More fully named White rhinoceros. The scientific name is Ceratotherium simum, meaning horn (cerato) wild beast (therium) flat nosed (simum). There are two sub-species: Ceratotherium simum simum (southern white rhinoceros) and Ceratotherium simum cottoni (northern white rhinoceros). They live in the savannahs of Southern and Central Africa.
The southern white rhinoceros is listed as a conservation dependent species, having fewer than 9,000 living in the wild. This is up from an estimated +/-50 at the beginning of the century. They are now the most abundant type of rhinoceros.
The northern white rhinoceros is worse off; fewer than 30 remain in the wild, all of them in the Garamba National Park, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. They are the most endangered type of rhino.
Both species are dark grey, only slightly lighter than the Black rhino. It's name comes from the Africaans word weit, meaning 'wide'. The white rhinos mouth is wider than the black rhino's (The black rhinoceros's lips come to a point, the white's are more square).
White rhinos are also the largest of all rhinos, weighing about 1,800-2,700 kg (4,000-6,000 lb.). They're about 1.5-1.8 meters (5-6 ft.) tall at the shoulder.
The white rhino is more hunted than the black because it has bigger horns (94-102 cm for the northern, 94-201 cm for southern; 50-80 for the black rhino). The horns are used for knife handles, and a poacher may get $20 a rhino, while the knife may sell for thousands. (The white rhino has two horns).