Working around-the-clock, teams in South Africa safeguarded these precious animals while the Botswana teams prepared for their arrival.
“You simply can’t describe what it is like to see these huge but fragile animals touching down in a massive military aircraft in Botswana, to watch the consummate professionalism of the vets, the capture teams, the Botswana Defence Force and DWNP, the &Beyond and Great Plains lodge, habitat and office teams all jumping in and getting their hands dirty. Days of sleepless nights and selflessness in support of a great cause.” said Joss Kent.
Dereck adds: “Rhinos Without Borders obviously refers to moving rhinos from one country to the other, but its also a ‘cross the divide’ experiment for us where two companies that can often be seen as competitors set aside all that and collaborate on a common good. I’ve loved the experience of working with Joss’ team.”
This latest achievement brings Rhinos Without Borders very near to its once unbelievable goal of relocating 100 rhino.
“The dream – some would say unachievable crazy dream – of 100 rhino is in sight. And the entire RWB team is driven and galvanized to cross that ‘finishing line’ as swiftly as we can. Time is not on our, nor the rhinos, side, ” reiterates Joss Kent.
Rhino horn remains one of the most sought after animal products in wildlife trade market. Its value is greater than gold, making rhinos high-value targets for poachers. Rhinos Without Borders is addressing this threat by physically relocating rhinos vulnerable to poaching incidents and releasing them into the wilderness of Botswana under close protections from the Government of Botswana and the Rhinos Without Borders monitoring teams.
“Recently we lost a rhino. His mother gave birth to a new calf and started rejecting her two-year old that we had brought in from afar. Rejections of sub-adults happen all the time in the wild and I am a firm believer in nature; that it knows best, selects well, and when it does, it makes us stronger. What moved me most in this experience was that the two Rhino Monitors standing watch looked at me and shed tears; believing they had failed this rhino. In fact, it was a happy moment for me to know that our monitors have so emotionally invested in saving rhinos. Together, we placed our hands on the rhino’s still warm face for a moment and I said: ‘Now we fight for the others in his name.’
While we mourn the loss of this rhino, we celebrate that he was indeed lost in in a natural way, not by poachers’ bullet or snare.
This project has been a real journey for all of us and we want to thank you for your support and walking this journey with us. We still have a way to go, but with your help we will change the fate of those rhino that we can save from an unnatural fate.”
Thank you for continued support of our conservation endeavours.
Dereck Joubert
CEO Great Plains Conservation and the Great Plains Foundation