Rhinos’ Epic Mud Bath at Kansas Wildlife Park Will Make Anyone Want a Spa Day
If you're looking for something to make you smile, this video of three rhinos rolling around in the mud will do it! Located in Kansas, the Tanganyika Wildlife Park is home to many very cool animals, including this family of rhinos. They shared a video of them enjoying a mud bath on Monday, February 19th and it will brighten your day!
The video starts with the three rhinos together in an inside enclosure. While there's not much mud to roll around in, they take turns doing it. Check out their big bellies! This video is so cute because I've never seen rhinos rolling in the mud that make it look like they're having fun!
In their caption, @Tanganyika says that rhino bellies might be "the cutest bellies of all the bellies" and I have to agree! I've never thought of rhinos as being 'cute' animals (with the exception of baby rhinos), but these guys are pretty adorable! Commenters thought so too. @Shellsy said, "Sooo tough yet so tenderly sweet" and @Lizzo added, "I wish I could smoosh its mouth and give it a lil kiss!" I'm not sure I want to kiss one of those rhinos but I would like to rub a belly!
Related: Baby Rhino Rolling Around in the Mud at Chester Zoo Is Making Everybody Smile
Why Rhinos Roll In the Mud
Although rhinos look like they probably have thick, tough skin, it's actually very sensitive. In order to protect them from sunburns (yes, they can get sunburned!) and insect bites, they roll around in the mud for an additional coat of protection from both. When it dries, it acts like sunblock and insect spray, and it works well!
There are a few other reasons rhinos love rolling in the mud. In the wild, they live in extreme heat, and a mud bath is a way to cool their skin down and keep it moisturized, as well as removing dead skin cells. It's like a spa day for them!
Because of the extreme heat and lack of water, maintaining existing mudholes, as well as creating new ones, when possible, it important to these animals.
Another way rhinos protect their skin is by befriending oxpeckers, an 8-inch-long bird with wide bills, stiff tails, and sharp claws. These guys eat ticks and other insects off of the rhinos back and in exchange, the rhinos let them hitch a ride, making it easier for them to find food on the ground. Oxpeckers actually have this symbiotic relationship with other animals too, like hippos, zebras, oxen, antelopes, and other hoofed animals.
And a fun fact about rhinos: A group of rhinos is called a 'crash'. Pretty fitting given their size, and because they can't see very well and often 'attack' rocks and trees that they think may be predators!
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