Sumatran Rhinoceros

Dicerorhinus (Greek: "two" (dio), "horn" (keratos), "nose" (rhinos)^[1]) is a genus of the family Rhinocerotidae, consisting of a single extant species, the two-horned Sumatran rhinoceros (D. sumatrensis), and several extinct species. The genus likely originated in the Mid to Late Pliocene of Northern Indochina and South China.^[2] Many species previously placed in this genus probably belong elsewhere.^[3]

Taxonomy

Historically, Dicerorhinus was a wastebasket taxon. Revisions by several authors over the years have removed many species:

Transferred to Stephanorhinus^[3]

• Dicerorhinus merckii
• Dicerorhinus hemitoechus
• Dicerorhinus etruscus
• Dicerorhinus yunchuchenensis
• Dicerorhinus jeanvireti
• Dicerorhinus choukoutienensis (synonym of Merck's rhinoceros)
• Dicerorhinus orientalis (synonym of Merck's rhinoceros)
• Dicerorhinus nipponicus^[4]

Transferred to Dihoplus^[3]

• Dicerorhinus megarhinus
• Dicerorhinus schleiermacheri
• Dicerorhinus ringstroemi

Transferred to Caementodon

• Dicerorhinus caucasicus^[5]

Transferred to Lartetotherium

• Dicerorhinus sansaniensis

Transferred to Rusingaceros

• Dicerorhinus leakeyi

Species provisionally considered valid include:

• †Dicerorhinus fusuiensis^[6][7] originally described as Rhinoceros fusuiensis^[8] Early Pleistocene, South China.
• †Dicerorhinus cixianensis Chen and Wu, 1976 Middle Miocene, known from one locality in Cixian County, Hebei Province, China, consisting of a single partial skull and juvenile mandible, notably small in size.^[3]
• †Dicerorhinus gwebinensis Zin-Maung-Maung-Thein et al., 2008 Known from a skull of Pliocene-Early Pleistocene age found in Myanmar.^[9] Some authors have considered the skull not distinguishable from that of D. sumatrensis.^[10]

References

• Groves, Colin P., and Fred Kurt (1972). "Dicerorhinus sumatrensis". Mammalian Species (21): 1–6.
• "A new species of Dicerorhinus (Rhinocerotidae) from the Plio-Pleistocene of Myanmar"