Rhino in Kruger Park

I have just come back from a short break in the Kruger Park. Once again an amazing experience - we stayed in the Park at Bergendal, a camp in the Southern part of the park. Apart from the scorching temperatures (45 degrees C on Thursday in the Lower Sabie area) we had some good sightings, including the most Rhino sightings I have ever seen.
This got me thinking what all the fuss was about - rhino's can't that scarce. So I did a little research and found that they are relocating rhino from other areas in the park to so-called "safe zones" in the southern end of the park and even to other parks where they can be protected.

The so-called "intensive protection zone" in the southern part of Kruger National Park took on new urgency when South Africa, home to 80% of the world's rhino, announced on Thursday that 1 020 rhino have been poached so far in 2014, exceeding last year's record of 1 004.

About two-thirds of the rhino poached this year died in Kruger. Poachers often dodge an overstretched force of 400 rangers as well as some military units that monitor the 350km between Kruger and Mozambique, and they shoot rhino just before sunset and scoot back to Mozambique under cover of night, according to rangers.

The protection zone encompasses about 5 000km², or at least one-quarter of the park, and is already home to many of Kruger's roughly 10 000 rhino — half the national population. Rhino were reintroduced in southern Kruger in the 1960s after poachers had wiped them out.

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It's drastic, but it seems a positive move and I hope it's a success. We cannot let these magnificent beasts go extinct.

How lucky for you to be able to see them.


So sad that we will probably lose them.

a reply to: chiefsmom

If the current slaughter continues, our grandchildren will only see their stuffed carcasses in museums. But South Africans are trying, we really are.
There are constant fund raisers and awareness campaigns going on - but it seems that poverty and greed will win out in the end.
There is literally an all-out war in the park between rangers, some who are being trained by special forces from around the world, and well armed poachers who essentially have nothing to lose anymore.

Why don't they microchip/tracker them.. and when the alert goes off that they are obviously being transported due to the speed they are travelling.. follow the signal and make the muther*****s pay for what they have done..
Do this a few times and I'm sure the poachers will get the message and turn their attention elsewhere for money/food

a reply to: Misterlondon

They slaughter the rhino and only take the horn(s). There have also been horrific cases where they found the rhino alive and suffering with their horns literally carved from their faces because they use tranquilizer guns to avoid being heard (no gunshot sound). And because they are so close to the border with Mozambique, they are gone before they can be caught. You must also remember that Kruger is a huge park with too few rangers to cover all of it.

The Kruger National Park is the largest game reserve in South Africa and one of the world's biggest wildlife sanctuaries. Approximately the same size as Israel or Wales, it covers 20,720 square kilometers.

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Besides, they want to catch the poachers before they kill the rhino.

a reply to: deltaalphanovember

The Bush is the ultimate. Going to Blyde River Canyon later this year, so hopefully we will have time for one of the local reserves.

a reply to: Misterlondon

Surely armed Drones can solve this at some point if manpower is the issue? A couple of Reapers monitoring the border lands stopping the criminals in their tracks?