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From: gselias@phoenix.Princeton.EDU (Skaff Elias)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Backward Locomotion in Large Land Animals
Keywords: rhinoceros, backward
Message-ID: <4045@idunno.Princeton.EDU>
Date: 13 Nov 90 20:17:00 GMT
Sender: news@idunno.Princeton.EDU
Organization: Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey
Lines: 17

I know very little about the anatomy and means of locomotion of 
large land animals.  My question is: Can a rhinoceros walk backward?
And if so, does it require training to do so? (I'm under the impression
that it is impossible to train a rhinoceros to do anything.)  So, can
a trainable animal like an elephant walk backwards. (i.e. Is one
physically able to?) I think that elephants have a significantly
different method of walking than rhinoceri.  It seems to me that it
would be hard or impossible for a crocodillian or a long tailed lizard
to walk backward, but horses can be made to back up.  So although I
specifically want to know about the rhinoceros, my full question is:
which animals are able to walk backward, and what about their anatomy
or style of locomotion allows them to do so?

Skaff