National Geographic: The Rhino War Page #3

---

effort, and that is a major

plan to save the

rhinos in Kenya.

The problem of human beings

is everywhere.

We have found people who are

colluding with

criminal elements.

They have been prosecuted,

they have been imprisoned.

And I'm afraid that I cannot,

and I will not,

compromise with or collude

with people who are out to do

things that will

harm conservation and wildlife

in this country.

We cannot compromise with sin,

I'm afraid.

The sin is not always hard

to understand.

Within the poverty stricken

rural communities of Africa,

there is a powerful incentive

to poach

A family may be lucky to earn

$20 a month.

Each member of a

rhino poaching

gang may earn $100 or $200 per

raid a year's income.

Although the big money is made

by the middlemen, dealers,

and corrupt officials,

the pay is bountiful

by local standards.

One Kenyan who has fought

against poaching in a

very personal way

is Michael Werikhe.

Known throughout East Africa

as "the rhino man",

he has walked more than 1400

miles and raised over $60,000

on his crusade to

inform Africans of the threat to

the black rhino.

People are very hospitable,

very concerned about my welfare

not only my welfare alone,

but even that of my snake,

which is a very,

very strange thing.

Africans are very scared of snakes,

and to have people showing

so much concern

about an animal they fear so

much is a very touching thing.

Local people are just as

concerned about the wildlife

and about the environment

just like any other people.

And I think it is very important that

wildlife awareness should be

taken to the people,

for it's they who have the final say

and they are ready

to cooperate,

provided that they are given

the right information,

the right encouragement.

Even with the work of

dedicated men like Werikhe,

Kenya's war to save the wild

rhino has essentially been lost

Now, its best hope for

salvation may be the

fenced sanctuary.

Although critics view them

as glorified zoos,

they are far easier to manage

than the huge reserves.

In some cases, it is private

citizens who have taken up

the cause.

Solio Ranch, in the foothills

of Mount Kenya,

is owned by Courtland and

Claude Parfet

In 1970, using their own funds

they encircled 15,000 acres

with a high cost,

specially designed fence,

creating a haven for Africa's

embattled wildlife.

Over a ten year period,

they introduced 23 black rhino

and 16 whites.

Protected, the animals thrived

In less than 20 years,

the number of black rhino

had quadrupled.

Now Solio had a most unusual

problem overpopulation.

The Parfets gave 15 of

the black rhino

the Kenyan government's first

enclosed sanctuary,

at Nakuru National Park.

Transporting the animals to

their new new home is a

huge undertaking.

The selected rhino are located

from the air.

Okay, dart is in.

Keep it in sight.

It's running south.

A vet walks to within 40 feet

of the unsuspecting animal

before using his

tranquilizer gun.

A new, fast acting drug brings

the rhinoceros down in

minutes, but great care must be

taken to prevent it from

injuring itself.

A second injection of

antibiotics prevents

infections

in the dart gun wound.

Though unceremonious,

this rhino's

awakening is the next step

in his relocation.

The animals are kept in

holding pens

for about two weeks to

overcome the stress of capture.

Soon, though, this young bull

will be in stalled among the

tourists and flamingos of

Nakuru.

It has been a long and

difficult journey for him,

but it is here that he can do

the most to help save

his species.

Although the rhino may be well

protected in

fenced sanctuaries,

the situation creates

another problem-inbreeding.

Wildlife biologist Rob Brett

lives and works in Kenya

on a remote private reserve.

He is closely observing the animals

in an effort to find a solution.

Although rhino have been known

about, wondered at, admired,

hated for such a long period,

We know virtually nothing

about their breeding.

Such basic things as what

turns a rhino on,

what makes them breed at

optimum rates

It's crucial that we find out

as much about this sort of

behavior of rhino

in order to conserve them

under the new conditions

that exist.

Their favorite habitat is bush,

they are generally nocturnal,

they spend most of

the day asleep.

And, to observe the

nitty gritty of rhino

sexual behavior takes first

of all a lot of patience,

and a great deal of interest.

It's really ploying

the minimum of equipment

a mixture between very

low tech. If you like, work,

and very high tech.

I am out at dawn every morning

looking for individual rhino

from which to take data.

So well does Brett know this

subjects that he can identify

every rhino

on the reserve from the lines

and wrinkles of its footprint

He takes urine samples left

from each animal

to determine their hormonal

levels, identifying the

pregnant females and

dominant males.

While the black rhino is

extremely secretive about

its mating habits,

the white rhino, like these

on Solio Ranch,

are less inhibited.

This dominant male has

asserted his influence...

And now begins his courtship,

which may last for many days.

He approaches the female and

rests his head on her rump.

His interest may not be

initially returned.

But his persistence eventually

pays off and mating occurs,

sometimes lasting over an hour

Although rhinos are not

monogamous, the female usually

mates with the dominant male

in the area.

Afterwards, the pair

go their separate ways.

If impregnated, the female

will not give birth

for approximately

only one calf at a time.

A newborn rhino,

which weighs up to 120 pounds,

will stay close to its mother

until she has a new calf

for some two to four years.

The rhinoceros, slow to

reproduce and quick to die,

faces an uphill struggle.

In the wild, there are so few

left that some never find a

suitable mate.

In Kenya and elsewhere,

the fight becomes increasingly

grim and ever more complex.

It can be argued that the

numbers of rhino are very low,

but I think it would be

negligence on behalf of

the world

to just turn their backs

on this country now and say,

"All is lost.

There are only 400 rhino left,

they're not worth saving."

We have had long years of

experience with poaching,

which is what Zimbabwe's

having now armed poachers.

Zimbabwe's getting it

for the first time.

I wonder whether they're

actually gong to be able to

save their rhino

by just having armed patrols

and shootouts.

I know in Kenya that they're

fighting armed gangs there,

and there are

contacts taking place.

But we have, right from the

onset, taken on this task

as a war and not a

conservation exercise

purely and simply.

The situation bears a

more than passing resemblance

to full fledged

guerrilla combat...

It is a deadly serious mission

Glenn Tatham commands

Operation Stronghold

from a camp on the

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes