Black Rhino

The Ngorongoro Crater is by a clear margin the most reliable spot, with daily sightings on most well planned itineraries. The Moru Kopjes area in the central Serengeti also holds rhinos but viewing is more difficult. Legend Expeditions builds full crater days into our northern circuit safaris to maximise the chances of a clear rhino sighting.

Tanzania's black rhino population is small, in the low hundreds across all protected areas combined. This is up from the catastrophic low of the late 1990s, and the population is slowly growing thanks to intensive anti poaching protection. The exact numbers are kept confidential to protect the animals from poachers.

On a multi day safari that includes a full day in the Ngorongoro Crater, the chances of a clear rhino sighting are good, typically 70 to 80 percent. Sightings are usually at distance rather than close range due to protection protocols. Legend Expeditions cannot guarantee any single wildlife sighting, but our itineraries are designed to maximise your odds.

Black rhinos were poached at an unsustainable rate through the twentieth century, driven by demand for horn in traditional Asian medicine and as a status material. The species fell below 2,500 animals in 1995 and has only partially recovered. Tanzania's population is a direct beneficiary of targeted anti poaching work.

Black rhinos are browsers, not grazers. They use their hooked upper lip to strip leaves, twigs and small branches from acacia, euphorbia and other woody plants. This is the key behavioural and dietary difference from the white rhino, which grazes grass. It also explains why black rhinos prefer scrubby, bushy country.

Gram for gram, rhino horn has at times sold on illegal Asian markets for more than gold or cocaine, driven by demand for traditional medicine despite no scientific basis for its claimed effects. This pricing fuels the poaching crisis. The horn itself is made of keratin, the same protein as human hair and fingernails, and has no medical value.