With its thick gray skin and distinctive horns on its snout, almost every child in the world should be able to recognize this magnificent creature – the rhinoceros. However, it is critically endangered in the wild and is on the verge of extinction unless something is done to save this species. As a result, World Rhino Day is celebrated on 22 September. Its aim is to make people more aware about rhinos and to preserve the remains of these amazing creatures.
Every year on September 22, the world honors five species of rhinoceros. The five species of rhino are Black, White, Greater One-horned, Sumatran and Javan. Man’s desire for unique rhino horns has pushed all five different rhinoceros species in the world to the brink of extinction. Horns are in high demand due to their therapeutic properties.
The IUCN lists the one-horned rhinoceros, also known as the Indian rhinoceros, as a vulnerable species. The animal is found mainly in the foothills of the Himalayas – India and Nepal.
History of World Rhino Day
In the early 1990s, the African rhino issue, particularly the extermination of the black rhino in Zimbabwe, became well recognized and people began to become apprehensive.
By 2010, it had become clear that the potentially dangerous fate of the rhinoceros was still unknown to many around the world. In response to the worsening of the situation, the World Wildlife Fund-South Africa declared World Rhino Day in 2010.
This day became a worldwide success only after a year. In 2011, a woman named Lisa Jane Campbell sent an email to Rishaza, a fellow rhino enthusiast, inviting the world’s five rhino species to survive and live on for generations to come. Thanks to these two amazing women, World Rhino Day has become a worldwide sensation, and has been a tremendous success.
Every year since then, NGOs, zoos, concerned people and wildlife groups from around the world have come together to mark World Rhino Day.
importance of the day
Rhinoceros was previously prevalent throughout Eurasia and Africa. Around 500,000 rhinos roamed the world in the early twentieth century. The Javan and Sumatran rhinoceros are highly endangered in Asia. There are only 58 to 68 Javan rhinos left on the planet.
A Javan rhino subspecies was declared extinct in 2011. There are only 80 Sumatran rhinos left today. The black rhinoceros is also on the verge of extinction. White rhinos are the largest of the five rhino species, with about 20,000 in the wild.
The large one-horned rhinoceros, sometimes referred to as the Indian rhinoceros, are increasing in numbers in India as a result of conservation initiatives. There are currently about 3,500 of these rhinos. However, they are still considered susceptible. So, while India’s rhino numbers are doing well, there is undoubtedly much more that needs to be saved.
read all breaking news, breaking news And coronavirus news Here
.