaged in this action, they did not feed on any plant, but walked determinedly from one dung heap to the next. The reason for this extraordinary behaviour is not known, but possibly a mineral or other deficiency is balanced in this manner.
One of the most important problems was how to identify and recognise individual rhinos. We found that the shape of the horns, crippled or otherwise deformed ears, prominent scars on the body, the state of the tail and the sex of the animal provided sufficient details for the recognition of all individuals in this small population. We used a system of file cards, each with Close-up photographs (taken with a 400 mm Novoflex lens) of the head of the animal from both sides, and a detailed description of its other characteristics. Mr John Goddard, of the Tanzania Game Division, is continuing the work with a duplicate set of our file cards.
