Study Traces One-Horned Rhino’s Migration to Northeast India During Late Holocene

A scientific study has found that the Indian one-horned rhinoceros migrated from western and northern India to the Northeast during the late Holocene period due to climate changes and increased human activity. Researchers studied palaeoecological evidence from Kaziranga National Park, revealing how climate, vegetation shifts, invasive species, and herbivore pressure shaped its ecosystem over the past 3,300 years.

Published in the international journal CATENA, the study highlights that the rhinoceros once had a much wider distribution across the Indian subcontinent, including parts of present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan. Scientists said the findings provide a long-term ecological framework to guide conservation and climate-adaptive wildlife management policies.