Relocating Rhinos

ZINAVE NATIONAL PARK IS NOW MOZAMBIQUE’S ONLY BIG 5 RESERVE THANKS TO A SUCCESSFUL OVERLAND TRANSLOCATION

It’s been more than 40 years since rhino roamed Zinave; now – thanks to the longest road-transfer of rhinos ever conducted – there’s the start of a healthy population, with 19 white rhinos translocated from South Africa. Since the move, the park’s first new calf, a healthy female, has been born.

The plan, involving Mozambique’s National Administration for Conservation Areas, Peace Parks Foundation and Exxaro Resources, is to relocate more than 40 black and white rhinos over the next few years. It’s a vital move to grow Africa’s rhino population, one-third of which has been killed off in the last decade.

Zinave, now repopulated with some 2 400 animals – including elephant, sable, giraffe, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, leopard and hyena – is one of five national parks in the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area. The transfrontier area was established 20 years ago and spans 100 000km2, straddling Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe.

Zinave was a casualty of the 16-year civil war that decimated wildlife populations. Now there’s hope for this long silent reserve thanks to an extensive rewilding and restoration programme running since 2016.

The new rhinos have been fitted with live tracking sensors, enabling real-time 24/7 monitoring and there are intensive counter-poaching measures and tight controls in place, including many additional rangers with specialist training and a rapid response unit with a canine team and a helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft to boost surveillance and prevent poacher incursions.