Zoo database

Black rhinoceros

Diceros bicornis

Natural diet Black rhinoceros

Herbs
Leaves

Black rhinos are herbivorous browsers that consume mainly leaves, twigs and branches. In general, consumption of grasses is low but occasionally it is consumed. By consuming woody plants, the black rhino benefits other grazers because it results in increased growth of grasses.

Feeding advice Black rhinoceros

Feed quantity per day

1.5% of body weight

Sample percentage calculation

If an animal weighs 1200 kg and eats 1.5% of its body weight, it will get

1200 x 0.015 = 18 kg feed in total per day

Feed composition

10% Concentrates
90% Browse

Proportions (fresh product)

0.1 x 18 kg = 1800 g concentrates
0.9 x 18 kg = 16200 g browse

Diet suggestions

In moderation

Hay

Not recommended

Vegetables
Fruits
Iron rich products

Additional advice

Divide the “Feed quantity per day” over at least two feeding moments per day.
Black rhinos are sensitive to iron, therefore iron rich products should be avoided (read more about nutritional values of (wild) fruits and vegetables).
Supplement the diet with ad libitum browse. If not available, supplement with lucerne hay (read more about browsers and grazers).
The browse used in the diet can be a mixture between dried and fresh browse.
It is not recommended to feed the rhinos from the ground since they might ingest sand which increases the risk of colic.
Hang or hide the feed (not in sand) to reduce the risk of colic and increase foraging behaviour (read more about feed enrichment and foraging behaviour).

Common diseases

An unbalanced diet may result in one of these more commonly occurring diseases/conditions:

Gastrointestinal torsion and impaction
Iron storage disease
Skin and foot lesions
Laminitis
Colic

Feed quantity per day

Sample percentage calculation

Feed composition

Proportions (fresh product)

Boskos Browser 10 mm

Natural Browser - 10 mm

KNZ liksteen paard

Michiel Derks

Director Petfood & Zoos