Magazine Autumn 2009

These are a few of my favourite things...

Da

na

al

le

nS

av

e T

he

Rh

ino

Sa

ve

Th

e R

hin

o

3. Theseareafewofmyfavouritethings

Eventsschedule2009-10

4. Waterfiltersenhancerhinoprotection:Indonesia

4-5. Asianrhinosaspeciality:Asia

5. Ultrasonography–theultimatetoolforSumatranrhinos:Indonesia

6-7. LondonMarathon2009–Ohsuchaperfectday!

8. Youhaveafriendrequest–SavetheRhinoInternational

9. Theworkhorseoftheskies:Zimbabwe

10-11. Smallthings–bigdifference:SouthAfrica

11. RhinoTrekSouthAfrica2010

RhinoClimbKilimanjaro

12. Lipstick,hula-hoopsandametal-detector:Africa

13. Commandcentre:Namibia

14. “What?You’regoingtocycle350kacrossDamaraland…

butwhywouldyoudothat?”:Namibia

15. Acaravaninthedesert:Namibia

TheSeventhDouglasAdamsMemorialLecture

16-17. Hornucopia

18. Saycheese:Zambia

19. TheQuizzogsRhinoHeroChallenge

20-21. Education,education,education:Kenya/Tanzania/Zambia

22. TheflyingFoxbat:Kenya

23. It’sallinthepoo:Kenya

24-25. Toolsofthetrade:Kenya

25. LastChancetoSeewithStephenFryandMarkCarwardine

26-27. Oh,givemeland,lotsoflandunderstarryskiesabove,

do[n’t]fencemein:Tanzania

27. Newsinbrief

28. Getyourownfavouritepieceofequipment…

29. Aweddingwithanunusualtwist

30. Coveryourtracks

31. Thankyou

Conte

nts

Fio

na

Ma

Cl

eo

D

Sa

ve

Th

e R

hin

o

Ca

Th

Y D

ea

nl

aU

Re

nC

e S

MiT

h

RiC

ha

RD

Ke

YS

eR

ST

ep

he

n F

RY

Events Schedule:

Last Chance to See with Stephen Fry and Mark Carwardine Tuesday27October2009ING New York City Marathon Sunday1November2009Hornucopia: Save the Rhino’s 15th birthday auction November20093 Peaks 3 Weeks Challenge Africa January2010Douglas Adams Memorial Lecture: Marcus du Sautoy Thursday11March2010Virgin London Marathon Sunday25April2010Rhino Mayday Wednesday5May2010Comrades Marathon Sunday30May2010Rhino Trek South Africa 21-28August2010Go-karting (Datetbc)Rhino Climb Kilimanjaro Datestosuit

Formoreinformationaboutanyofthese,pleaseemail events@savetherhino.org

oralternativelycall + 44 (0)20 7357 7474.

RhinoMonitorfortheLowveldRhinoTrust

inZimbabwe,whoreceivedoneofthe

DisneyConservationHeroAwardsin

2009.Jacksonandtherestofhisteam

doadifficultjob,andhaveseenthewrong

endofAK47s.

And,butthisisgoingtosoundverytwee,

thereareyou,oursupporters.Overthe

15yearsthatwe’vebeeninexistence,

wecouldn’thaveachievedallthatwe

dowithoutyourhelp.WhenIthinkof

allthemarathonmilesinrhinocostume

thathavebeenrun,allthebeersdrunk

atourparties,alltheridiculousswimming

/climbing/cyclingchallengesthat

peoplehavedoneinourname,and

alltheproposalswe’veworkedon

together,Iamtrulyimpressed.It’s

beenajointeffort.

Iwasthinkingaboutmyfavourite

thingsintherhinoworld.Thereare

therhinosthemselves.Whocouldn’t

resistthesight–andsound–ofa

babyblackrhinocalfsqueakingforits

mother,aswesawandheardatChester

ZooinAugust,onourannualstaffouting?

Waybackin2001,inmysecondmonth

atSavetheRhino,Ihadameetingat

PortLympne,whenIfirstexperiencedthe

joyofscratchingarhinobehinditsears,

andseeingitsbacklegsbuckleinecstasy.

I’vestillseenfewerthan50blackrhinos

Iguessinthefield,buteveryonehasbeen

atreat.

Therearethepeopleweworkwithin

thefield.Theyaretrulyamazing,andit’s

ajoywhentheygettherecognitionthey

deserve,asdidJacksonKamwi,Senior

“Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens”. OK, this is a particularly nauseating song, but it did inspire us to ask the managers of the field programmes we work with to tell us about a few of their favourite things. As you’ll read in this issue of The Horn, it’s quite a mix.

Bring on the next 15 years, and let’s

hope those rhinos are off the Critically

Endangered list by then.

3

These are a few of my fa-vour-ite things

CATHYD

EAN

Cathy Dean Director

Over the 15 years that we’ve been in existence, we couldn’t have achieved all that we do without your help.

ThisblackrhinoatChesterZoohadusallentranced

Indonesia:

MynameisSugondoandI

havebeenamemberof

theWayKambasRhino

ProtectionUnit(RPU)for

tenyears.IliveinalocalvillagenearWay

KambasNationalParkandwasrecruited

tojointheRPUthroughaspecialselection

andtrainingprocess.OurRPUconsists

offourpeopleandwespend20dayseach

monthonpatrolintheforest.Whenwe

areonpatrol,wemakecampintheforest

eachnight,neartheriver,andmakerice

andcoffeeorteafordinner.Wehaveto

TheAsianRhinoSpecialist

Group(AsRSG)isoneofthe

SpecialistGroupsoperating

undertheSpeciesSurvival

Commission(SSC)oftheInternational

UnionfortheConservationofNature

(IUCN).TheIUCN’sSSCisascience-based

networkofsome7,500volunteerexperts

fromalmosteverycountryoftheworld,

allworkingtogethertowardsachievingthe

visionof“Aworldthatvaluesand

conservespresentlevelsofbiodiversity.”

Sugondo and Sectionov (Inov)RhinoProtectionUnitprogramme,WayKambasNationalPark

Dr Bibhab Kumar TalukdarChair-IUCNSSCAsianRhinoSpecialistGroup,SecretaryGeneral-Aaranyak,AsianRhinoCoordinator-InternationalRhinoFoundation

Water filters enhance rhino protection

- the ultimate tool for Sumatran rhinos

5

The Rhino Protection Unit (RPU) programme was initiated in Indonesia in response to the catastrophic decline in Sumatran rhino numbers. It works to strengthen the protection and management of the National Parks. RPUs exist in Bukit Barisan Selatan and Way Kambas National Parks in Sumatra, and Ujung Kulon National Park in Java.

OurthanksinturntotheMarkLeonard

Trust,whichgaveusagrantofjustover

£1,000,tobuywaterfiltersfortheRPUs.

ThisfollowedavisitbyTrusteeMark

SainsburytoIndonesia,whenhemetand

talkedwithmembersofthepatrolteams.

OurthanksalsotoPeterBernstorffof

VestergaardFransen,whichmakesthe

Life-Strawsystemwepurchased,for

makingthekitsavailableataspecialrate.

WewouldalsoliketothankChesterZoo,

whichgaveusagrantof£4,191forongoing

runningcosts(salariesetc)oftheRhino

ProtectionUnitprogrammeinSumatra.

We’redeeplygratefulfortheir

ongoingsupport.

Thanks!

4

Mostmembersaredeployedinmore

than100TaskForcesorSpecialistGroups

suchastheAsianRhinoSpecialistGroup,

whichaddressesAsianrhinoconservation

andrelatedtopicalissues,suchthe

reintroductionofspeciesintoformer

habitatsoranimalhealth.Members

include:researchers;governmentofficials;

wildlifeveterinarians;zooandbotanical

instituteemployees;protectedarea

managers;expertsonAsianrhinos;and

internationalNGOs.

Amongst other things, the AsRSG

aims to:

• ReviewthestatusandtrendsofAsian

rhinopopulationsinthewildand

captivityaswellascollateinformation

onpoaching

• Facilitateinformationexchangeand

collaborationbetweenrangestate

members,othermembersandinvited

delegates

• Providetechnicalinformationonthe

managementofrhinos,andfacilitate

cooperationonconservation-related

researchonAsianrhinosthroughthe

presentationofpapers

• Useworkinggroupsatthemeetingto

providetechnicalsupporttofacilitate

decision-makingandthedevelopment

andimplementationofappropriate

rhinopolicies,andtoadviceonthe

implicationsofvariouspolicyoptions

• Provideaforumforfeedback

fromdonoragenciestorhino

conservationistsinthefield

SincemyappointmentasChairinJune

2008,Ihavestartedtodevelopeven

greatercooperationbetweentheAsian

usewaterfromtherivertodrinkand

cook,becausecarryingwaterwithus

wouldbetoohardandtooexpensive.

InIndonesiawehavearainyseasonand

adryseason.Duringtherainyseason,

wecanfindfresh,cleanwatertodrink,

butduringthedryseason,itisveryhard

tofindfreshwater.Thewaterwehaveto

useduringthedryseasonisoftenmuddy

andpolluted,butwehavenochoice–we

havetousethatwater.Everydryseason,

atleastoneortwomembersoftheRPU

becomesickfromdrinkingthedirtywater,

andmisspatroldays.Thisisbadforus,

andbadfortherhinos!

InMarch2009,SavetheRhinodonated

20waterpurifierstoourSumatran

RPUs.Eachunitnowcarriesawater

purifierwiththemonpatrol.Theyare

verypracticalandeasytooperate.Now

wecaneasilyturnmuddy,pollutedwater

intocleanwaterthatissafetodrink,and

wedon’tgetsickanymore.Havingthe

waterpurifiersalsomeanswedon’thave

tospendasmuchtimelookingforfresh

waterandcanspendmoretimedoing

surveysandpatrols.

Thank you, Save the Rhino!

IMAGES:R

HIN

OP

ROTECTIO

NU

NIT

PRO

GRAM

ME

IMAGES:S

UM

ATRANR

HIN

OS

ANCTUARY

Drs Robin W. Radcliffe, Dedi Candra, and AndriansyahSumatranRhinoSanctuary

Deep inside Way Kambas National Park, Indonesia, in a fenced sanctuary encompassing 100 hectares of natural rainforest, live five of the last Sumatran rhinoceros on earth. Just ten of these primitive hairy rhinos are held in captive facilities worldwide, making the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS) holder of half the extant captive population.

ThegoaloftheSRSistomanage

itscaptiverhinostohelp

augmentwildpopulationsthat

remainthreatened.Theanimals

arepartofaglobalmanagedbreeding

programmeforthespecies,withhopes

ofaddingnumbersthroughreproduction

andnewscientificknowledgethatwill

enhanceourunderstandingoftheserare

andsecretiveforestrhinos.Andalas,a

newherdbull,arrivedattheSanctuary

inearly2007andbroughtwithhima

revivalofhopeforthesanctuarybreeding

programmeasthecentre’snewest

breeder.Heisnowmeetingthefemales

onadailybasisandhasalreadybeen

introducedtohisfuturemates.

Makingthedecisiononwhentoputthe

rhinostogetherattherighttimecanbea

challenge,especiallyforaspecieslikethe

Sumatranrhinothatislargelysolitaryin

thewildandwouldnotnormallyassociate

withanotheradultuntilthefemaleisnear

oestrousandreceptive.Drs.DediCandra

andAndriansyahworktogetherwiththe

rhinokeeperstoultrasoundeachfemale

onaregularbasistolearnabouteach

female’sreproductivecycle.

Ultrasoundisnowapracticalpieceofthe

rhinoveterinarian’smedicalequipment

arsenalandallowsonetoplanthemale

andfemalerhinomixingsbasedon

thesizeofthefemale’sfollicle(which

containsthematuringegg).Workdone

attheCincinnatiZoohashelpedguide

effortstointroducerhinosatthemost

opportunetime.Ofcourse,ifafemale

doesbecomepregnant,theultrasoundwill

alsohelpmaketheexcitingdiagnosisby

allowingthedoctorstodirectlyvisualize

thefoetus.Partoftheeffortisbasedon

soundscience–theultrasoundallows

onetocarefullymeasureandrecord

thedailychangesineachrhinofemale’s

developingfollicle.Andanotherpartis

basedonsoundmanagement–following

behaviouralcluestohelpguidethemost

opportunemomenttoopenthegatethat

separatesthemaleandfemalerhinoceros.

AgreatdealofhoperestsonAndalas

asafuturebreedinganimalfortheWay

KambasRhinoSanctuary,andwiththe

helpofultrasoundwemayonedaysoon

seethebeatingheartofanunbornrhino.

Aboveandbelow:TheRhinoProtectionUnitsmakeregularuseofthewaterfiltersdonatedbySRI

Asian Rhinos a speciality

GrantOurverygratefulthankstotheTaiwan

ForestryBureau,foritsrecentgrantof

$5,000towardstheannualSouthEast

Asiaworkshop,tobeheldinFebruary

orMarch2010inBogor,Indonesia.

IMAGES:A

ARANYAK

rhinorangestates,byarrangingregular

meetingsandworkshopsasfollows:

• Bi-ennialAsRSGworkshopsinvolving

allAsianrhinorangecountries

• AnnualAsRSGSouthEastAsia

workshopsfocusingonJavanand

Sumatranrhinos(Indonesia,Malaysia

andVietnam)

• AnnualAsRSGSouthernAsia

workshops focusingonIndianrhinos

(NepalandIndia)

Top:SRSkeeperDedeAbove:AtypicalmealfortherhinosattheSRS

AsRSGChair,DrBibhabKumarTalukdaratatreeplantingceremony

Grants OurthankstoChesterZooandthe

RuffordMauriceLaingFoundation,who

gaveusatotalof£14,019towardsthe

ongoingrunningcostsoftheSumatran

RhinoSanctuary.

biodiversity.”planting

Events:

6 7

Sunday 26 April was one of those glorious days: it was warm but not too hot, there was a very slight breeze, most importantly it did not rain. And our London Marathon runners

had a wonderful day – and so did we! The runners have to complete 26.2 miles on the day, but to get to the start line they need to have put in hours and hours of training, and to have raised a minimum amount for Save the Rhino and the field programmes we support. You might have thought that the aches, the pains, the blisters and the dreaded “wall” would

have dampened their enthusiasm for the day, but not a bit of it. Just look at what they said and see their faces at the finish line…

London Marathon 2009

– Oh such a perfect day!

“Thankyouforeverything,itwasafabulousdayandIwasproud

tobepartoftheteam.”Annette Barrett

“JustwantedtoletyouknowthatIhadthemostamazingday

yesterday.Ilovedeveryminuteofit.Itwasalsolovelytomeetyou

andtheguysandIjustwantedtothankyouforallyoureffortsand

hardwork!”Charmain Berry

“Ireallyhadagreatdayyesterdayandthemassage,Tuskerand

warmwelcomeattheendwereamassivebonus.Itwasalsogreat

tofinallymeetyouandsomeoftheotherSavetheRhinogang.”

Angus Rissik

“ThanksLaurence,itwasagreatexperienceandIwasveryproud

torunforSavetheRhino.”Louise Bentley

“ThanksforeverythingyoudidtoorganizeeverythingforusRhino

runnersoverthepastyear.Itwascertainlyoneofthegreatestand

mostfundaysofmylife.”Paul Solkow

“Thanksforallyourhelpovertherecentmonths-theentireday

onSundaywasanamazingexperiencewhichIamstillbuzzingfrom

evennow.Whoknows,maybeIwillbebackinrunningshoesthis

timenextyear?Icertainlywouldn’truleitoutatthisstage.”

Neil Richards

“Thankyouforyourorganization!Itmadeitallgososmoothly.

Iabsolutelylovedit.Sendmethe2010applicationformplease.

I’mhooked!“Christine Davies

“Welldonetoallofyouforenhancingsuchamarvellousday.

Allthetraditionalrhinovalueswerepresentbythebucket-load–

excellentorganisation,greathospitalityandnaturalenthusiasm

andfriendliness.Alongdayforallofyou,butwemuchappreciated

whatyoualldidforus.“Nick Headly

“Justwanttosayabig,bigthankyoutoallofwhoworkedsohard

tomaketheeventhappen.”Raj Mann

“Thanksalotforthealltimeandeffortyouguysputinforallthe

runnersontheday.Pleasepassthisontotherestoftheteam.

Wasgreatlyappreciated(especiallytherubdowns).Havealready

putinfortheballotfornextyearbutwhetherIgetinornotI

willwanttobewearingtherhinobadgeifyouguyswillhaveme.

Thanksagainguys,wasanawesomeday.”Brad Van der Heim

“Ijustwantedtosaythankyouforallyourhardworkandforthe

opportunitytorunforyouguys!Ithasbeenthebestexperience

ofmylife!Itwasamazingtoseehowfamousandpopularthe

rhinoswerearoundthecourse!Thoseguysareamazing!Ireally

wanttodoanother!”Tracey Leadbetter

“GreattoseeyouallwelcomingmewhenIwassoknackered-

andIhadtheperksofafreemassage,twobeersandabanana!!”

Andy Byerley

“Laurence-ithasbeenanabsolutepleasure-andifyou’llhaveme

-I’llbebacknextyear-butjustdon’taskmetoweartherhino!!!”

Louise Jeffery

VIRGIN LONDON MARATHON 2010

Want to join our team next year?

Wehave50guaranteed

placesintheVirginLondon

Marathon2010.

To find out how to get a

place, please contact

Laura Adams on 020 7357 7474,or email her: laura@savetherhino.org

Remember, if you get a

place in the ballot, you

can still run as part of the

Rhino team – it’s better

running together.

Win the race against time: extinction or survival

With 50 guaranteed Gold Bond places you too can help Save the Rhino

For more information call

020 7357 7474 or emailevents@savetherhino.orgRegistered charity 1035072

It’s better...

...running together

SavetheRhino’smasseursgetadefinitethumbsup!

Whatmorecouldarunnerwanttoseeatthefinishline?

Update

whiletheplaneistossedaroundinthe

turbulentair.Itstoleranceofextreme

flyingconditionsmakestheHuskyan

aircraftthatpassengerswithqueasy

stomachsshoulddefinitelynotgetinto.

Whenradio-tracking,itiseasyforthepilot

torollawingupwithoutdeviatingfrom

course.Thisallowsthestrut-mounted

antennatoscanfromtheareabelowthe

planetothehorizon,butbeingwhatis

technicallydescribedasanunbalanced

turn,itinevitablyunbalancesthestomach

ofapassenger.

SomesaythattheHuskyisjustan

imitationofthefamousPiperSupercub,

whichlooksverysimilar.Nottrue.

TheHuskyfliesjustasslowlyasthe

Supercubbutalsomuchfasterand,most

importantly,hastwicethefuelendurance

thatisamajorfactorinourrhinowork.

AgreatsafetyfeatureoftheHusky

comparedtoothersmallaircraftisits

structuralstrength.Ihavecollidedwith

bigbirdslikeeaglesandvultures,which

arealwaysariskwhenflyinglowabove

areaswheretherearealotofanimal

carcasses,suchasduringthedevastating

poachingthataccompaniedlandinvasions

inZimbabweanconservanciesin2001-4.

Abirdstrikecreatesamightybangandan

equallymightyfright,particularlywhen

theextentofthedamageisunclear.The

Husky’stailstrutoncecutatawnyeagle

almostinhalf.WhileIwastryingtowork

outwhathadhappenedtomyviolently

pitchedaircraft,thevetwhohaddarted

arhinowasshoutingovertheradiotobe

givendirectionstothecollapsedanimal.

Ifhehadlookeduphewouldhaveseen

theeaglefalldowntomakeadirecthit

ontherhino.TheHusky’srobustlanding

gearalsoenablesmetolandonawide

varietyofsurfaces;roughpatchesof

openground,overgrownairfields,roads.

TheonlylandingproblemI’veincurred

waswhenthetailwheelsnappedoffas

itcaughtinasmalltermitehole.Thetail

wheelspringhadfinallyfatiguedafter

thousandsoflandings.Nottobebeaten,

wepatchedupthebentandtornrudder

andmadeanewtemporaryspringto

completetheopbycuttingacar’sleaf

springinhalf.

Thisremindsme,aLandCruiseris

anotherformofreliablekit.Thefirst

temporaryspringwemadefortheHusky

wasfromaLandRoverspringbutitwas

toosoft–aLandCruiserspringdidthe

job.HavingopeneduptheHuskyversus

Supercubdebate,I’llleavetheLand

CruiserversusLandRoverissueto

anotherdiscussionaboutfavouritekit

forrhinoworkinAfrica...

8 9

Zimbabwe:

You have a friend request - Save the Rhino International

Lucy Boddam-WhethamFundraisingManager

When the likes of Facebook, bebo and Myspace first entered our lives, who would have thought they would lead to such a revolution in communication and social media; helping to launch unknown bands and singers, playing a vital part in lobbying and campaigning and even in helping charities raise much-needed funds? A savvy fundraising charity in the 21st century should not be without these tools.

Withthepowerofthe

internetincreasingly

beingusedasacost-

effectivefundraising

andawareness-increasingtool,itwastime

forSavetheRhinototestitsdigitalskills.

Inspring2009,therhinopoachingcrisis

inZimbabwepresentedtheurgentneed

foranappeal.So,inpartnershipwiththe

InternationalRhinoFoundationintheUS,

welaunchedanonline,paper-freeeffort

toraiseemergencyfundsandtoincrease

awarenessoftheworkoftheLowveld

RhinoTrust.ThiswasafirstforSavethe

Rhino,andwewerekeentoexplorethe

possibilitiesandavoidthecostsnormally

associatedwithapostalcampaign.

Wereallydidlearnaswewentalong.

Wethoughtitimportanttosetupan

appeal-specificJustgivingpagesothat

everyonewasabletoseethefundraising

targetandprogress.Byallowingdonorsto

posttheircomments,theuseofJustgiving

allowedustocreatemoreofadialogue

withoursupporters.Thiswasalsotrueof

Whatfirstcomestomind

whenIthinkalongthese

linesistheplanethat

Iflyonrhinoops.Itisa

two-seaterAviatHuskythatwasdonated

bytheBeitTrusttwentyyearsago.

Itismainlyfabric-covered,thereforevery

light,buthasapowerful180-horsepower

engineandapropellerwithanadjustable

pitch,givingahighpower-to-weightratio.

Theplanefliesitself–orperhapsitisjust

that,afterover3,000hours,I’vehave

becomesousedtoflyingit,Idon’tthink

aboutthecontrolsmostofthetime.

Itgracefullyallowsmetodotightorbits

overarhinoatrelativelyslowspeed,

nosepitcheduptothelimitsofthepitch

control,withouthavingtotakemyeyes

awayfromtheoperationbelowmeto

anxiouslymonitorinstrumentsthatI’d

certainlywantkeepcheckingifIwasflying

mostotheraircraftsoclosetothespeed

atwhichIcouldstallorspin.

Ihavedonethatkindofopsflyingeven

inhorribleplacesliketheChipinge

mountains,whereastandingwaveof

windcomesoverthemountains,pushing

theplanedownintothedeepvalleys.

Youhavetoorbitwithinthevalleyswith

wingflapsdowntoenhancelift,andalot

ofpower,adjustingforthevariablewind

directionindifferentpartsoftheorbit,

thespecificcausewesetuponFacebook,

whichhelpedustoreachawideraudience

andtoreceiveadditionaldonations.

Acrosstheworld,anaverageof

5,000,000,000minutesisspenton

Facebookeachday.Thisissurelysetto

increaseaspeoplebecomemoreandmore

activeincommunicatingtotheworldwhat

theycareabout,sothepotentialofthesite

isenormous.Asasmallcharitywithlimited

resources,usingsuchtoolsisacost-free

wayofcommunicatingwithourexisting

supportersandalsoreachingawider

audience.SavetheRhinocould/would

neverlaunchacostlymarketingcampaign,

sotheuseofsocialmediaisacost-

effectivealternativethatticksallourboxes.

Wesentthreeappealupdateemailsto

ourRhiNEWSsubscribersoverasix-week

periodandpostedregularupdatesonour

ownwebsite.Theseupdatesallowedusto

communicatequicklyandefficientlythe

problemsofthecrisisbutalsoenabledus

todelivernewsfromthefieldasandwhen

ithappened,aswellasupdatingsupporters

ontheprogressoftheappeal.

Anotherfirstforuswasanonlinewebinar

(oronlinepressconference).Organised

bytheInternationalRhinoFoundation,

thewebinarmeantthatjournalistsfrom

aroundtheworldcouldtalklivetoRaouldu

ToitoftheLowveldRhinoTrust,SusieEllis

oftheIRF,MichelleGaddfromUSFWS,and

CathyDean,ourDirector.Statistics,maps

andimageswereavailabletoallattendees

astheytalked.

Theonlineappealwascertainlyalearning

experienceforus.Followingitssuccess,we

havestartedusingtwitterandwhoknows,

nextyearwemightevenattemptanonline,

interactiveRhinoMayday.Watchthisspace…

The workhorse of the skies While various fancy gadgets make our jobs easier, we rely primarily upon some indispensable workhorses to get the job done.

Raoul du ToitDirectorLowveldRhinoTrust

IMAGES:L

OW

VELDR

HIN

OT

RUST

LOW

VELDR

HIN

OT

RUST

The appeal raised more than US $120,000, of which Save the Rhino raised $31,000, and resulted in more than 50 articles in major media outlets and hundreds more smaller pieces.

Thankyoutoeveryonewhosupportedour

appeal,inparticular:FriendsFoundationof

SafariparkBeekseBergenandDierenrijk,

DublinZooandStuttgartZoo.Specialthanks

alsotoSusie,Maggie,KellyandAprilatthe

InternationalRhinoFoundationforalloftheir

helpandtoAlexRhindforhelpingwiththe

designofouremailandwebupdates.The

LowveldRhinoTrusthasnowsuccessfully

moved46criticallyendangeredblackrhinos

outofareaswheretheywereparticularly

vulnerabletopoachers.SinceMay,eight

poachershavebeenkilledintheLowveld

duringarmedconfrontationswiththe

police.Therehavebeensevenknownrhino

poachinglosses.Tolearnmoreaboutthe

appealpleasevisit:www.savetherhino.org

The Convention on International Trade

in Endangered Species (CITES), to which

Zimbabwe is a signatory, is likely to discuss

censuring Zimbabwe at its 2010 Conference

of the Parties, because of the country’s

inadequate actions to halt poaching.

TwitterStartfollowing

SavetheRhino

onTwitterby

goingto

RaoulhasworkedtirelesslyinconservationinZimbabwesince1986

CarlatherhinolikedtoleadWilliamwheneverhewentouttocutbrowseforher

www.twitter.com/savetherhino

Events:

1110

Dave Robertson and Dirk SwartHluhluwe-iMfoloziPark

Fiona MacleodEventsManager

Rhino Trek South Africa 2010Saturday21toSaturday28AugustFieldequipmentisessentialfor

ourfieldrangerstobeable

todotheirjobseffectively.

Ourfieldrangersworkunder

difficultconditions,inremoteareasand

ofteninextremeweather.Havinggood

basicequipmentliketents,sleeping

bagsandbackpacksmakesthisfar

moretolerable,andgreatlyimproves

staffmoraleandeffectiveness.

Recentgrantshaveenabledthepurchase

of60belt-sizedfirst-aidkitswhich

havebeenagodsend.Thekitsareofa

comfortablesizeandeveryfieldranger

andfencelinerisinpossessionofone,

andisactivelytakingthemintothefield

withthem.60x18-litregreendaypacks

werealsopurchased.Thesmilesonlaw

enforcementstafffacesafterreceiving

themwerepriceless;theycannowcarry

waterbottles,raincoats,firstaidkits

andbinocularscomfortablyintothefield,

allowingthemtoconcentrateonthe

jobinhand.Fencingplierswereissued

toeachfencelinemaintenancestaff

member.Theseversatileinstruments

arethemostimportantitemneededto

maintainthefenceinthefield.Theyare

usedtocut,join,tighten,andappend

electricfencecomponents.AM36electric

fenceenergiserwasalsoprocured.This

energiserisextremelystrongandcan

ensurethat360kmofelectricwirefence

linehas10,000volts,thusensuringthe

utmostintegrityofthenorthernboundary

ofHluhluwe,whichbordersveryclosely

withimpoverishedcommunitieswho

cannotaffordtohaverhino,elephant

andbuffaloploughingthroughfarmland,

orleopardandlionkillinglivestock.We

alsonowuserapid-chargeAAbattery

cellchargers.Accordingtorecords,1

rechargeablebatteryisequivalentto

over1,000normalbatteries!Sothisisan

environmentallysoundandcheaperway

ofensuringthatalltorchesarelitand

GPSsarekeptworking.

OntheiMfolozisideofthePark,12

CampingGazstovesandextracylinders

wereboughtforfieldrangerscampingout

inpoachinghotspots;17backpackcovers

tomakepackswaterproofandassistwith

camouflageforextendedpatrols;and

13hikingmats.Alotofpoachingtakes

placeatnightoverfull-moon,orlatein

theafternoonatlastlight.Thisisatime

whenitisdifficultforfieldrangerstobe

outinthefieldfarfromtheiroutpostsif

theyarenotcamping.Beingabletocamp

aroundtheclockreducesthehitandmiss

approachtoanticipatingwhenpoachers

willbeinaparticulararea.Fieldrangers’

movementsshouldbeunpredictableto

poachers.Bywalkingintoatemporary

baseundercover,andstayingthere,well

hiddenforafewdays,poachersgenerally

donotknowtheirwhereabouts.Ifthey

stayeverynightattheiroutpost,itisa

loteasierforpoacherstopostlookouts

forthem.

Thearrivalofthetwo-wayradiosnow

providesgoodcommunication,which

isessentialforeffectiveanti-poaching

work,aswellasrhinomonitoring,and

ensuringsafetyofstaffworkingina

dangerousenvironment.Thetwo-way

radiosaresomewhatdifferenttothe

oldermodelswehavebeenusingand

havebeenverywellreceived.Theyhave

anextrasecurityfunctionthatscrambles

communicationtootherradiosonthe

samefrequency,whichdon’thaveacode

numberenteredintothem.Theadvantage

tothisisthatitensurescompletelysecure

conversationbetweenwhoever’susing

thenewradiosduringanti-poachingwork,

buttheycanalsobeunscrambledfor

generalcommunication.Communication

isprobablyoneofthemostimportant

aspectsinlawenforcementwithin

thePark.

Thefactthatstaffarehardworkingand

honestreflectsontheirhappinessinthe

workplace,havingbeengiventhebest

supportpossibletodotheirjobstothe

higheststandards.Ourfunderscontinued

supportinthestruggletoprotectand

conserveourwildlifefromunscrupulous

poachingsyndicatesandothersuch

pressuresisgreatlyappreciated.

SpendaweekinAugust2010withSavetheRhinoforatrekking

challengethroughsomeofSouthAfrica’smostbeautifulgame

reserves.

IntheheartoftheKingdomoftheZulu,atthefoothillsoftheLebombo

Mountains,thejourneybegins.Withfivedaysoftrekkingthroughsome

ofSouthAfrica’sbestgamereservesandcampingunderthestars,you

canbeassuredofatrueAfricanexperienceandtheopportunitytoget

upcloseandpersonalwithsomeofthemostamazingcreaturesthat

walk,swimandflyonourplanet.Theamazingchallenge,whichallows

youtoseetheareayourmoneywillbehelping,concludeswithasafari

intheHluhluwe-iMfoloziPark.Youareguaranteed

toseewhiterhinosandmay

seeblack.

South Africa:

Small things - BIG difference

Living the dream

One of the perks of our job is to be able to hand out much-needed field equipment and take photos of happy rangers to send back to our much-appreciated funders.

IMAGES:DIRKSWART

IMAGES:D

AVER

OBERTSO

N

IMAGES:W

ILDLANDSC

ONSERVATIO

NT

RUST

IMAGES:F

IONAM

ACLEO

D

At just under 20,000ft,

Kilimanjaro is Africa’s highest

peak and the highest free-

standing mountain in the world. Images

of the towering snow-covered cone rising

majestically from fertile green foothills

have become a powerful example of

Tanzania’s extraordinary extremes.

Thechallengestartsintherainforest;

hometoelephant,buffalo,antelopeand

monkeys.Higherupyou’llcrossmoorland

andbeyondthisliestherockandice

zoneasyouslowlyapproachthesummit.

Whetheryoureachtheverysummitornot,

you’llbegreetedbystunningviewsacross

Arrests

Dirk Swart; Lucy Boddam-Whetham

-----Original Message-----From: Dave RobertsonSent: 28 August 2009 14:06To: Dirk Swart; Lucy Boddam-WhethamCc: Cathy DeanSubject: Arrests

Some positive news from iMfolozi is that we arrested four rhino poachers red-handed two nights ago. A field ranger reported hearing a rifle shot late in the afternoon (traditionally a high risk time - poachers shoot an animal at last light and exit the Park under cover of darkness). We all raced to close off inside the Park while Lawrence Munro, the section ranger at Makhamisa section in the south, called the police from the nearest station at KwaMbonambi. He met up with them and they did a road block outside the Park on an access road. They were just in time to stop a pick-up with four people in it. Lawrence noticed blood on their clothes and when they were made to get out of the vehicle, he saw a .303 rifle inside. When they looked in the back, they saw two fresh white rhino horns dripping blood. We believe from their footwear and other factors that they are the same guys responsible for most of our poaching as well as the spate of poaching at Ophathe Game Reserve this year. We located the carcass early yesterday morning and recovered a bullet from the head. It’s sad that we lost another rhino, but at least this one didn’t die in vain. We’re going to push for very heavy sentences. We’re all over the moon here - everybody’s been putting in huge effort for a long time and this has made it all worthwhile. The field rangers have had permanent smiles on their faces since the arrest!

will be helping, concludes with a safari

You are guaranteed

Receivingnewkitisagreatmoraleboostfortheteam

Wewouldreallyliketothankthefollowing

funders,whohavesupportedHluhluwe-

iMfoloziPark,inmanycasesforseveral

years:ColchesterZoo’sActionfortheWild

fund,SafariClubInternationalFoundation,

SafariClubInternational(LondonChapter),

andSalzburgZoo.Wearesopleasedthat

theirdonationsarehavingsuchanimpact.

Thanks!

Rhino Climb KilimanjaroDates to suit

theMaasaiplainsandtheeuphoriaof

standingontopoftheworld.

Gettogetheragroupoffriends,andwe

canarrangeanadd-onvisittotheMkomazi

RhinoSanctuary,whereyoumightseea

blackrhino,andwillcertainlyseewilddogs.

Visitourwebsitewww.savetherhino.org

fordetailsoneitherofthesechallenges.

Always dreamt of going on safari and seeing the big five? Or taking on a physical challenge of a lifetime? We can help you do both…

All readers of The Horn!

Cathy Dean

Richard expands his latest theory

to delegates at the 2008 AfRSG

meeting in Lake Manyara, Tanzania

1312

Iusedmyfavouritepiecesof

equipmentintheearly1980s,when

Iwasdoingfieldworkonapplied

whiterhinograzingecologyin

iMfoloziGameReserve,SouthAfrica.Park

managementatthetimewereconcerned

aboutthepotentialfor“over-grazing”by

whiterhinosasaresultoftheParkfence

preventingtheirdispersal(apopulation

regulationmechanism).

ThegrassiniMfoloziwasnotonly

respondingtobeingeatenbywhiterhinos,

butalsobyotherlargeherbivoressuchas

buffalo,zebra,impalaandwildebeest,as

wellasbyinsects.Tobetterunderstand

theimpactofgrazingbywhiterhinoon

otherherbivorespecies,andonthegrass

itself,aswellastheimpactofgrazingby

otherspeciesonwhiterhino,Istudied

grassresponsestoobservedgrazing

patternsofarangeofcommonspecies.

Oneyear,aspartofthiswork,Ihadabout

1,700markedstudygrasstillersoftwo

ofthemajorgrassspeciesintheReserve.

(Thetermtillerreferstoanindividual

grassshootthatsproutsfromthebase

ofagrasstuft/plant.)Thestudygrass

plantsweremarkedwithsmall,grey,

numberedmetaltagsandoneachplant

twosampletillersweremarkedusingvery

thinredandblacktwistedwirecollarsat

theirbase.

Iwentbacktothesemarkedstudytillers

inthefieldeverythreeweeksduringthe

growingseasontoseeifthey’dbeen

eaten,andifsohowandbywhat.This

allowedmebothtodeterminewhattypes

ofgrazingregimeswerenatural,butalso

howthegrasstillersrespondedto

differentlevelsandpatternsofdefoliation.

Acheap“treasure-hunter’s”metal

detectorprovedveryusefulforfinding

theironbarsmarkingtheendofthe

transects,andalsoforfindingsome

ofthemarkedgrassplantsalongthe

transect.Apinkandwhitecandy-striped

hula-hoopalsoprovedtobeauseful

markerforcircular“quadrats”when

monitoringgrassspeciescomposition

andstudyinggrazingpatternsbya

numberofkeylargeherbivorespecies.

IneededtobesurethatIdidn’tdouble-

recordanygrazingonmystudytillers

whenIcamebackonsubsequentvisits.

Seeingasmostanimalsareprettycolour-

blindandlipstickislargelymadeofwax,

Ithoughtlipstickmightbesuitablefor

markinganygrazedgrasssurfaces,and

shouldn’tundulyputofftheanimalsor

insects.Althoughthecoloureventually

fadedinthesun,thelipsticklastedlong

enoughthattherewasneveranychance

ofdouble-counting.Zululandsummer

temperaturessometimesexceed40°C,

andoneproblemwasthatthelipstick

couldmelt.Asitmeltedlessinthe

Zululandheatthanotherbrands,andwas

easytosee,Yardley’sRaveRedlong-

lastinglipstickendedupbeingmybrand

Africa:

Lipstick, hula-hoops and a metal-detector

Command centre

Richard EmslieScientificOfficer,IUCNSSCAfricanRhinoSpecialistGroup

Mark JagoGameCaptureVeterinarianMinistryofEnvironmentandTourismWhen I got a request to write an article for The Horn on a piece of

equipment I found particularly useful in my work, I was initially at a bit of a loss as to what to pick. Writing something on some of the amazing new machine learning / data mining / artificial intelligence or multivariate ecological statistical software packages would not be of much interest to most readers. So, I decided to write about lipstick, a metal detector and a hula-hoop.

The Rhino Recovery Car, together with its crates and trailers, has permitted the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism to move more black rhinos safely, efficiently and at considerably less cost.

ofchoice.Tothesurpriseofthefemale

shopassistantsatthechemistin

Mtubatuba,Iwouldusuallybuyfiveto

tenlipsticksatatime.Pocketsfilledwith

partiallyusedlipstickscertainlydidn’t

quitefitthearchetypalimageofthe

ruggedbushranger/researcher

wearingkhaki!Whocares–itworked!

Interestingly,Ifoundthatmanyofthe

experimentalsimulatedgrazingregimes

beingusedbyanumberofacademic

researchersatthetimeborenorelationto

howthegrasseswereactuallybeingeaten

inthewild.Theresultsfrommymonitoring

ofgrazinginthefieldandobservations

ofgrazingpatternsofkeyherbivore

specieshelpedguidethedesignofsome

simulationdefoliationexperimentsthat

Iundertookinalargeherbivore-proof

exclosurethefollowingyear.

Namibia:

Thesoundofthe21st-century

mobilephonescreaminga

wake-upcallatfiveo’clockin

themorningdragsmepainfully

fromabrieftwohoursofsleepundera

crystalclearstar-spangledAfricansky.Itis

cold,evencolderthanwhenweoff-loaded

ourpreciouscargooftwofemaleblack

rhinosthenightbefore,deepintothe

heartofDamaralandinwesternNamibia.

Thesoundofvoicesandthearomaof

coffeedrivethelackofsleepaway,and

asthefirstraysofsunshinecreepabove

thehorizon,theroarofthehelicopter’s

jetenginesignifiesthestartofanother

rhinocaptureforNamibia’sMinistryof

Environment’srhinocaptureteam.

Captureisfast,challengingworkrequiring

aboveallthecombinedeffortofa

numberofindividualsunitedintoone

well-oiledteam.Alongsidethepeople

thereisabatteryofhighlyspecialised

vehiclesandequipment.Thishasbeen

modifiedcountlesstimesovertheyears,

asmoreisunderstoodaboutthebest

waytocaptureandtransportrhinoand

thetechniquesimprove.Captureofwild

creaturesisbydefinitionstressfulfor

theanimalsconcerned,buttheteam

continuouslystrivestominimisethis

stressandtoensureasefficientandas

safeanoperationaspossible.Itwaswith

thisphilosophyinmindthattheRhino

RecoveryCar(RRC)andtheLightweight

RhinoCrateandTrailersystemwasbuilt.

Thesepiecesofkithaveprovedtobe

highlysuccessful.

FundedinpartbyOpelZoo,theRRChas

broughttogetherintoasinglevehicleall

thekitneededtocarryoutthenumerous

proceduresthatarerequiredforarhino

tobetranslocated.Theconverted4x4

Landcruiserisalwaysthefirsttoarrive

bythesideofthesleepingrhino.It

carrieswatertocooldowntherhino,

ropestosecureandmoveit,bush-cutting

equipmenttocleararoadinforloading,

andamyriadofveterinaryequipment

tomonitorandsupportourprehistoric

patient.Supplementaloxygen,pulse

oximeters,thermometers,coolingfans

areallreadytohandatasecond’snotice.

Aportablegeneratorpowersthedrill

thatneatlyfitsaradiotransmitterinto

thehorn,sotheanimalcanbelocated

andmonitoredaftertranslocation.

Equippedwithbothground-to-airand

inter-vehicleradios,theRRCisthe

commandcentreforeachandevery

rhinocapture.

AfewyearsagoPierreduPreezandhis

colleaguesintheMinistryofEnvironment

andTourismstartedlookingattheoption

ofusinglightweightrhinocratesand

trailerstorecoverandtransportblack

rhino.Costingsignificantlylessthan

theoldersystems,thesehavenow

beenrefinedintoveritablefirst-class

travellingcompartments!

Thecratesaresignificantlysmallerthan

theirpredecessorsandconstructedof

theminimalamountofsteelneededto

containarhinosafely.Withdoorsatboth

ends,rhinoscanbeeasilyloadedand

offloaded.Theinteriorislinedwithrubber

conveyorbeltingtominimizeanychance

oftherhinoinjuringitself.Withairvents

cutintothesidesandback,trapdoors

onthetopwhichmaybeopenorclosed,

andthecratepaintedwithaheatresistant

paint,criticaltemperaturecontrolis

aboutasgoodasitgets.Thecratescan

berapidlywinchedupontoalow,simple

trailer,whichthenispulledbyastandard

ToyotaLandcruiserfromtheremotest

partsoftheNamibianbush,beforebeing

cross-loadedbycranetothelarge6x6

transporttruck,whichcancarryupto

threecratesatpresent.

Alltheequipmentrequirescontinual

maintenance,forwearandtearis

significant,buttheequipmenthas

undoubtedlybeenanessential

factorinhelpingNamibiapursueits

ambitiousandsuccessfulblackrhino

conservationprogramme.

IMAGES:S

AVET

HER

HIN

O

OurthankstoOpelZooinKronberg,

Germany,foritsgrantof50,000eurosover

aperiodoffouryears,aspartoftheEAZA

RhinoCampaign.

Thanks!

Richardgetsupcloseandpersonalwithwhiterhinos

Thetranslocationteammudwrestleswitharhino

IMAGES:D

AVEH

AM

MAN

Thingsdon’talwaysgotoplan!

Events:

14

WearereallygratefultoRichardKeyser,

andJustineandTerenceRyan,who

togetherraisedawonderfultotalof£1,932

forSavetheRhinoTrust,aswellasgetting

theoddblisterintothebargain.

Thanks!

“ What? You’re going to cycle 350k across Damaraland… but why would you do that?”

Richard KeyserRhinosupporterandcyclist

Earlier this year, I met someone who has now become a very good friend. He runs a tourism company selling safaris and has a huge energetic respect for his country and African wildlife. Last year he decided it was time to “put back in” and so “challenge4acause.com”, a fundraising division of his company that aims to support worthy causes across southern Africa, was launched. The first adventure for challenge4acause was a cycle across Damaraland, Namibia to raise money to support Save the Rhino Trust Namibia.

LastAprilaspareplaceopened

uponthechallenge4acause

teamandso,withadegreeof

anticipation,Ijumpedonboard.

TwodayslaterIleftCapeTownforhome

withaheftytrainingprogrammeand

fundraisingplaninhand.Threemonths

passedquicklyandinthesmallhoursof

Saturday4JulyweflewtoNamibiawith

littlerealunderstandingofthemental

andphysicalchallengethatlayahead.

WearrivedatCampOneinPalmwagat

duskafter15hourstravelling.Overwhelmed

bythecountry’ssimplicityandbeauty,

andalsofeelingalittlemisplaced,Imissed

dinnerandwenttobedspeechless.

DayOnecommencedandthefirsttasteof

whatwasaheadloomed.Wesoonlearned

thatroadtrainingdidn’tprepareusfor

thetrackatall!Ishouldhavecycledfrom

RichmondtotheThamesBarrieratlow

tidealongtheThamesbeachesforseven

hoursatatimewearingadozensweaters!

Hillswereparticularlyhard,butthe

rewardsofspectacularviewsnotseen

anywhereelseexceptonafilmsetofStar

Warsandrawnatureendlesslyongoing

withanemptinessthatsomehowwasso

full,inspiredustopedalharder.Going

downhill,travellingat50kphthrough

roughcobbles,rock,sandandgravel,

wasalsohardandconsiderablymore

dangerous!Theworstthingyoucoulddo

wasbrake,andaftertwodaysofcutsand

bruiseswesoonlearnedtogowiththeflow

andtohellwithit!

Wehadbeengrantedaccesstocycle

throughsomeconservanciesinthearea

andcampinthewildernessofthis

desiccatedenvironment.Justwhowould

daregoforthatmidnightpee?!Forme,

anovicecamper,arachnophobe,and

someonewholikesprivacy,thethoughtof

basictoiletarrangementshadcausedmany

acringeandagiggle.Inreality,thetoilet

wassurprisinglyliberating,especiallyat

4amwiththestars,themoonsandthe

shadows!Theshowerbuckethangingfrom

anoverhangingrockalwayshadaview

todieforandthehalf-bucketrationwas

plentytokeepclean,butnotenoughto

soakupthevista.

It’struetosaythatonedayofgetting

toknowsomeoneinaremoteandwild

environmentisequaltothirtydaysin

“realtime”.I’veneverexperiencedsuch

camaraderieandifitwasn’tfortheteam

spirit,smiles,laughter,games,pranks,and

supportwehadforeachother,thenour

challengewouldhavebeennear-impossible

tocomplete.

Didweseearhino?No,butwesawso

muchmore.WouldIdoitagain?Yes,

infactI’ddoittwice.Bringonnextyear…

IMAGES:R

ICHARDK

EYSER

Since 2003, Save the Rhino has held an annual Douglas Adams Memorial Lecture around the time of Douglas’s birthday. Douglas Adams died unexpectedly in 2001 and these Memorial Lectures continue to explore themes that Douglas was interested in.

ExplorerBenedictAllenhas

supportedSavetheRhino

TrustinNamibia,aprojectalso

supportedbySavetheRhino

International,formanyyears.Duringa

triptotheSkeletonCoastin1995,where

Benedictsingle-handedlytrekkedupthe

1,000-milecoast-line,hetrainedthree

camelstoaccompanyhimonhisjourney.

Followingthetrek,hegavethecamelsto

SavetheRhinoTrustwheretheyareused

aspartoftheanti-poachingpatrol.Benedict

wasthereforeaperfectspeakerforthe

DouglasAdamsMemorialLectureseries.

ThetalkwasentitledUnbreakableand

Benedicthighlightedthathumansareinfact

physicallyaveryweakspecies:putahuman

intheArcticOceanandtheywillbedeadin

twominutes,butthatinmomentsofcrisis

humansdrawontheirstrengths.Byway

ofexplanation,Benedictwentontotalk

abouttimeswhenhehasalmostdiedand

howitwasduringtheseriskymoments

thatherealisedwhathisstrengthsand

weaknesseswere.

Benedictentertaineduswithsome

fascinatingstoriesfromhiscareeras

anexplorer.OncewhilstintheAmazon,

heoverheardgoldminerssayingthey

wantedtoslithisthroat.Heescapedon

hiscanoe,butthatcapsizedandlefthim

withnothingexcepthisdog.Asketchhe

madeshowedhimandthedoglookingat

eachother,bothseeingpotentialdinner.

Afteroneofthehardestdecisionsofhis

life,Benedict“won”,andhemadeittothe

edgeoftheforestwherehewasfound.

ManyofBenedict’sbooksarestillinprint,

andweurgeyoutoreadthemifyou

haven’talready.Thank you

verymuchtoBenedict

Allenforgivingup

histimetogive

theLecture,to

DaveStirling

foractingas

compére,and

toExplorefor

sponsoring

theevent.

Fiona MacleodEventsManager

The Seventh Douglas Adams Memorial Lecture

Benedict Allen: Unbreakable

Namibia:

Laurence SmithMichaelHearnIntern

Byastrokeofgoodfortune,Save

theRhinoTrust’s(SRT)dilemma

wasaddressedcourtesyofone

intrepidBritishexplorer,

BenedictAllen.Duringhis1995trekin

Africa,Benedictutilisedthetraditional

lorryofthedesert;thecamel.Suchanimals

hadalwaysrepresentedatantalising

(yetprohibitivelyexpensive)meansof

overcomingtheinaccessibilityofthe

Kunene’scorerhinoareas,soitwaswith

greatexcitementthatSRTlearntof

Benedict’sintentionstodonatehisentire

camelteamtotheongoinganti-poaching

andmonitoringworkoftheTrust.

Priortohavingcamels,theamountofdays

spentonactivepatrolwaslimitedbythe

amountofsuppliesthatcouldbecarriedby

thedonkeys.Benedict’sgenerousdonation

ofhiscamelshasallowedforthecreation

ofadedicatedcamel-basedpatrolteam.

Asthecamelscancarrysignificantlymore

storesthanthedonkeys,anti-poaching

andmonitoringeffortscannotonlytravel

furtherintoonceinaccessibleareas,but

canremainthereforupto10dayswithout

theneedforre-supply.

Asidefromthepracticalbenefitsofhaving

desert-adapted,four-leggedlorries,

thesheersizeofthecamelsalsomakes

themformidableadversariesagainst

thelionsoftheKunene.Forthetrackers,

thepresenceofthecamelsisofgreat

reassurance.Theynotonlyhelptodeter

thelionsduringthearduoustrekstothe

basecamps,butalsorepresentaneffective

earlywarningsystemshouldanywildlife

encroachtooneartothecamp.

Offeringsecurity,entertainmentandall-

terrainheavylifting;forthosetrackers

thatdependuponthecamels,theyare

thegreatestvehicleofall!

Although much of Save the Rhino Trust’s work is undertaken using 4x4s, there are areas of the Kunene Region in Namibia that are simply inaccessible to conventional motorised transport. This has always posed a significant challenge, as these areas are also those with some of the highest rhino concentrations.

A caravan in the desert

IMAGES:L

AURENCES

MIT

H

IMAGES:N

EIL

BRID

GELAND

The 8th DAML

WeareverypleasedtoannouncethatonThursday11

March2010,ProfessorMarcusduSautoywillbegivingtheEighthDouglasAdamsMemorialLecture:42:theanswertolife,theuniverseandprimenumbers.Ticketsarenowonsalewww.savetherhino.org

(WealsostronglyrecommendMarcus’sbooks:ourDirectoriscurrentlyreading“TheMusicofthePrimes”,andwilltackle“Finding

Moonshine”next!) 15

Above:BenedictAllenhadtheaudienceenraptured

Below:TheSRImerchandisestall

TheTeam-hopefullysomeoneknewwhichway!

DIYIfyoufancydoing

yourownDIYchallenge

andraisingmoneyforSave

theRhino,thenpleasee-mail

fiona@savetherhino.org

16 17

Events:

Hornucopia

Bidding at the auction

Fiona MacleodEventsManager

From: Cornucopia (noun)1. Classical Mythology. A horn

containing food, drink, etc., in endless supply, said to have been a horn of the goat Amalthaea

2. A representation of this horn, used as a symbol of abundance

3. An abundant, overflowing supply4. A horn-shaped or conical receptacle

or ornament

ToaccesstheauctionwhenitgoesliveinNovember,visitwww.eBay.co.uk(charitypages)orusethedirectlinkthatwillbeavailableduringtheauctionfromwww.savetherhino.org.Ifyoudonothaveaccesstotheinternetyoucanstilltakepartintheauction;wecanacceptsealedpostalbidswhichwewillplaceoneBayonyourbehalf.DetailedbiddinginstructionswillbepublishedintheauctioncatalogueandontheSavetheRhinowebsite.

BRO

MPTO

NB

ARA

NDG

RIL

L

IMAGES:B

USHA

NDB

EYO

ND

SavetheRhinoregisteredasacharityon28February1994,

whichmakes2009our15thBirthdayyear.Incelebration,weshallbeholdinganonlineauction,Hornucopia.This

Novemberahostofexcitinglots,somewacky,someglamorous,andsomemoney-can’t-buy,willbeauctionedwiththeaimofraisingaminimum£15,000forrhinoconservation.AnonlinecataloguedetailingallthelotswillbeavailableontheSavetheRhinowebsitewww.savetherhino.orgfrommid-Octoberbuthere’sjustalittletasterofwhatwillbeavailable…

Cath Lawson OfficeandCommunicationsManager

AbottleoftheHouseofCommonsblendedScotchwhiskysignedbyBaronessMargaretThatcher

Alifesizesculptureofarhinohead

BRO

MPTO

NBAR

AND

DANAA

LLEN

SAVET

HER

HIN

O

Lunch with Carol ThatcherDonatedby Tom Kenyon-SlaneyAthree-courselunchwithahousebottleofwineatBromptonBar&GrillinthecompanyofjournalistandauthorCarolThatcher.

A week in County DonegalDonatedby Tom Kenyon-SlaneyAweek-longstayinabeautifulcottage(sleepseight)inDonegal,Ireland.Eightmilesfromthecoast,thecottageoverlooksLochGartanandtheGlenveaghNationalParkandisgreatbaseforarelaxingholiday.

A rhino-sized paintingDonatedby Jonathan TrussAlife-sizeoilpaintingofablackrhinopaintedbywildlifeartist,JonathanTrussespeciallyforHornucopia.TheintentionisthatJonathanwillpaintthisduringNovember,withaweb-camtrainedonhisstudiosothatviewerscanseeprogresslive.

Namibian rhino safariDonatedby Expert Africa and Wilderness Safaris Namibia Afour-day(three-night)safariattheDesertRhinoCampinDamaralandfortwopeople–includingaccommodation,mealsandactivities.Thisremotecampstandsinavastscenicareainnorth-westNamibia:about5,000km2ofsemi-desertwildernesswhichsupportshealthnumbersofantelope,pluslion,cheetah,leopard,desert-adaptedelephantsandathrivingpopulationofwildblackrhino.

IMAGES:B

USH

AND

BEYO

ND

Thatcher.

Kenyan rhino safariDonatedby Ol Donyo Wuas, Borana and Safarilink AviationAsix-nightsafarifortwoguestsatOlDonyoWuas,ChyuluHills(3nights)andBorana,Laikipia(3nights)withinternaltransferflightsdonatedbySafarilinkAviation.WhilststayingatOlDonyoWuas,therewillbetheopportunitytogoonpatrolwiththegamescoutssupportedbySavetheRhino;whilstatBoranaguestswillspendadayintheLewaConservancy,wheretherearealmostguaranteedsightingsofitsblackandwhiterhino,andperhapsthepossibilityofvisitingrhinoorphansbeinghand-rearedatLewa.

SAVETHERHINO

DANA

MARTIN

BENADIE

JO

NATHANT

RUSS

FRAM

E NOT IN

CLU

DED

Vogon-tasticAhandcraftedmodelofCommanderKwaltzbyJimHenson’sCreatureShop.Standing18cmtallandweighingover6kg,thispieceisamust-havecollector’sitemforfansofTheHitchhiker’sGuidetotheGalaxybyDouglasAdams.Resistanceisuseless!!!.

WIL

DERNESSS

AFA

RI

RUSSELF

RIE

DM

AN

AcopyofAWildLife:AdventuresofanaccidentalconservationistinAfricabyDickPitman

AUniquEcorhinomadeentirelyfromrecycledflip-flops.

PLEASENOTE:Thisisjustanexampleoftheartist’swork

Asignedcopyof100AnimalstoseebeforetheydiebyNickGarbuttwithMikeUnwin

AseriesofsixbooksaboutTheartofthegunbyRobertM.LeeandR.L.Wilson

Zambia:

1918

Say cheese

Claire LewisTechnicalAdvisor,NorthLuangwaConservationProgramme

One of the biggest challenges we face at North Luangwa with the black rhino reintroduction programme is the adaptation phase. We take a number of steps to ensure that this phase is as smooth as possible. Capturing camera-trap images of rhinos is critical to monitoring this process…

The Quizzogs Rhino Hero Challenge

Cath LawsonOfficeandCommunicationsManager

On 24 May 2009, Clive Anderson made a BBC Radio 4 appeal in aid of three environmental education programmes – in Laikipia, Mkomazi and North Luangwa – supported by Save the Rhino International. The appeal was heard by, among many others, the Director of Quizzogs, Roy Dunmall, who has since very kindly named Save the Rhino as Quizzogs’ first charity of the year.

Quizzogs(www.quizzogs.com)

isanonlinequizsitedesigned

forprimaryschoolchildren,

basedontheKeyStages1

and2oftheNational

Curriculum,intendedtofillthegaps

createdbyunexpectedteacherabsences

andactasahomeworktool.Twonew

quizzesareavailableeveryweekduring

termtime,oneforeachkeystage,and

eachquizcontainszonesformaths,

English,science,generalknowledgeand

potluck.Untilnowschoolshavehadto

payforaccesstothefullQuizzogssite,but

fromSeptember2009,accesswillbefree

anditishopeditwillbecomeanationwide

educationaltool.

ThecollaborationbetweenSavetheRhino

andQuizzogs,theQuizzogsRhinoHero

Challenge,willrunthroughoutthe2009-10

academicyearandwillextendtoany

schoolsigneduptotheQuizzogswebsite

thatwishestopartakeinthechallenge.

Duringtermtime,SavetheRhino,through

theQuizzogswebsite,willprovideprimary

schoolchildrenwithchunksofrhino-related

informationaswellassomegreatphotos

andfunactivities.Eachterm,oneortwo

fundraisingactivitieswillalsobepromoted

soastoraisefundsforthethree

environmentaleducationprogrammesthat

wereoriginallyhighlightedbytheRadio

Fourappeal:LaikipiaWildlifeForum’s

EnvironmentalEducationProgramme,

Kenya;Mkomazi’sRafikiwaFaru(Friend

oftheRhino),Tanzania;andNorth

Luangwa’sConservationEducation

Programme,Zambia.

Thefocusoftermone(September-

December)willbeageneralintroduction

tothebiology,behaviourandconservation

ofrhinoscoveringtopicssuchasthefive

speciesofrhino,thethreatstorhinos,

anddifferentconservationapproaches.

Childrenwillalsobeencouragedinterm

onetopartakeinanownclothesorfancy

dressdayandaChristmasrhinoquizat

thecostof10pandacleanfirstclass

stamprespectively.TheChristmasrhino

quizwilldrawonallthatthechildren

shouldhavelearntbyfollowingSave

theRhino’supdatesthroughoutthe

termandprizeswillbeawardedtothe

bestperformers.

Intermstwo(January-March)andthree

(April-July)thefocusofeducational

materialwillshifttoenvironmental

educationandwiderconservationissues

respectively.SavetheRhinowillcontinue

toprovideinformationandactivitiesona

widevarietyoftopics,aswellaspromoting

linksbetweenUKprimaryschoolsandthe

insituprojectsthattheyareraisingfunds

tosupport.ParticipatingUKpupilswill

havetheopportunitytowritetochildren

attheeducationprogrammesbeing

supported,andwillreceivewritten

andvideoupdatesfromtheprojects.

Additionalfundraisingactivitiesplanned

include:theopportunitytosponsor,and

possiblymeet,aLondonMarathon2010

rhinocostumerunner;aphotocompetition;

anda‘SavetheDay’whichwillcoincide

withRhinoMayDay2010.

Thereareover20,000primaryschools

and41/2millionpupilsintheUK,sothe

potentialforthisendeavourisawesome.

WeareverygratefultoallatQuizzogsfor

offeringusthisopportunity.Itjustwaits

tobeseenifUKprimaryschoolsareup

tothechallenge!

Rhino

On 24 May 2009, Clive Anderson made a BBC Radio 4 appeal On 24 May 2009, Clive Anderson made a BBC Radio 4 appeal On 24 May 2009, Clive Anderson made a BBC Radio 4 appeal On 24 May 2009, Clive Anderson made a BBC Radio 4 appeal

many others, the Director of Quizzogs, Roy Dunmall, who has many others, the Director of Quizzogs, Roy Dunmall, who has many others, the Director of Quizzogs, Roy Dunmall, who has

IMAGES:N

ORTHL

UANGW

AC

ONSERVATIO

NP

RO

GRAM

ME

thepaparazziinhisface!Thecamera

trapshavebeengreatatprovidingus

withmomentsofrhinobehaviournot

normallyseenandtheyhaveallowed

ustoremotelymonitorrhinocondition

withoutdisturbance.

FornewsonNLCP’sConservationEducation

Programme,andrecentgrantsfromUSFWS

andDisneyWorldwideConservationFund,

pleaseseepages20-21.

Education

Translocatingawildrhinofrom

oneenvironmentandplonking

theminanotherisabitlike

takingaSaharadwellerand

dumpingtheminAlaska.Youwouldn’t

knowwhereyouwere;orwheretofind

water,food,asafeplacetosleep;or

whetheryourneighbourswerefriends

orfoes!

Usingabomacarespecialistcanassist

intheadaptationphase.Abomacare

specialistisveryimportanttogainingan

insightintoeachindividuals’character

priorto,andpost,arrivalandcanprovide

pointersonarhino’sgeneraldisposition,

levelofconfidenceandpossiblereactions

tonewandunknownsurroundings.

Predictionsdon’talwaysholdtrueonce

theanimalisreleased,butitcertainly

helpstoknowabitmoreabouteach

individual’spersonality.

ThetranslocationstoNorthLuangwa

NationalParkhavealltakenplacetowards

theendofMay.Thisistheearliestafter

therainshavefinishedthatalargeplane

likeaHerculesC130canlandonthegrass

airstrip.Anylateronintheyearwould

pushthereleaseoftherhinosintodrier

anddrierconditions,givingthemeven

lesschancetoadapt.

Inordertomitigateanydrasticdropsin

condition,wehavesetupseveralfeed

sitesaroundtherhinosanctuaries.These

sitesarecarefullyplacedinareasthat

certainindividualsfrequent.Weput

outchoppedupKigeliasausagefruits

andEuphorbiaspp.stems,aswellas

bonemealandsalt.Ifwenotice,from

rhinoscoutmonitoringreportsand

photographs,thatananimalisnot

pickinguporislosingmorecondition

thanwewouldlike,thenwealso

supplementwithlucerne(alsoknowas

alfalfa;amajorfoddercrop),sugarcane

andsweetpotatoes.Wedon’taimtooffer

supplementaryfeedforthelongterm,

rather,justtohelpsomeanimalsget

overtheirfirstdryseasonandthrough

thedifficulttimes.Weestimateittakes

12-18monthsbeforeananimalhas

properlyadaptedtotheconditionsin

NorthLuangwa.Evenoncefullyadapted,

wemaintainacloseeyeoneachanimal

throughmonitoringpatrols.

Eachanimalisseenbytherhinoscouts

onaveragetwoorthreetimespermonth.

Thescoutstakephotosandestimatea

conditionscoreforeachanimal(ranking

oneforverypoor,throughtofiveforvery

fat).Theyalsocheckdungscrapesand

bitestakenofvegetation,notingdown

thespeciesbeingeaten.Wetrytoleave

therhinosthemselvesaloneasmuch

aspossible,sohaveputinplaceseveral

remotesensorcameratrapsatthefeed

sitesandatwell-visitedcrossingpoints

tocapturerhinosinaction.InMarch

2009,thedividingfencebetweentwo

sanctuarieswasremoved.Speculative

betswereplacedonwhichspecies,and

moreimportantlywhichrhinos,would

crossthegreatdivide.Wesetupseveral

cameratrapsalongtheroadthatfollowed

thefencebut,todate,notonerhinohas

movedsanctuaries.

Justaboutalltherhinoshavehadtheir

picturestakenatonetimeoranother,

butonefemale,Twashuka,seemsto

spendhertimerootingoutcameraboxes

andregularlyshowsupinpictures.She

seemsunfazedbytheflash.Twashukais

generallyoneoftheeasierrhinostotrack

onfootandit’sthemoreshyindividuals,

likeKango,thatwe’dreallyliketosee.

Kangomakesanappearanceaboutonce

ortwiceayearforafewdaysandthen

goesbacktohisnormaldailylifewithout

IfyouwouldlikeyourschooltobepartoftheQuizzogsRhinoHeroChallenge,andQuizzogs

moregenerally,pleasecontact:quizzogs@gmail.com

Are you up for the challenge?

Cameratrapsareautomatedcameras.Motionorinfraredsensorsdetectthepresenceofananimalandaphotoistaken

Kenya/Tanzania/Zambia

2120

Environmentaleducationprogrammesareoftenstillseenasanadd-on,asa“nice-

to-do”adjuncttotheoverallconservationprogramme.AttendeesattheAfrican

RhinoSpecialistGroupmeetingheldinJune2008inLakeManyara,Tanzania,

ratedenvironmentaleducationprogrammesasthelowestofalltheKey

Componentsandsubcomponents,whenconsideringAfricanrhinoconservationpriorities

forthenext10years.

Inmanycases,webelievethattheenvironmentaleducationprogrammes,targetedat

schools,beingcarriedouthavenotbeenproperlythoughtthrough.Thereisatendency

forthemtofallintoseveraltraps:

• Thinkingintermsofwhatcanbeoffered,ratherthanwhethertheprogrammemeets

theoverallconservationgoalsoftheNGO

• Replacingtheworkofschoolteachers,ratherthanaddingvaluetoit

• Programmestryingtobeallthingstoallpeople

• Lackofpreparatoryworkandfollowthroughmeansthattripsareregardedasafunday

outandquicklyforgotten

• Inadequatemonitoringandevaluationoftheeffectivenessoftheprogramme(typically,

reportsconsistofnumbersofpeoplewhohavebeenthroughtheprogramme,oroftrips

made,ratherthananydataonthedifferencetheprogrammehasmade)

• Localschoolsareoftensowoefullyunder-resourced,thatanythingofferedisabonus;

teachersarethereforereluctanttoprovidehonestfeedbackandcritiqueprogrammes

Thesepitfallsareunderstandable,giventhatrhinoprogrammemanagersarenoteducation

experts.However,withthehelpofMaggieEsson,EducationProgrammesManageratChester

ZoointheUK,wearetacklingtheseproblemshead-on.Ourcontentionisthatenvironmental

educationprogrammescan,whenfocusedandtargetedcorrectly,playavitalroleindelivering

eachfieldprogrammes’overallconservationgoalsandobjectives.Theyarea“must-do”.

We’vewrittenabouttheindividual

programmesinpreviousissuesof

TheHorn,buthere’sabriefupdate

onwhat’shappeningateachone.

The Environmental Education programme at the Laikipia Wildlife Forum (LWF) in KenyaInApril,Itookpartinaworkshop,together

withMaggiefromChesterandafacilitator,

RayWells.Thisbroughttogetherkey

stakeholdersineducationandconservation

inLaikipiaDistrict:seniorpeople,with

someLWFBoardrepresentation,

representativesfromconservancies

regularlyusedbythebus,those

representinggovernmenteducationata

districtlevelandothergroupsactivein

thedeliveryofenvironmentaleducationin

thedistrict,includingtheKenyanWildlife

Service(KWS).Theworkshopformatwas

designedtobecyclical,allowingsmall

groupstoworktogetheronspecifictasks

andthentobringallparticipantstogether

forfeedbackinplenarysessions.Inthis

wayeveryonehadanopportunityto

contribute,progresscouldbeevidenced

andconsensusachieved.Itwasvery

hearteningthatwithinthegroupas

awhole,therewasacommitmentto

makethingshappenandtheworkshop

atmospherewasdynamicand

enthusiasticthroughout.

Therewereanumberofrecurringthemes

inanswerstomanyofthequestions

addressedbythegroupsandresponses

toquestionsoftencoalescedacrossthe

groups.Onscanningthetranscriptfrom

theworkshop,theprincipletasksthat

emergedwere:

• Anacknowledgementofthebenefits

ofworkinginpartnership

• TheneedforLWFtoreviewitsactivities

andaddresshowtheEEPfitsintothe

biggerpicture

• AchievingabalancewithintheEEP:

schools/communities/events

• IdentifyingtheEEProgrammeasa

catalystforenvironmentalaction

• Identifyingthefocusoftheschools’

programme

• Recognisingtheimportanceofhaving

successindicatorsinplace

• Decidinguponthecompositionand

structureofanEEPSub-committee

Overthenextfewmonths,AnthonyKing

andEphantusMugowilldeveloptheideas

thatcameoutoftheworkshop(including

bettercoordinationoftheEEPwiththe

CommunityConservationProgrammeand

publiceventssuchasWorldWaterDay),and

we’llreportonprogressinthenextissue.

Rafiki wa Faru at the Mkomazi Rhino Sanctuary, TanzaniaRafikihasnowbeenrunningforjustovera

year.All14schoolsaroundtheperimeterof

MkomaziNationalParkhavetakenpartin

theprogramme,manyofthemmorethan

twice.Rafikihasbeenincrediblypopular–

notjustwiththeschoolchildrenandtheir

teachers–butalsowithcommunitygroups,

TANAPAofficials,andlocalpress.

It’snowtimetoevaluatetheimpactoftheprogramme,andMaggiewillbevisitingMkomazi

inNovember,togetherwithhercolleagueMarkPilgrim,ConservationandEducationDirector

atChesterZoo,tointerviewteachersandheadteachers,andtoconductsomepractical

researchwiththechildrentoassesstheeffectofRafikiontheirconservationawareness.

We’llbelookingforsignsofchangesinattitudeandbehaviour.Typically,thesetakethree

generationstoworkthrough(thinkofthechangingattitudestosmokinginthedecadessince

theSecondWorldWar),butanalysingwhichmessageshavetakenholdinthechildren’s

mindssincetheirvisittoMkomaziwillhelpustorefinetheprogramme,anddecideifand

howitneedstobechangedforthecomingyear.

Meanwhile,ElisariaandSemu,whosharethejobofteachingbetweenthemonapart-time

basis(therestofthetimetheystillworkintheSanctuaryitself),andDixon,thebusdriver,

areenjoyingtheirnewroles.

The Conservation Education Programme at the North Luangwa Conservation Programme (NCLP), ZambiaOfallthefieldprogrammeswesupport,thereareonlytwothatIhaven’tyetvisited,and

NLCPisoneofthem.IwillbeputtingthatrightinOctober!

IshallspendaweekwithEdandClaire,whoruntheproject,andwithSylvesterKampamba,

theConservationEducationOfficer.Theyhavelinedupabusyfewdaysforme:

Sat 10ArriveandgettoNorthLuangwaNationalPark

Sun 11 MeetwithSylvestertalking/planning

Mon 12SchoolvisitstoChama(eastofLuangwa).Sylvestersaystheschoolsarenewto

theprogrammeandveryenthusiasticaboutit

Tue 13ConservationCelebrationDayplanning.Twoteachersand25studentsfromseven

schoolsneedtobebroughttoMukungulevillageandthenbilletedandfedfor

thenight

Wed 14ConservationCelebrationDay

Thu 15Theschoolsthatparticipatedthedaybeforereturntotheirvillages.Timeinthe

morningtomeetwithalltheconservationteachersandheadteachersbefore

theygobacktotheirvillages

Fri 16 Wrapupanddepart

MyhusbandKennethiscomingwithme(payinghisownwayandtakingleave)tohelpwith

takingnotes,analysingfeedbackforms,andtopassonanyspreadsheetskillsthatmightbe

useful.We’llalsoneedtotalkaboutthelocalschoolforthegamescouts’children,thatis

indangeroflosinggovernmentfundingunlessitsintakecanincreaseto200pupils,which

meansfundraisinginordertobuilddormitoryaccommodation.Andofcoursewewillalso

seewhatneedstobeputinplacebeforethefinaltranslocationoffivemoreblackrhinos

(D.b.minor)cantakeplaceinMay2010.It’llbeabusyweek…

Grants & thanksWehaveseveralpeopleweneedtothank.Firstly,ahugethankyoutoMaggieEssonand

ChesterZoo,forallthefinancialandtechnicalsupportfortheprogrammesinLaikipiaand

Mkomazi.Secondly,ourthankstoUSFWS,whichhasjustawarded$55,587towardsthethree

programmes.ThisisthefirsttimewehadappliedtoUSFWSforenvironmentaleducationwork,

andwearedelightedthatourproposalwasaccepted.Thirdly,thankyoutoDisneyWorldwide

ConservationFund,whichawardedUS$18,000toNorthLuangwa’sCEP.Again,thiswasthe

firsttimewehadappliedtoDWCF,andwearesopleasedtohavetheirsupport.Next,thank

youtothefamilyofGilesThornton,whopublishedabookinmemoryoftheirson.Proceeds

fromthiscametoSavetheRhino,forLaikipiaandMkomazi’seducationprogrammes,raising

nearly£7,000.Andfinally,thankyoutoalltheBBCRadio4listeners,whodonatedjustover

£3,000asaresultoftheappeal,readbyCliveAnderson,andbroadcastinMay.

Cathy Dean Director

No, not a party political broadcast, but the three fantastic environmental education programmes we work with, in Laikipia (Kenya), Mkomazi (Tanzania), and North Luangwa (Zambia). Whereas the phrase “Back to school” used to provoke fear and loathing – in my heart anyway – it now prompts me to think of one of the aspects of my work that gives me most satisfaction.

SemuPallangyoworkswithSariaondeliveringRafikiwaFaruinMkomazi

ConservationEducationDaysinNorthLuangwaareverylivelyaffairs

OneoftheZambianschoolchildrenshowsoffhisrhinocolouringinbook

Ephantusdemonstratesanopenairlessontoworkshopattendees

Ephantus’usualconstituency

NO

RTHL

UANGW

AC

ONSERVATIO

NP

RO

GRAM

ME

NO

RTHL

UANGW

AC

ONSERVATIO

NP

RO

GRAM

ME

GEO

RGEA

DAM

SO

NW

ILDLIF

EP

RESERVATIO

NT

RUST

IMAGES:SAVETHERHINO

Thetotalcostoftheprojectwas£25,923,

whichwassupportedbythefollowing:

KWSUS$20,000;ChesterZoo£4,080;

EAZARhinoCampaign7,860euros;

AmnévilleZoo5,000euros;Savethe

Rhino£750;ManchesterMetropolitan

University,3,145euros.Inaddition,

ChesterZooandSavetheRhinoeach

contributed£200towardsthecostofthe

workshop.Ourthankstoeveryonewho

madethisprojectpossible.

Funding

LAIK

IPIA

WIL

DLIF

EF

ORUM

The shiny new photocopier, seen here with Rosemary

Kenya:SAVET

HER

HIN

O

IMAGES:S

AVET

HER

HIN

OThe flying FoxbatIt’s all in the poo

22 23

Anthony KingExecutiveDirectorLaikipiaWildlifeForum

TheLWF’sCommunityConservationProgrammehasfivethemes,whichrespond

directlytothekeyresourcesthatsupportthelivesofthepeopleofLaikipiaand,

ofcourse,itsimportantwildlifepopulation.Thesethemesarethemanagement

oftherangelands(grassforgrazing);themanagementofthe32rivers(90%of

peopledependonriverwaterfortheirneeds);themanagementofforests(fromwhichall

theriverscomeandmanyotherimportantresources);thereductioninhuman-wildlife

conflict(forexample,elephantsdestroythousandsofhectaresofcropsayear);andlastly

thedevelopmentofenterprisesthatwillbenefitbothpeopleandtheenvironment(wecall

thisconservationenterprise).

ItisthroughthecollaborationandeffortsofthepeopleofLaikipia,includingthe

pastoralists,small-scalefarmers,large-scaleranchersandtourismoperators,thatLaikipia

hasbecomeoneofKenya’sgreatestconservationsuccessesandasanctuaryformorethan

halfofKenya’sblackrhino.However,formetogetaroundthe10,000sqkmareawework

in,tomeetlandownersandcommunities,was-upuntilayearago-aslowbusiness.Like

muchofKenya,theroadsandtracksareroughandintherainyseasonmanyarealmost

impassable.Itcouldbeathree-to-fourhourdriveacrossrocksorthroughmudforaone-

hourdiscussionandthenthesametoreturnbacktotheoffice,andrepeatedseveraltimes

aweek.Thismeantthatmuchofthenecessaryadministrationandofficeworkwouldpileup

toveryunappealinglevelsandIwouldgetstuckintheoffice,andthenIwouldfindmyself

gettingoutoftouchwithpeopleacrossLaikipia.

Itoccurredtousthatasolutionwouldbetoflyaround,whichwouldsaveanenormous

amountoftimeandenablemetogetaroundthedistrictanddomypaper-work.Ouroffices

arebasedatNanyukiairfield.Wedidoursumsandworkedoutthatamoderntwo-seat

aircraftwouldbeveryaffordableandcosteffective,andwithsupportfromtheNetherlands

GovernmentweboughtasmallaircraftcalledaFoxbat.

WehavehadtheFoxbatforayearnow

andithasbeenarevelation.Itenablesme

togetaroundLaikipiaandmuchfurther

afieldwithease,andhasalsobecome

animportanttoolforothersinLaikipia.

TheFoxbathasfabulousvisibilityandvery

goodslowflyingcapability,whichmakes

itagreatwaytoviewthingsfromabove.

IhavebeenabletotaketheDistrict

CommissionerovertheLaikipiatoseethe

stateofourrivers,whicharealldryingup,

andforhimtoseeandunderstandtheland

usecauses.TheFoxbathasbeenusedto

radiotrackwilddogandlion.Lastyearwe

wereabletoputtheFoxbatintothepool

ofconventionalaircraftforawildlife

populationcensus,whentheKenyaWildlife

Serviceobserversaiditwasthebestgame-

countingplanehehadbeenin.Wealso

usedittohelpMugierhinosanctuaryto

spotandcounttheirblackrhino,atatime

whenthethreatofpoachingishigh.

Much of my work for the Laikipia Wildlife Forum requires face-to-face discussions with land owners and community groups about their needs, priorities and how they can pool their expertise and resources to create the future they want.

ThanksWesent£27,993totheLWFtohelppay

forthecorecostsoftheCCP,thanksto

theheroiceffortsofthe20093Peaks

3Weeksteam.Partofthemoneypaid

forashinynewphotocopier,seenhere

withRosemary.The2010teamsetsoffin

January,andthey’recurrentlyallhardat

worktrainingandfundraising.

TheuseofdungDNAanalysisfordeterminingthegeneticmake-upofblackrhinos

isanew,cutting-edgetechniqueinKenya,andisbeingintroducedtoimprove

thecountry’swildlifemanagement.Thispioneeringmethodhasproventobe

invaluableforsurveyingrhinodemographicsandtheirgeneticstatus,enhancing

theconservationeffortsforthisendangeredspecies.Kenyaishometo12%ofAfrica’s

endangeredblackrhino,and85%oftheEasternblacksubspecies.Soundbiologicaland

geneticdecisionmakingandmanagementoftheseanimalsisthereforevitalforensuring

thesustainabilitythecountry’snaturalresources.

Theaimsoftheprojectweretwo-fold:tobuildtheKWS’scapacityinrhinoconservation

geneticstudiesandmanagementthroughtraininginmoleculargeneticanalysis;andto

assessthegeneticmake-upofarare,indigenousrhinopopulationintheChyuluHills,

SouthernKenya.

The secondary aims of the project, in relation to the work at the Chyulu Hills were to:

• Establishtheminimumnumberofindividualsinthepopulationthroughprobabilityof

identificationbasedonmicrosatellitegenotypes

• DeterminethesexofallidentifiedindividualsbyanalysisofY-specificrestriction

digestsoftheZFX/Ygene

• Reconstructpedigreesanddeterminelevelsofinbreeding

• Determinetheeffectivepopulationsize

• Examinerank-orderrelatednessbetweenbreedingmalesinthepopulation

• Determinelevelsofgeneticdiversitypresentinthetwostudypopulationsthrough

microsatelliteandmtDNAanalysis

• Comparelevelsofdiversityfoundinstudypopulationwiththosefoundinotherextant

Kenyanpopulationsandwithmuseumsamples

• Calculatethegeneticdistancebetweenthestudypopulationandotherextant

populationsinKenya

What actually happened?

• 6weekssamplecollectionstartedinOct2007

• FreshfaecalsamplescollectedincollaborationwithKWSrangersandMbirikaniscouts

• ForeachsampleGPSlocation,possiblesexandapproximateageofsamplewasrecorded

• Faecalsamplespreservedbydessicationwithsilicagel

• Atotalof43samplescollectedfromacrossChyulurange

Molecular analysis

•DNAextractedatILRIlabsinNairobi

•DNAextractedfromfaeces

•Genotypedfor11polymorphicmicrosatelliteloci

•507bpregionofmitochondrialcontrol

regionsequenced

•5’exonucleaseassayperformed(TaqManSNP)

todeterminesex

•DNAfromChyulusampleswasextremelydegraded

•Subsequently3microsatellitelociwereexcluded

fromthefinalanalysis

•Multiplerepeatsofallmolecularanalysis

performedtoensurereliabilityof

genotypinginlightofallelicdropout

•Genotypesonlyrecordedasuniqueif

theycouldn’tbeduetoallelicdropout

Results

•Minimumpopulationof14animals:6

male;6female;1malecalf;and1unknown

•Populationadmixedwith2animals

fromNgulia

•OnefemaleoriginatingfromNgulia

hasacalf

•Populationshowssignificantlyhigher

levelsofinbreedingandlowerlevels

ofgeneticdiversitycomparedtoother

genotypedpopulationsinKenya

Workshop

Theresultswerediscussedatasite-specific

workshop,heldinJuly2009inTsavo

WestNationalPark,andattendedby

representativesfromtheKenyaWildlife

ServiceandfromtheMaasailand

PreservationTrust.Theworkshoppresented

thefindingsofthestudytomanagement

andstakeholdersonmoleculartracking

project;andproposedasite-specificblack

rhinomanagementplanthatwillbecome

partoftheoverallnationalblackrhino

strategy.AmbitiousplansforanIPZand

increasedsecuritywereputforward,and

wearewaitingeagerlytoseewhatthefinal

approvedplanwillinclude.Theworkshop

proceedingsandrecommendationsarising

willbecirculatedassoonastheybecome

availabletoallfunders.

Antony WanderaRhinoProgrammeKenyaWildlifeService

Bradley CainSchoolofBiology,ChemistryandHealthSciencesKenyaWildlifeServiceManchesterMetropolitanUniversity

Or, more accurately, “Molecular tracking of black rhinoceros in the Chyulu Hills National Park: using microsatellite,

mtDNA and sex gene analysis.” We proposed this project back in 2006 and, finally, we’re now on the verge of publishing

the report, which will inform the future rhino management plans of the Kenya Wildlife Service and the Maasailand Preservation Trust.

Anthony’sarrivalattheNanyukiairstripoftenattractsattentionfromplanespotters

BradshowsRichardBonhamhowtocollectdung

Kenya:

IMAGES:M

AASAIL

ANDP

RESERVATIO

NT

RUST

IMAGES:K

ESH

ILLM

AN-S

MIT

H

24 2524

Ranger Kilitia,trackerdogunit:“Mydogs.

Theyhavehelpeduscatchmanypoachers

anditmeansthepoacherscanrun,but

nothide.Thedogsarelikewitchdoctors.”

Ranger Masangao:“Thecameratraps.The

Chyulurhinoarelikeghosts.Weseetheir

tracksanddungbut,becausethebushis

sothickandtheymainlymoveatnight,we

veryseldomseethem.Thecameratraps

helpusidentifythemandmakethemreal.”

And mine?Ifyoucancallcommitmenta

toolthenthatwouldbemychoice.Without

thecommitmentoftheserangersthere

wouldbenorhinoleftintheChyulus.

GrantsWeareextremelygratefultoChesterZoo

andtotheErnestKleinwortCharitable

Trust,whichgaveus£8,027and£5,000

respectivelyfortheongoingrunningcosts

oftheGameScoutandRhinoprogramme.

WehavealsojustheardthatUSFWSisagain

supportingthisprogramme,withagrantof

$49,932.ThankyoutoUSFWS’sRhinoand

TigerConservationFund.MPT’sgame

scoutsdealtwithover430illegalactivities

in2008alone;theydoafantasticjob.

Wewerealso,thankstoamatchinggrant

bytheKenyaWildlifeService,finallyableto

implementthelong-awaitedconstruction

ofaboreholeintheChyulus,releasing

$42,500fromUSFWSand10,000euros

fromAmnévilleZoo.Thiswillprovidea

cleanandsecuredrinkingwatersupplyfor

theChyulus’blackrhinos,withouttheir

havingtoleavetheboundaryofthePark

ontheheavilypopulatedeasternsideof

theHills.Ourthankstoeveryoneconcerned.

Nothin’ but a hound dogOneofthebloodhoundsdiedfromsleeping

sickness.GilesSim,aformerMasterof

Foxhounds,whohadrecentlybeenoutto

stayatOlDonyoWuas,offeredtofinda

replacementhound(andanotherforLewa

DownsConservancy).Gilescontributed

£500,DavidBoddydonatedthedogs,

TuskTrustawarded£1,000andnegotiated

adiscountwithKenyaAirways;andwe

gaveanother£1,000.Thedogswereflown

outon27AugustandarrivedinNairobi

thefollowingday,wheretheyweremet

byRichardBonham.Noquarantineis

needed,sothey’llbeouttrackingpoachers

almostimmediately!

Drasticwasgreetedwithenthusiasmbyhisnewhandlers

BoscoandDrasticareaforcetobereckonedwith

OneoftheGameScoutsdisplaysaconfiscatedsnare

Thecontentsofarhinoranger’srucksack

Fiona MacleodEventsManager

Inthelate1980sDouglasAdamsand

MarkCarwardinespentayear

travellingtheglobeinsearchof

endangeredanimals.Their

adventurewasbroadcastasaradioseries

onBBCRadio4andin1990madeinto

abook.Author,comedian,television

presenterandfilmdirector,StephenFry

wasaclosefriendofDouglasAdamsandin

2008-9,exactly20yearsaftertheoriginal

journey,foranewBBCdocumentaryand

relatedbook,StephenandMarktravelled

toseewhathadbecomeoftheanimalsfor

whichDouglasandMarkhadsearchedtwo

decadesearlier.TheYangtzeriverdolphin

isnowextinct,buttheydidfilmthe

Komododragon,bluewhale,kakapoparrot,

aye-aye,manateeandtheblackrhino.

Sponsored by Abercrombie & KentTuesday 27 October 2009

OnTuesday27October,StephenandMark

willgiveatalkupdatingusontheirquest

tofindthesespecies.Untilrecently,the

NorthernwhiterhinowasfoundinUganda,

southernChad,south-westernSudan,the

easternpartofCentralAfricanRepublic,

andnorth-easternDemocraticRepublic

ofCongo.Fourindividualswereseenin

GarambaNationalParkintheDRCin

2006butnonehasbeenseensince.The

Northernwhiterhinoisthereforenow

presumedextinctinthewild.Thereare

11Northernwhitesheldincaptivity,inthe

CzechRepublicandCalifornia,butthey’re

notbreeding.

FollowingthetalkbyStephenFryandMark

Carwardine,therewillbeanoptionalthree-

coursehotandcoldbuffetservedat

Ognisko.Ticketsforthedinnermustbe

boughtseparatelytothetalk.

Ticketsareonsalenow!Pleasevisit:

www.savetherhino.org

Thefirstepisodeofthetelevisionseries

willbebroadcastonSunday6September;

thelastonSunday18October.

Last Chance to See with Stephen Fry and Mark Carwardine

independentteamsoperatingindifferentareasandIhavetokeeptrackofthemandreact

immediatelytosituationsastheycomeup.Whencommunicationsbreakdown,Iamblind.”

Wilson Mancha,inchargeofrhinomonitoring:“MyGPSunit.Nowthatwehaveour

geographicinformationsystem(GIS)inplace,Icanseewheretherhinoconcentrations

areandtheareasthepatrolsarecovering.Ireallylookforwardtobeingabletomapthe

movementofindividuals.”

Sergeant Sakimba:“Myweapon.Wepatrolareaswhicharefullofbuffalo,elephant,lions

andsometimesverybadanddangerouspoachers.WhenIhavemyweaponIamnotfrightened.”

Sergeant Nderu:“Informantsareourbesttools.Mostofthearrestswemakearetheresult

ofinformationwegetfrominformants.”

Ranger Silati:“Myboots!Sometimeswewalkfortenhoursinadayoververyroughrocks

andwithoutmybootsIcouldnotdoit.Ilikebootswhichdon’tleavedistincttracksas

theytellthepoacherswearearound.”

Ranger Dickson: “Myuniform.Iamproudtowearitanditgainsmerespectfromthe

communitywhentheyseeIamarhinoranger.”

Ranger Saab:“Thedonkeys.Theycarryandpositionwaterforourpatrolstoplacescars

cannotreachandthismeanswecanstayinthebushlonger.”

SaveTheRhinoaskedmewhat

myfavouriteandmostimportant

toolsforrhinoconservation

were…SoIpassedthebuckto

therangerswhoareoutthereeveryday

andnightonthesharpedge.Thisiswhat

theycamebackwith:

Fred Njagi,administrator:“Mycomputer;

myworkwouldbeverydifficultwithout

one.Ithelpsmetrackthewagesofthe71

rangersweemploy,enterdataofrhinoand

otherwildlifeactivity,withreporting,with

mappingandsomuchmore.”

Edward Piya, officerinchargeofsecurity:

“Ithastobetheradiosandmymobile

telephone–communicationsare

everything.SometimesIhaveuptofive

Richard BonhamChairmanMaasailandPreservationTrust

Tools of the trade The Chyulu Hills National Park, Kenya extends to the north of Tsavo West National Park, and is a vital part of the Tsavo ecosystem as a whole. In the northern section of the Chyulu Hills, and on the adjacent Mbirikani Group Ranch, is a population of a minimum of 14 Critically Endangered Eastern black rhino.

My boots! Sometimes we walk for ten hours in a day over very rough rocks and without my boots I could not do it.

TheChyulurhino‘ghosts’caughtoncamera

OurverygratefulthankstotheFoundation

FriendsofSafariparkBeekseBergenand

Dierenrijk,whichgaveus5,000eurosfor

theMkomazifence.

Wealso,togetherwithregularfunding

partnerChesterZoo,sentover£2,000

intotaltopayfortheflightsandvisasfor

veterinarianPeteMorkel,whooversaw

thesuccessfultranslocationofthree

rhinosfromDvurKraloveZootoMkomazi

inMay/June2009.

Andseepages20-21fornewsabout

Mkomazi’swonderfuleducation

programme,RafikiwaFaru.

Thanks

IMAGES:MKOMAZIRHINOSANCTUARY

Tony FitzjohnFieldDirectorGeorgeAdamsonWildlifePreservationTrust

Conserving,protectingand

breedingupapopulation

ofblackrhinoinTanzania

isnoeasytask.Bythe

early1980sinMkomazi,therewere

norhinosleftwhatsoever.Withthe

Tanzanianrhinopopulationasawhole

devastatedtoclose-extinction,the

GovernmentofTanzaniarequested

thatGAWPTestablisharhino

sanctuarytohelpbreedupnumbers

insafety,whichitdidin1997.

Establishingtherhinosanctuary

involvedtheconstructionofa30km

fenceline,enclosinga45sqkmarea

inprimerhinohabitat.Thefence

designwassimplicityitselfandbased

onsuccessfulsanctuariesinKenya

andSouthAfrica:eight-foothigh

withathree-strandcantilever,and16

strandsofhigh-tensilewireelectrified

upto7,000volts,alarmedwithrelay

backtothemainsecurityoutposts.

Over10,000fencepostswerebrought

infromEldoretontheKenya-Uganda

border,asnotalinisedpoleswere

tobefoundinTanzaniaatthattime,

and500kmsofhigh-tensilewireand

solarandelectricalequipmentwas

shippedinfromNewZealand.Three

securityoutpostswereestablished

alongthefence-lineitselfwithback-

upsecurityprovidedfrominternal

outpostsonhilltopsaswellasthemain

base-campatKisima–justoveramile

away.Externalsecuritywas,andis,

providedthroughtheestablishmentof

strategicallyplacedoutpostswithinthe

NationalPark,severalmilesaway,and

alsothroughthedeploymentofmobile

teamswhopatrolona20kmradiusof

theSanctuary.TanzanianNationalParks

(TANAPA)hasrecentlyofferedranger

teamstoworkalongsidetheGAWPT

personneltoenhancethisprotection.

Todate(touchwood),therehave

beennoattemptsontherhinosoron

theTanzaniansecurityguardswho

puttheirlivesatriskeverysingle

daytoprotecttheseanimals.

Sowhyisthefenceourfavouritepiece

ofequipment?Verysimply,thefence

stopstherhinosfromstrayingoutand

givesusanalarmifsomeonetriesto

breakin.Itisaclean,clearlineforthe

armedrangersandthefencegangs

topatrolandahugepsychological

andphysicalbarriertorenegade

interference.TheTanzanianmenand

womenwhoworkwithintheRhino

Sanctuaryarecourageousandloyal

andtheytaketheresponsibilityof

protectingtheserhinoveryseriously.

Theystillholdthereputationasbeing

oneofthemostloyalanddedicated

workforcesinAfrica.Theyalsofeelthe

benefitsofasecurefencefromwhich

theycantackleasecuritysituation

andhavesomeformofprotection.

Asuccessfulrhinosanctuaryisalsoall

aboutspace.Therhinos(nownumbering

13)haveallestablishedterritorieswithin

theSanctuaryandveryrarelyreach

thefencelineitself.Thethickbushis

ahugeplusintermsofbothfeedand

security,butnotenoughonitsown.

Fence-linemaintenanceistoppriority,

withmobileteamscheckingtheentire

fencetwiceaday.Theycarryoutthese

checksonfoottoensurethattheydonot

missanyproblemorpotentialproblem.

Repairsareundertakenonthespotand

wealwayshaveastockoffenceposts

andwireinthestoresformajorrepairs.

Likeallfavouritepiecesofkit,thefence

isanexpensiveundertaking:poles,wire,

outposts,people,insulators,earthrods,

batteries,solarpanels,energisers,plant

machines,thelistgoeson,butwefelt

thatwecouldn’tdesignateMkomazias

an“IntensiveProtectionZone”with

littleorzeroexternalprotection.

Thefencelineisnowbeingextended

intoanareaofhigherrainfallandrhino-

preferredvegetationandwherethere

arefurthernaturalwaterpans.Thisisa

massivecivilengineeringprojectbutwill

havegreatbenefitsfortheexpansion

oftheRhinoSanctuaryinthecoming

years.GAWPTisalsointheprocess

ofreplacingtheoriginalfence-posts

whichwereinstalledin1996.Thisisan

undertakingrequiringheavyphysical

manuallabourandmassivelogistics.

Ithinkwe’vemadethepoint…

favouritepieceofkit…THEFENCE!!

2726

Tanzania:

In the 1970s, well over 400 black rhino were recorded in the Mkomazi Game Reserve (now a National Park). By the time the George Adamson Wildlife Preservation Trust (GAWPT) started work on the restoration of Mkomazi in 1989, the wipe-out of East Africa’s wildlife populations was emerging from its very lowest and almost critical ebb.

Oh, give me land, lots of land under starry skies above, do n’t fence me in

A worthy heroOur congratulations to Jackson Kamwi, Senior Rhino Monitor for the Lowveld Rhino Trust, who was selected by the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund as a Disney Conservation Hero. This prestigious international award recognises local people who make significant contributions to conservation in their communities. Jackson received the award in recognition of his commitment to protecting Zimbabwe’s black rhinos and his heroic efforts, helping to capture and relocate nearly 1,000 rhinos over the past two decades.

No news from the Selous Sharp-eyed readers will have noticed that the spring and autumn 2009 issues of The Horn have not carried any articles about the work of the Selous Trust (previously known as the Selous Rhino Trust). Fraser Smith, the project’s Technical Advisor, has not been able to renew his work permit since March, and negotiations with the Tanzanian Division of Wildlife are ongoing. We sincerely hope, as do co-funders USFWS, IRF, White Oak and Chester Zoo, that Fraser will be able to resume his role.

News in briefChange at Zambezi SocietyWe say goodbye to Duncan Purchase, Director of the Zambezi Society since 2007, who has tendered his resignation. Describing his time at the helm of the Zambezi Society as “very informative and enjoyable, despite the challenges of the operating environment in Zimbabwe,” Duncan thanked the Executive Committee for the support that they have given him during his time at ZamSoc. Society Chairman, Ant Williams, together with the Executive Committee, has formed a Task Force to explore future directions for the Society and to chart a way forward for the next six months. Save the Rhino takes a close interest, of course, in the rhino monitoring programme in Matusadona National Park, and we will be keen to see how ZamSoc moves forward.

Running and climbing We didn’t have space elsewhere in this issue to say that the team to run the Comrades Marathon in South Africa in May 2010 is shaping up well; and that we hope to have a climber, Chris Parker, conquering Kili in rhino costume in early 2010. Good luck to all our brave rhinos…

29

Baseball caps

Polo shirts

afunkynewdesigncurrentlyavailableinblackandbottlegreen

Shoppingbags

usedwidelythroughoutourfieldprojects,ourcapsareagreatwaytoshowyoursupportfor

SavetheRhino

anenvironmentallyfriendlyandstylishwaytocarry

allyourequipment

Get your own favourite piece of equipment…

Cath LawsonOfficeandCommunicationsManager

Christmas is but a few months away. (I’m sorry someone had to mention it). Fear not! Save the Rhino can solve all your problems with its extensive merchandise shop and

membership schemes. You’re just a few clicks (or a telephone call) away from giving someone their

very own favourite piece of rhino equipment!

Logo shirts

Pinbadges

Embroidered patches

Christmas cards

availableinawiderangeofgreatcoloursandsizes

28

A wedding with an unusual twist

Pam HobsonTheBride

Avid readers of The Horn may recall my piece in the autumn 2008 edition entitled “Charge of the Tutu.” In the article I mentioned that as part of our wedding in July 2009. I was to muck out the rhino shed at Woburn Safari Park in my wedding dress. Well here’s the proof that I did just that…plus a bit more besides!

TheformalpartofthedaystartedwithmearrivingatThe

SculptureGallery,Woburnreadytomakemygrandentrance

onlytobetoldtherewasaminordelay.Allkindsofthingswere

goingthroughmymind,butitturnedoutthatanotherwedding

wastakingplaceinfrontof100bewilderedguests:tworhinoswere

gettingmarried!

OnceIarrivedatthealtar,itquicklybecameapparentthatPhilwas

holdingasmallbox.Ididn’tneedthreeguessestoworkoutwhatitwas.

Theweddingringsweresatinaboxofdriedrhinopoo.Asifthatwasn’t

enough,attheendoftheceremony,thetworhinosre-enteredcarrying

pinkwelliesandaniceshinyshoveltofacilitatethe“muckingout”.I’mglad

mydresswasn’ttootightorImighthavesplititlaughing!Bothbridal

partiesthenleftforWoburnSafariParkand,aspromised,Ishovelled

rhinopoo,inmywonderfulweddingdress,inthebrandnewrhinohouse.

Weaskedourguestsforanalternativetoweddingpresents.Intruerhinostyle,theycame

upwithsponsorshipforournextSavetheRhinoadventure,theComradesMarathonin2010.

Let’shopeourfriendsandfamilyrecognisetruerhinodedicationwhentheyseeitandhelpus

beatourtarget!IfyouwishtosponsorPhilonhisquesttocompletethecomradesmarathon

youcandonatedirectonhisjustgivingwebsitewww.justgiving.com/philip-hobson

ThankyouSavetheRhinoforhelpingtomakeourdayperfect.

PhilandPam’sdedicationtorhinoswasevidentthroughouttheday

ThenewrhinoenclosureatWoburnSafariPark

IthinkweallknowwhatPam’sthinking!

Pamgetskittedup

Therhinoversionofachampagnetoast

Philpresentedtherings,whichwereinscribedwithrhinos,inrhinodung

Fully kitted up?Thenwhynotjoinoneofour

membershipschemesandhelpbuyequipment

(amongotherthings)forsomeofthefiel

d

projectssupportedbyS

avetheRhino?We

offerthreem

embershipschemes:Protect,

Evolve,andRhinoSavers

,eachofwhichcanbe

paidmonthlyorannuallyandcomeswithagreat

welcome

pack.Simplyfill

intheformenclosedinthiseditionofThe

Hornorcontactcath@savetherhino.orgformoredetails

.

Cuddly rhinos

Car stickers

Protect

£3permonthor£36

perannum(thecostof

fuelforapatrolvehicle

inNamibiaforoneweek).

Evolve

£10permonthor

£120perannum(the

costapairofbinoculars

forrhinomonitoring

work).

Rhino Saver

£1permonthor£12

perannum(thecost

ofamosquitonetfora

rhinoranger).

Cov

eryou

rtra

cks… Cover your tracks…

A track is a mark left by a moving animal

Rangersusetrackstofindandmonitoranimalsthattheycan’tsee.Wouldyoubeagoodranger?Canyoumatchthetracktotheanimal? Thecheetahistheonlycatwithout

retractableclaws.Clawmarksareclearly

seeninthetrackacheetahleaves.

Hippopotamusesspend

timebothonlandandin

water.Ahippopotamus

hasfourwebbedtoesand

youcanseeeachinthe

trackitleaves.

Giraffesusetheir

hoovesasweaponsto

protectthemselvesand

theircalves.Theyhave

twotoesoneachfootand

thesecanbeeasilyseen

inthetrackstheyleave.

Thefootofan

elephantisnearlyround.

Africanelephantshave

threenailsoneachback

footandfournailson

eachfrontfootandyou

canjustaboutseethis

inthetrackitleaves.

Lionswalkontheirtoesandthis

helpsthembereallyquietwhenthey

move.Likemostcats,lionshave

retractableclawsandsoclawmarks

can’tbeseeninthetrackstheyleave.

Unlikemanyhoofedmammals,the

rhinoceroshasanoddnumberof

toes–threeoneachhoof.Themiddle

toeisthelargesttoeascanbeen

seeninthetrackleftbyarhinoceros.

30

Photos courtesy

Renaud Fulconis,

Cath Lawson and

Dave Robertson

8

6

1

3

7

5

2

An

swer

s: 1

Bla

ck R

hin

o, 2

Bab

oon

, 3 C

hee

tah

, 4 L

ion

, 5 E

leph

ant,

6 G

iraf

fe,

7 H

ippo

, 8 W

hit

e R

hin

o

Likehumans,baboons

haveopposablethumbs.

Thismeanstheycantouch

alltheirotherfingerswith

theirthumb.Unlikehumans,

baboonsalsohaveopposable

thumbsontheirfeet.Thumb

marksareclearlyseeninthe

trackababoonleaves.

4

We also thank all the authors of the articles in this magazine, and everyone who has taken part in one of our events.

Companies2:09 events, abercrombie and Kent, Beasty Bags, The Body Shop Foundation, British airways Communities and Conservation, Brompton Bar and Grill, Centrepoint Computer Services ltd, Clipper Teas, The Colourhouse, Discovery initiatives, everyclick, The exotic paper Company, explore, Give it Gifts, h Young and Co ltd, interstate associates, Kalahari pepper Company, Mountain Safaris, Quizzogs.com, Rhino Wine Gear, Rogavi, Saffery Champness, Silver Jungle, StainlessRhino.com, Summits africa, Synchronicity Foundation, Thornton Books, victor Stationery, Wildlife Worldwide, The Zetter

Charities, trusts and foundations and other amnéville Zoo, BBC Wildlife Fund, arnold Burton 1998 Charitable Trust, Chester Zoo, Colchester Zoo’s action for the Wild Fund, Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund, Dublin Zoo, environmental investigation agency, Simon Gibson Charitable Trust, international Rhino Foundation, The JJ Charitable Trust, ernest Kleinwort Charitable Trust, The Mark leonard Trust, The linbury Trust, The Mackintosh Foundation, p F Charitable Trust, RSpCa overseas Fund, Rufford Maurice laing Foundation, Ruth Smart Foundation, Safari Club international (london Chapter), Safari Club international Foundation, Safaripark Beekse Bergen and Dierenrijk, Salzburg Zoo, Save Foundation, Ruth Smart Foundation, Stuttgart Zoo, Swire Charitable Trust, Taiwan Forestry Bureau, Treasure Charitable Trust, UK Rhino Group, US Fish and Wildlife Service

And thank you to all those who wish to remain anonymous.

individualsBenedict allen, alan anderson, ian anderson, Matt Brooke, Walt Brown, Dan Clark, Robin and patrizia Cooke-hurle, R n Dean & J C Dean, Samuel De Toro arias, Robert Devereux, Kenneth Donaldson, petra Fleischer, Renaud Fulconis, nigel Goodman, Rob Green and family, idiots of ants, ione harding, Tim and alice holmes, Tony husband, p a Jones, Tom Kenyon-Slaney, paul Kerensa, peter lawrence, R J lewis, Martina navratilova, andi osho, laura petetti, hilary puxley and Michael Crane, J Saffron, Tira Shubart, Malcolm Stathers, George and lucilla Stephenson, The penny Dreadfuls, elisabeth Whitebread, Jack Whitehall, S M Wiles, Tom Wrigglesworth

We would like to express our warmest thanks to the following individuals, companies and grant-making bodies for their generous support for our work over the last six months. We could not achieve all that we do, without the time, goodwill, and financial and pro-bono support of you all.

Our heartfelt thanks to:

ThankYou!

31

Registered Charity No. 1035072

Co

ve

R iM

aG

e T

op

: Re

na

UD

FU

lCo

niS

Co

ve

R iM

aG

e B

oT

To

M: S

av

e T

he

Rh

ino

Sa

ve

Th

e R

hin

o

pa

Ul

Ma

RS

ha

ll

ST

UD

ioS

SavetheRhinoInternationalConnecting conservation and communities16 Winchester Walk london Se1 9aQT: +44 (0)20 7357 7474 F: +44 (0)20 7357 9666 e: info@savetherhino.org W: www.savetherhino.org

SavetheRhinoInternational,Inc c/o Chapel & York limited,

1000 n. West Street, Suite 1200, Wilmington, De 19801

http://savetherhino-inc.webs.com

Save the Rhino international, inc is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization.

Donations to it are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. ein 31-1758236.Made from 60% recycled paper

Trustees

Christina Franco

Tom Kenyon-Slaney (Chair)

Mark Sainsbury

George Stephenson

nick Tims

adam Wylie

FounderPatrons

Douglas adams

Michael Werikhe

Patrons

Clive anderson

louise aspinall

laura Bailey

nick Baker

Simon Barnes

Chloe Chick

Dina de angelo

Robert Devereux

angus innes

Fergal Keane

Francesco nardelli

Martina navratilova

Julian ozanne

viscount petersham

ines Sastre

Robin Saunders

Tira Shubart

James Sunley

William Todd-Jones

FounderDirectors

Johnny Roberts

David Stirling

Staff

Director: Cathy Dean

Fundraising Manager: lucy Boddam-Whetham

events Manager: Fiona Macleod

office and Communications Manager: Cath lawson

Michael hearn intern: laurence Smith / laura adams

project advisor: David Stirling

TheHorn

Design: interstate associates. Special thanks to interstate associates

and Jim Jeanes (www.interstateteam.com) for their creative

work on this magazine.

printing: The Colourhouse ltd. Thanks too to Colourhouse, for their

loyal and efficient support over the years.