September 22
World Rhino Day
World Rhino Day is celebrated on September 22 every year. The day provides an opportunity for businesses, government and non-governmental organizations, zoos and the public to celebrate these endangered creatures in their own unique way.
It all started with an email. In mid-2011, Lisa Jane Campbell from Chishakwe Ranch in Zimbabwe was planning World Rhino Day. She found Rhishj's blog while searching for ideas and potential collaborators online. Lisa Jane sent Rhishj an email, and they both realized they shared the goal of making World Rhino Day a day of celebration for all five rhino species. In the following months, they worked together to make World Rhino Day 2011 an international success both online and offline. Since then, World Rhino Day has become a global phenomenon, bringing together NGOs, zoos, related organizations, businesses, and individuals from almost all corners of the world.
Rhinoceroses are one of the living families of the order Perissodactyla. Currently, we know 56 living species in four genera. All rhino species are endangered.
Rhinos are illegally hunted for their horns in many countries. Crushed horn, or rhino horn powder, is used in some traditional medicines and aphrodisiacs, such as in traditional Chinese medicine. However, China has officially committed to nature conservation according to CITES. In other countries, rhino horns are carved into handles for traditional knives and daggers. While the necessity of hunting rhinos is universally rejected as outdated and barbaric, popular practices still pose a threat to them.
