|
|
|
|
| |
| Location: |
Africa |
| Subject: |
Distribution - Status |
| Species: |
African Rhino Species |
 |
|
Numbers of the two species of African rhinoceros, the black rhino Diceros bicorniis and the white rhino Ceratotherium simum continue to increase in the wild according to new estimates prepared by International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) African Rhino Specialist Group. There are now more rhino in Africa than at any time since the early to mid 1980s.
In 1999, African rhino numbers in the wild reached just over 13,000, up from 8300 in 1992. Most of the increase can be accounted for bv the rapid growth in the number of southern white rhino.
The balance between white and black rhino has shifted, with 79 per cent of African rhino in the wild in 1999 being white rhino, compared with 30 per cent in 1984. Black rhino numbers in the wild have increased from a low of around 2450 in 1992 to just over 2700 in 1999. Numbers of two of the six African subspecies remain low, however, with only 10 individuals of the western black rhino remaining scattered across northern Cameroon.
|
|
|
African rhino populations increase
File available
details
Original text on this topic: