Are some animals so ugly that they are beautiful? Two animals that I saw at the Toronto Zoo last June fall in that category for me.

Here we have an Indian rhinoceros. These beasts are huge and weigh on average about two tons. Their thick body armor and gray color also do not make you think about beauty. They have a misshapen skull and large folds of skin. However, they still have their own beauty. Maybe it is more of a presence. They look so majestic standing there. Nothing can touch them.

In this closeup picture we can see the single horn of the Indian Rhinoceros. The scientific name of the Indian Rhinoceros is Rhinoceros unicornis. Yes, you read that right. The Indian Rhinoceros is a unicorn. When you think of unicorns you think of light colored horses with a single horn growing out of their forehead. The Indian Rhinoceros is the exact opposite :-).

Just down the path from the Indian Rhinoceros I ran into another ugly beauty.

Here we have a red river hog or Potamochoerus porcus. The red river hog is not from the Red River region in the US, but from the Congo River region of Africa. They live in the rain forest or heavy forested and bush areas of western and central Africa.

The red river hog has a brightly colored red coat. To me, the coat is beautiful, but then you see the dark snout, stubby tusks and the bushy hair that give this beast an odd look. Although, I shouldn’t be talking too much about bushy white hair with my beard the way it is at the present :-). I think for this little beast it all depends on what angle you are looking at it. Unfortunately, I don’t have pictures from a couple more angles. Some angles are more flattering than others :-).

I hope you enjoyed these two ugly beauties.

Steven