Indian rhinoceros - Threats
Once killed as pests in tea plantations
The great reduction in the range of the Indian rhino has mainly been caused by the disappearance of alluvial plain grasslands.
HuntingHunting has also been an important factor in the species' historical decline. During the last century, rhinos were hunted for sport by both Europeans and Asians. Rhinos were also killed as agricultural pests in tea plantations.
By the early 1900s, the population was so far reduced that rhino hunting was prohibited in Assam, Bengal and Myanmar.
Illegal trade
A continuous threat is poaching for rhino horn for use in traditional Asian medicines. The horn is used primarily for the treatment of a variety of ailments ranging from epilepsy, fevers, and strokes. Asian rhino horn is believed to be more effective than African horn. Despite protection, rhino horn is still traded extensively throughout Asia.
Between 1986 and 1995, about 450 rhinos were poached in India and about 50 in Nepal. Manas National Park, India, has been occupied by local people since 1987 and rhino hunting within the Park has risen; some estimates suggest that more than 95% of the rhino population has been killed.
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Habitat loss and degradation
The need for land by the growing human population remains a major threat to the Indian rhino. Many of the protected areas with rhinos have now reached the limit of how many individuals they can support. This leads to rhino-human conflict as rhinos leave the boundaries of the protected area to forage around the surrounding villages. Rhinos, mainly females, reportedly kill several people each year in India and Nepal.
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