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Rhino poaching driving Black Rhino and White Rhino to near extinction

white rhinos
white rhinos kenya

Located 160km north of Nairobi, Solio Reserve is the premier place in Africa to see black and white rhino in the wild, but these precious animals are at the heart of a bloody poaching battle. The previous night, armed rangers who patrol the park’s 48km-long electric fence saw three men with tools and guns try to enter the reserve – and the previous month they discovered poachers cutting a hole in the fence near where a pair of cheetah makes their den. On both occasions, the rangers won out, but it was an unsettling reminder that the battle for the survival of one of Africa’s most endangered species is far from won. The problem is so rampant in central Kenya, where breeders have made in-roads into breeding rhinos in captivity on private reserves, that during the monthly full moon cycle, when poachers are not reliant on torches or headlamps for light, the rhinos need to be protected 24 hours a day. Tragically, in 2012 Solio lost at least 12 out of around 220. “Solio represents the heartbeat of rhino conservation in Kenya,” said Felix Patton, the reserve’s rhino monitoring coordinator. “Because of that, the poaching pressure is ever present – so there is a need to bring in more income to sustain the rhinos’ security and habitat. More importantly, though, we need to change the poacher’s attitudes – because the real value of rhino horn is completely misunderstood.

Rhinos and Elephants - largest land animals - endangered

Rhinos and elephants: the secret lives of Africa's giants

Rhinos and elephants have a range of remarkable behaviours and adaptations, many of which we are only just learning. Emerging through the twilight, a beast lumbers forward, sniffing, snorting, searching for something. One of the largest animals to walk the earth, it is on a surprising mission. This black rhino is embarking on a midnight journey, seeking out other rhinos in the dark to socialise and mate with, sharing some never-before-seen tender moments.

 

Because despite their size, we are only just beginning to notice some remarkable behaviours and adaptations of elephants and rhinos. These two groups are the largest terrestrial animals. The three species of elephant range from 5.5 tonnes for an average male African bush elephant to 2.7 tonnes for female Asian elephants.

Rhinos, of which there are five species, can exceed 3.5 tonnes. Their size makes them relatively easy to spot and an easy target for poachers, who continue to hunt both groups of large mammal in significant numbers: elephants mainly for ivory in their tusks and rhinos for their horns. They have all been extensively studied by scientists, in the field and also in wildlife parks, breeding centres and zoos. But much about them, and what they get up to, remains a mystery, with many discoveries into their behaviour and adaptations only being made recently. We are still struggling to understand just how unique are different populations of these megafauna.

Big Cats - Mountain Lions, Panthers, Jaguars, Tigers and Cheetahs

Of the nearly forty feline, or cat, species, only one—the domestic cat—is believed to be secure. As undeveloped land becomes harder to find, large cats, such as lions, panthers, tigers, jaguars, and cheetahs, are left with less and less natural habitat in which to live.