The biggest threat that Greater one-horned rhinos face is human harassment and encroachment. For centuries, rhinos have been hunted for sport and for their horn. In the early 19th century, the Greater one-horned rhino was almost hunted to extinction. The remaining animals were only found in protected reserves, where, under the monitoring of certain organisations, populations are currently being brought back from the edge of extinction.

*Sociability: Greater one-horned rhinos are usually solitary, except for females with small calves. Males have loosely defined territories where they live alone, which they defend aggressively, and this may overlap with other territories. The territories change according to food availability in relation to the current season. The females can move in and out of these territories as they like. If food is abundant within an area, it is not unusual to see several animals all grazing close together.

*Male territory: male Greater one-horned rhinos fight violently for preferred habitual areas. The death of one male in one of these fights is not uncommon; it’s usually a few days later, due to wounds sustained during the fight

*Female territory: these tend to overlap with other territories, and also depend on the resources available in a particulararea

Kaziranga National Park Assam
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