African Parks, a conservation non-governmental organisation that manages 22 protected areas in partnership with 12 governments across Africa, has acquired the world's largest private captive rhinoceros breeding operation, Platinum Rhino, a 7,800-hectare property in the North West province of South Africa.
The facility presently holds 2,000 southern white rhinos, representing up to 15 percent of the world's remaining wild population.
African Parks said that it will reintroduce the southern white rhinos to well-managed and protected habitats over the next 10 years, establishing or augmenting strategic populations and therefore securing the future of the species.
Once all rhinos are released into the wild, the breeding programme will be tapered out and the project will conclude.
“The scale of this undertaking is simply enormous, and therefore daunting. However, it is equally one of the most exciting and globally strategic conservation opportunities,” said the NGO’s chief executive, Peter Fearnhead.
“We will be working with multiple governments, funding partners, and conservation organisations, who are committed to making this rewilding vision a reality.”
Platinum Rhino was put up for sale late in April, due to financial strain, but no bids were received, putting the rhinos in grave danger of poaching and fragmentation.
Numerous concerned individuals from the conservation sector reached out to African Parks for assistance in preventing a potential conservation crisis and securing the future of a declining species.
African Parks agreed to purchase the farm and all 2,000 rhinos after completing extensive due diligence, receiving the support of the South African government, and securing emergency money to make the deal happen.
Poaching poses a significant threat to the white rhinos population, particularly in South Africa. Historically, there were two subspecies of rhinoceros: the southern white and the northern white.
With only two non-breeding females in captivity in Kenya, the northern white is effectively extinct.
In the 1930s, the southern white rhino population fell to a record low of 30 to 40 individuals, but by 2012, it had rebounded to almost 20,000 individuals due to excellent conservation efforts.
Nevertheless, as a result of the tremendous increase in poaching for their horns for the illicit wildlife trade, their population is now below 13,000.
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