Page 40 - ELITE PLUS MAGAZINE VOL5
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A black rhinoceros after wallowing in mud in Ngorongoro Conservation Area.often take to the trees to escape the countless insects that live and feed on the wildebeest. So if you’re on game drives in the Serengeti, keep your eyes on the trees near the wildebeest herds.When lions make a kill, vultures will circle in the sky above or patiently wait in nearby trees for their turn to feed on the carcass. The presence of vultures is a good sign that lions are nearby.There are two species of rhinoceros in Africa: the black and white rhino. The difference is not in their colour but their size and the shapes of their mouths. The black rhino is also called the hook-lipped rhino because of its narrow mouth and prehensile upper lip that enables it to browse on leaves, fruits and twigs. It prefers dry bushy savannah and areas with plenty of water, as it drinks about 35 litres a day, though it can survive38 Elite+for two or three days without drinking. The black rhino enjoys a daily mud bath if possible.The black rhino is much smaller and lighter than the white rhino; a male weighs around 750-950kg and a female 780-1,000kg. Their number have declined drastically through poaching, resulting in its listing by the International Union on Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as a critically endangered species. The black rhino is therefore very difficult to spot, and the best place to find them is the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania.The white rhinoceros, with its square lips and wide mouth, likes to graze on short grass. It prefers open savannah with patches of short grass, water and thickets for cover. It drinks around 72 litres a day, but can go for two or three days without water.The white rhino is the world’s second largest land mammal after the elephant. A male weighs around 2,000- 3,000kg and a female 400-1,600kg.The white rhino numbered around 20,000 in 2008, with 98% of those in just five countries – South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Uganda. However, increased poaching threatened their survival, prompting the IUCN to classify them as a near-threatened species. Recent efforts by the east African and South African authorities to reintroduce white rhinos into their national parks have resulted in steadily increasing numbers.The white rhino can now be seen in sizeable numbers in Lake Nakuru National Park in Kenya and Kruger National Park and iSimangaliso Wetland Park (formerly Greater St Lucia Wetland Park) in South Africa.