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February 11, 2012
Species Gallery

Rhino Range:
The Sumatran rhino exists in the foothills of the Himalayas in Bhutan, from Malaysia to Sumatra and throughout Burma, Thailand and Borneo.

Sumatran Rhinoceros
Dicerorhinus sumatrensis

Also known as the "hairy rhino," the Sumatran rhinoceros is possibly the most endangered of all the species. In the past 10 years, almost 50 percent of these rhinos have been lost to poaching. Now less than 300 survive in isolated pockets in Southeast Asia.

Besides being the only rhino with hair on its body, the Sumatran rhino is also the only two-horned species in Asia. It has rarely been seen because of the dense rainforest and moss forest where it lives. This rhino is considered a descendant of the prehistoric woolly rhinoceros, depicted in Stone Age cave drawings in Europe.

It is the smallest of today's rhinos, standing at not more than 5 feet. The larger horn can grow up to 31 inches. This rhino has reddish-brown skin and fringed ears. Socially, these animals will come together when breeding, and females with calves will stick together. Both males and females reach sexual maturity around the age of 7 and live to be about 32.

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Pictures: Eyewire/Getty Images | PhotoDisc/Getty Images | David Kohl/AP Photo | AP Photo/World Wildlife Fund, Mike Baltzer | San Diego Zoo/AP Photo |

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