Indian One-Horned Rhino Update

Another visit to Dudhwa National Park was planned as part of my April 2026 visit to Northern India. It meant an additional seven hour drive from New Delhi.

In my two year absence there had been several developments. A few rhino had been released from the conservation area into the public area via a pre-release transition area established with several rhino.

I had been told that a female and calf had been released and that there had been regular sightings.

The first day was spent exploring all the areas to see where I might have the best chance to see the mother and calf.

Two large pools were located where the rhino had been seen in the water.

Initially several sightings of solo rhino were made but tended to be fairly distant, occasionally some in pairs. Rhinos are very difficult to spot due to the termite mounds that are often mistaken for rhino.

My driver and guide were keen to show me more animals and birds, especially tigers, but I explained that the one-horned rhino was my main target for this trip to Dudhwa.

There was however a surprise encounter while watching the mother and calf at some distance, a tiger casually appeared from behind our vehicle and strolled across the road and into the open grassland. It initially showed a lot of interest in the rhino but later moved off into the long grass and disappeared. Well, that was a surprise and totally unexpected. Perhaps that is the technique I should adopt, don't go out looking for tigers and they will find you!

Towards the end of the second day I went to one of the secluded waterholes and was greeted by the mother and calf bathing in the water. The calf was quite adventurous and swam around the mother, played at the water edge and fed on some grass. I noticed it often went to the tail area of the mother and discovered later that it was suckling milk.

At one stage the mother did a 360º roll in the water followed by the calf doing the same. After about 30 mins, on our own, watching and photographing we left them in peace to enjoy their swim.

The next morning we were greeted by the mother and calf in a different waterhole on the edge of the swamplands. They were very calm and didn't let my presence disturb them. They were often fully immersed in the water with just the ears showing and reflecting in the calm water. Occasionally they would blow bubbles from the mouth and sometimes from the other end! Eventually bathing time was over and the mother climbed out onto the grass bank followed by the calf. The calf took the opportunity to suckle some milk before they both moved off into the long grass.

Another wonderful encounter and a successful trip to Dudhwa National Park, Uttar Pradesh.