# How Long Do Black Rhinoceroses Live?

> Wild black rhinos often live about 35–50 years; poaching truncates the average. Critically Endangered; IUCN 2020 increasing, still CR.

- **Species:** Black Rhinoceros (*Diceros bicornis*)
- **Conservation status:** Critically Endangered
- **Diet:** Herbivore — leaves, branches, and woody browse
- **Habitat:** Savannas, scrub, and dry woodland of eastern and southern Africa
- **Lifespan:** 35–50 years in the wild
- **Top speed:** Up to 55 km/h (34 mph) in charge
- **Canonical HTML:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/black-rhino/how-long-do-black-rhino-live/
- **Parent profile:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/black-rhino/
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-16

## Quick answer

The black rhinoceros is a large African rhino with a hooked upper lip for browsing shrubs, weighing 800–1,400 kg (1,750–3,100 lb) despite its name referring to soil colour, not hide. Critically endangered from poaching for horn, fewer than 6,500 remain across scattered eastern and southern African reserves.

## Who should skip this page

Skip this if you need a prognosis for one named animal. This page is a species lifespan range.

## Hooked lip browser

The prehensile pointed upper lip lets black rhinos strip leaves from thorny acacia and succulents that grass-eating white rhinos cannot exploit. They have poor eyesight but acute hearing and smell, charging threats they detect downwind.

## Help protect the Black Rhinoceros

Black rhinos are Critically Endangered — poaching for horn still wipes out animals in protected areas.

[Donate to stop rhino poaching](https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/appeals/rhinos/)

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Source: Global Animal Guide (https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/black-rhino/how-long-do-black-rhino-live/). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for non-commercial reuse with attribution.