There are two new brothers in the Bronx—two southern white rhinoceros brothers, that is! The bro hippos are ready for people to ooh and ahh over them at the Bronx Zoo.
According to the Wildlife Conservation Society, "The two rhinos are three-and-a-half-year-old brothers and weigh about 4000 pounds. They are not fully grown and could weigh over 7,000 pounds as adult bulls. They each consume about 50 pounds of hay and herbivore pellets a day. They were brought to the Bronx Zoo from The Wilds (Cumberland, Ohio) where they were born."
Other interesting rhino facts: "There are five species of rhinoceros in the world. White and black rhinos are native to Africa, while Sumatran, greater one-horned, and Javan rhinos are found in Asia. The Bronx Zoo exhibits two species; the southern white rhinos can be seen at Zoo Center, and the greater one-horned rhinoceros, Indian rhino, can be seen from the Wild Asia Monorail."
Photograph by Julie Larsen Maher
Rhinos are poached for their horns, and while white rhinos are not yet endangered (the other four species are), the threat illegal poaching is an ongoing concern.
