Rhino Charges a Safari Van and Causes The Vehicle To Flip Over

Key Points

• A truck on safari alerts the van of tourists to some rhinos coming up. 
• They are excited to see the rhinos and start taking pictures and vocalizing their excitement over seeing the rhinos.
• The rhinos took this as a threat and started to run toward the safari group.

A safari has a van full of tourists that are looking to capture pictures and videos of the animals they see as they drive along. The safari is being led by a truck and a guy on a motorbike that will be the look-outs for the animals they come across. The truck alerts the van of tourists to some rhinos coming up. 

At first, they are excited to see the rhinos, and the tourists start to take pictures and vocalize their excitement over seeing the rhinos. But it does not take long before that excitement wears off. 

The video below shows that the rhinos took this as a threat and started to run toward the safari group. The truck in front of the safari van immediately becomes concerned for the motorcyclist. The truck occupants start to wave the motorcyclist to get him to get away from the impending doom. They know it will be deadly if the rhino hits the motorcyclist because he has no protection. 

Watch the Video Below!

One rhino takes the lead and charges toward the safari at full speed, the second rhino remains behind as backup. He is ready to intervene at any moment. The lead rhino does not hesitate in his action and charges into the van. The van is no match for the full brunt force of a rhino. 

The van tips over into the ditch, with the tourists spilling out. The charging rhino runs past the van and carries on his way. His work is complete; the safari of invading onlookers has stopped. 

Do Rhinos Live in Herds?

Rhinos are solitary creatures that prefer to live life by themselves, unlike other animals that live in herds, such as elephants, wildebeests, or reindeer. 

Rhinos have a small population that has put their conservation status as endangered. There are approximately 26,272 rhinos left. And, of course, that number fluctuates as time goes on. 

While most rhinos do not live in herds, you may see the white rhinoceros live in small herds. Which oddly enough, the white rhino is actually the largest rhino in the world! 

What is the Largest Rhino Species?

The white rhino is considered to be the largest species of rhino. These rhinos are native to Africa. These large animals can reach up to 1,440 – 3,600 kilograms (3,168 – 7,920 pounds). 

These rhinos are large even at birth. It was reported that at the San Diego Zoo, a baby rhino that was born just 19 days later weighed a whopping 87 kilograms (193 pounds.) Fully surpassing that of a fully grown human male!

Their diet consists of food such as grass, fruit, berries, and leaves. Even with this significantly large weight, they are known to run up to speeds of 30 miles per hour!

The white rhino is listed among the largest land animals on the planet. They are listed among other large animals, such as the African elephant, Asian elephant, and African forest elephant.

How Strong Are Rhinos?

A rhino is one of the largest land mammals to roam the animal kingdom. Their large presence of tough skin, sharp horns, and bulky figures make them animals that other animals (and even humans) don’t want to mess with. 

A rhino can weigh upwards of three tons. Even with that weight, rhinos are known for the ability to run over 30mph. Presenting an absolute challenge for animals and humans to escape the wrath of a charging rhino. 

What Do Rhinos Do When They Feel Threatened?

Although humans are minuscule in the eyes of a rhino in terms of their size, they pose a real threat to the rhino for some reason. Their whopping 6,000 lbs allow them to destroy anything in their path. Knocking a car over or taking on a lion takes no effort on the part of this massive mammal. There is no second-guessing or second chances with a rhino who feels threatened. When a rhino “sees red,” it will charge with no mercy. 

It is important to note that a rhino’s nature is not to be aggressive, as odd as that may seem to us after watching the video below. Rhinos prefer to be left alone to roam and eat as they please in peace. However, when they feel threatened, they do not hesitate to react with severe animosity toward the animal or human that is threatening them.

Is It Normal For a Rhino To Charge?

Rhinos do not have the best eyesight, in fact, it is rather poor and although they have excellent hearing and a sense of smell, this lack of vision is what is believed to cause them to charge at many objects. It is also why it is believed they charge for no reason at all. When a rhino catches the scent of a human or even anything else that may be unfamiliar to them, they are likely to charge. Due to this poor vision, the object of their charging may be rocks, trees, or in this case, a vehicle, which they perceive as a threat.

Rhinos are said to be nearsighted and their vision does not extend further than 90 feet and they will do one of two things – either run away from a threat or charge it. When they decide to charge, they always follow through. Black rhinos are more apt to charge, as they are more aggressive, and while it may be unusual to see the white rhino charge, as witnessed below, they are more than capable of this behavior as well.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © vallefrias/Shutterstock.com

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