In Kenya, wildlife authorities faced a challenge when a panic-stricken female rhinoceros, barely affected by a tranquilizer shot, bolted towards a wooded area, successfully evading a low-flying helicopter attempting to prevent her escape. The rhino was intended for transfer to another park in Kenya, but she outsmarted her human handlers.
Minutes later, rangers in 4×4 vehicles meticulously searched through thickets too dense for the crane truck that was meant to transport her. A swift decision was made to administer the antidote to the tranquilizer, preventing her from collapsing in a way that could lead to suffocation. Consequently, the young female will remain in her birthplace.
“The rhino is the worst one to translocate,” stated Taru Sheldrick, who was piloting the helicopter in Nakuru National Park in northwest Kenya, an expansive green oasis surrounding a deep blue lake. He elaborated, “When you dart them, if you don’t have long enough, they’re running straight for thick bush, which is their security.” Sheldrick added, “Whenever you’re darting a rhino, you have a little bit of fear. Because it’s a species in danger. Every animal is just so important.”
Rhinos, which can weigh up to two tonnes, were once abundant across sub-Saharan Africa. However, extensive hunting by European colonizers, followed by large-scale poaching, pushed their populations to the brink of extinction.
Race Against Time
The International Rhino Foundation (IRF) reports that there are approximately 28,000 rhinos left globally, with nearly 24,000 in Africa. Kenya is currently home to more than 2,000 of these majestic creatures.
According to the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), which manages the country’s national parks, rhinos exhibit less efficient reproduction if too many individuals inhabit the same location. Therefore, relocating them is crucial. However, rhinos are highly susceptible to tranquilizers, which can slow their breathing, elevate their body temperature, and affect their heart rate, as explained by Dominic Mijele from KWS.
This makes translocation a race against time. As soon as a veterinarian, operating from a helicopter, administers the drug via a dart gun, the clock starts ticking. Five to seven minutes post-injection, the rhino begins to show signs of grogginess. Subsequently, it collapses, as observed by an AFP correspondent during a recent visit: after the initial female retreated into the bush, three more black rhinos were successfully anesthetized within a few hours in Nakuru.
A dedicated rescue team arrived on-site within two minutes of each darting, operating with well-coordinated precision. Around a dozen caregivers immediately surrounded the sedated animals, cooling their body temperature with water, rolling them onto their sides to ensure unobstructed respiration, administering oxygen, and continuously monitoring their vital signs. Simultaneously, other rangers swiftly secured the animals with straps, threading them through a transport cage and attaching them to the front bumper of a jeep. Fifteen minutes after the rescue team’s arrival, the antidote was administered. The animal then jolted to its feet and was promptly guided into a transport cage, which a crane then loaded onto the flatbed of a truck.
‘Number One’ Expertise
Mijele proudly highlighted Kenya’s unparalleled expertise in this field. “We are number one in the world. We have done so many rhino translocations successfully,” he declared.
Jochen Zeitz, the owner of the private Segera Reserve, where approximately 20 rhinos have been relocated in the past two weeks, expressed his palpable relief after the latest operation. The former Puma CEO and current Harley-Davidson executive noted that his 200 square kilometers of land are home to elephants, buffalos, lions, leopards, cheetahs, and more. However, the reserve previously lacked “this iconic species,” which had been present in Segera up until 60 years ago but had since disappeared.
Welcoming the rhinos back is “completing the conservation work that we’ve done as a foundation over the last 22 years” since acquiring the land, he told AFP. Due to the high risk of poaching for their horns, security measures had to be significantly enhanced with the addition of 100-150 new security staff, Zeitz confirmed.
Later that day, a small group witnessed the release of the three rhinos from Nakuru, who had arrived in Segera after a six-hour journey. In the dense night darkness, they listened as the metal bars of the transport cages were removed, doors creaked open, and the heavy stomping accompanied by guttural growls resonated, signifying the rhinos’ arrival at their new home.
