Rhinos have existed for over 50 million years. In the past, there were many different kinds, including the largest land mammal that ever lived. One kind of rhino that was found in Britain was the Woolly Rhino. Bedford Museum’s object of the month for September is a Woolly Rhino’s lower jawbone that was found at Willington in Bedfordshire. It comes from the Pleistocene period, which dates from around 1.8 million to 10 000 years ago. This period is better known as the ‘Ice Age’. However, this name is somewhat misleading, as it included not only periods of intense cold, when Woolly Rhinos and Mammoths would have roamed the county but also warmer interglacial periods. During these warmer times creatures such as the Hippopotamus could be found. This jawbone was found during the extraction of gravel deposited during the Ice Age. These deposits frequently contain the remains of Pleistocene mammals.

The Woolly Rhino was very similar in appearance to modern rhinos both in its size and shape. It could grow to about 3.5m in length and in some animals the long front horn could be 6ft long, although 3ft was more usual. The animal's horn is not made of bone but is a solid mass of fused and matted hair. This means that horns are rarely found as fossils because they normally rot away. The Woolly Rhino used its horn as a defence against predators and to clear snow from vegetation upon which it fed. To resist the cold it was covered in shaggy hair and had a layer of insulating fat.

Frozen Woolly Rhinos have been found in the Ukraine and these give information on what the animal’s soft parts were like. Early humans hunted Woolly Rhinos and drew pictures of them on cave walls 30,000 years ago. These cave paintings also provide information about these animals, showing them with a pronounced shoulder hump and a down-turned head.

Today, five species of rhino survive; three in Asia and two in Africa. All five are on the verge of extinction and rank among the most endangered species on Earth. Poachers are exterminating the rhino because their horns are highly prized both for medicinal or ornamental purposes. Only 16,000 of these wonderful animals survive in the wild with another 1,000 in captivity. Of these, almost two thirds are of a single species - the White Rhino. There are fewer than 6,000 of the other four species combined. Unless drastic action is taken, four species of rhino could be extinct in the wild within the next 10 years.