The Traveller's Magazine
One hundred South African rhinos will be boarding flights to Botswana in 2015 in an effort to avoid poaching, all thanks to Rhinos Without Borders.
South African rhinos are having a really tough time. In 2013 alone, over 1,000 rhinos were poached in South Africa, quite a high number when you consider there are only 5,000 black rhinos left in all of Africa. Rhinos Without Borders have come up with a clever way to save the creatures, which will see a hundred of them board a flight to Botswana, one of the countries with the lowest poaching rate in Africa.
The rhinos are mainly donated from private sellers and the South African government. Botswana was the chosen destination as the government has a no-tolerance rule when it comes to poachers and the country is far more remote and less populous. Also, the rewards for rhino tusks are very low compared to the South African black market.
Once the rhinos recover in quarantine for 6 weeks they’ll be moved to a secret location in the interior of the country, away from the borders, where they will then begin to establish their new territory.
- Planning a safari adventure to see some rhinos? Here’s what to pack!
