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Nesorhinus philippinensis, also known as the Philippine Rhinoceros, is a Pleistocene-aged species of rhinoceros endemic to the Philippine islands. Fossil remains were found in modern day Metro Manila and Kalinga. It is estimated to have weighed around or less than 800kg, or at least a bit larger than the still-extant Sumatran rhinoceros.

The species was first described by Gustav Heinrich Ralph von Koenigswald in 1956 based on fossil teeth that were excavated in Cagayan province of the Philippines in 1936. These bones were lost and he did not provide for a holotype.

In 2021, this species, along with "Rhinoceros sinensis" hayasakai, were transferred to the new genus Nesorhinus.

Nesorhinus philippinensis

Temporal range: Pleistocene

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Perissodactyla
Family: Rhinocerotidae
Genus: Nesorhinus
Species: N. philippinensis
Conservation Status
Extinct Status
Binomial name
Nesorhinus philippinensis

Von Koenigswald, 1956

Fort Bonifacio Fossil

A fossilized jaw of N. philippinensis was unearthed by Mr. de Asis on May 13, 1965 in the Fort Bonifacio area. The specimen was unearthed from an ash deposit produced by the volcano called the Guadalupe Formation. The specimen had a length of 12.07 centimeters (4.75 in), width of 6.87 centimeters (2.70 in), and a thickness of 9.47 centimeters (3.73 in). It has a weight of 800 grams (28 oz).

Kalinga Fossil

A 75-percent complete fossil of the N. philippinensis was unearthed in Rizal, Kalinga along with 57 stone tools in 2014. A 2018 study placed the date of the rhino fossil at around 709 thousand years old after the rhino's tooth enamel was subjected to electron spin resonance dating. The authors of the study found butchery marks on the bones of the ribs, metacarpals and both humeri suggesting that the rhino had been butchered by early humans or hominins. While no bones from any hominin were reported from the site, over 50 stone tools found in context with the rhinoceros provided direct evidence for human activities at the site.

Rhinoss

Some of the Nesorhinus Philippinensis bones retrieved from the Kalinga site (Photo from Ma. Teresa Montemayor)


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