[Animals] 2,000 Southern White Rhino To Be Released Into The Wild Over The Next 10 Years Giving Hope To The Species

[- !el Catire *O*]

 

African Parks, a conservation NGO that manages 22 protected areas in partnership with 12 governments throughout Africa, announced that it will rewild over 2,000 southern white rhinos over the next 10 years.
The NGO has stepped in as the new owner of the world’s largest private captive rhino breeding operation, “Platinum Rhino,” a 7,800- hectare property in the North West province of South Africa, which currently holds 2,000 southern white rhino, representing up to 15% of the world’s remaining wild rhino po[CENSORED]tion.
As a result of financial stress, Platinum Rhino was put up for auction on April 26th of this year, but did not receive any bids, putting these rhinos at serious risk of poaching and fragmentation. Given African Parks’ experience in effectively managing protected areas and carrying out wildlife translocations at scale, including bringing rhino back to Rwanda, Malawi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, African Parks was approached by numerous concerned individuals from the conservation sector to provide a solution to prevent a potential conservation crisis, and to help secure the future for a species in crisis.
After conducting a thorough due diligence and with the support of the South African Government, as well as having secured emergency funding to make the transaction possible, African Parks agreed to purchase the farm and all 2,000 rhino.
African Parks has one clear objective: to rewild these rhinos over the next 10 years to well-managed and secure areas, establishing or supplementing strategic po[CENSORED]tions, thereby de-risking the future of the species. The breeding program will be phased out and the project will end once all the rhino are released into the wild. This is one of the largest continent-wide rewilding endeavors to occur for any species.
“African Parks had no intention of being the owner of a captive rhino breeding operation with 2,000 rhinos. However, we fully recognize the moral imperative of finding a solution for these animals so that they can once again play their integral role in fully functioning ecosystems,” said Peter Fearnhead, CEO of African Parks.

Link:https://worldanimalnews.com/2000-southern-white-rhino-to-be-released-into-the-wild-over-the-next-10-years-giving-hope-to-the-future-of-the-endangered-species/