10 Interesting Facts About India's One-Horned Rhino Found in Assam

Time of India

24-07-2025

India provides shelter to a variety of wild animals from tigers, lions to rhinoceros. The great one-horned rhinoceros is mainly found in Nepal, Bhutan, and in Assam in India. Kaziranga National Park in Assam provides home to more than a thousand one-horned rhinoceros.
By the early 20th century, only 200 Indian rhinos remained in the wild, but then dedicated conservation initiatives were taken to conserve this species.
Let's look at some interesting facts about the One-Horned Rhinoceros that will leave you awe-struck:
Rhino capital of the world
Kaziranga National Park in Assam is considered the capital of the world where this species is abundantly found. Over two-thirds of the global population of Indian rhinos is present here, which is more than the population of this species in the rest of India and Nepal combined.
Skin is like armour
This species has brownish-grey coloured skin and are hairless, with the skin looking as if plated like an armour. This skin gives them a unique appearance in comparison to other animals and also offers them protection. They also have a single horn on top of their snout and their upper lip is semi-prehensile. Their horn resembles the hooves of horses and is approximately 8.25 inches in length and weighs almost 3 kg. The horn also has the ability to regrow if it gets broken, as it is made up of keratin.
Love to stay in mud and water
These rhinos prefer semi-aquatic habitats and are commonly found in swamps, forests, and riversides. These locations are rich in nutritious minerals and as they have a prehensile upper lip, they have a preference towards cooler temperatures. They are also considered excellent swimmers and can even dive underwater for food.
Grass-loving species
Indian rhinos are mostly herbivores. They mostly feed on a diet composed of grasses along with leaves, shrub branches, fruits, and aquatic plants.
They have a preference for diverse plant species like submerged or floating aquatic plants as well as crops. They also use their swimming skills to find food in the water.
Breeding of one-horned rhinos
The female rhinos reach breeding maturity at 4 years of age, while the male species reaches sexual maturity at 9 years old. Rhinos can breed throughout the year, but birthing is spaced approximately 3–4 years apart. New-born calves weigh almost 58–70 kg and are dependent on their mother for a year and a half or more.
These calves gain 1–2 kg a day daily while consuming milk from their mother.
Heightened senses
The Indian one-horned rhinos have poor eyesight but have a heightened sense of smell and hearing, which compensates for their eyesight. Even though they are quite heavy in weight, they can sprint at 40–55 km/hr.
Nature of one-horned rhinos
This species mostly prefers being solitary and only stays in groups when the females raise calves or when they need to graze together for food.
Males do not have any particular territories and use scent marking with dung and urine. This species of rhinos mostly meets and greets each other by bobbing heads or nuzzling each other when they meet.
Use sounds to communicate
Rhinos are considered to growl and make funny noises to communicate. It is also said that they communicate through their poo and urine. Male rhinos grunt and growl when they want to show dominance, and squealing and trumpeting is used when they are excited.
They do not use sounds much and mostly rely on scents to communicate with each other.
Sleeping pattern
This species of rhinos can sleep while standing and lying down both. Most rhinos sleep in intervals for a total of 8 hours a day. They also sleep with their bodies submerged under the water with just their nostrils protruding out in shallow water.
Conservation
The one-horned rhino was given the status of endangered in 1986 by the IUCN and then was put under the vulnerable list in 2008. All species of rhinos are threatened by poaching and habitat loss. Some of their body parts are considered to have medicinal properties, which is why it has led to their overhunting. Conservation efforts revived their population from mere 200 individuals to over 3,500 by the mid-2010s.