Green House

 

Rhinos are among Earth’s largest land mammals. A male white rhino can weigh 5,000 pounds. Rhinos have thick, heavy bodies and relatively short legs, but they can run 30 MPH; faster than the fastest humans. Rhinoceros comes from the Greek word rhinokerōs, meaning “nose horn.” The “horn” is actually made of keratin, not bone. So, it’s like each rhino has a huge, pointy fingernail growing on its snout. This week I learned about two UK zoos, Woburn Safari Park and West Midlands Safari Park, who traded rhinos. Granville, a captive-born male, went to Bedfordshire, while Bonnie, a 2-ton female headed to West Midlands. Bonnie has a sister in West Midlands, though the two had never met before the trade. The swap was to provide Woburn Safari Park with a healthy young male to help preserve the genetic diversity of the species. Which brings me to another fun rhino fact: the collective noun for rhino is “crash.”