Despite their names, black and white rhinos are not distinguished by color at all. Instead, the black rhino has a narrow, hooked mouth for browsing shrubs, while the white rhino has a broad, flat mouth perfect for grazing grass. The confusion began with the South African Dutch word "wijd" (meaning "wide"), which described the rhino's large jaw. English speakers mistranslated "wijd" as "white," and the mistake stuck, giving the animal a misleading name.
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