Royal champions for rhinos
OLMOTI the rhino (below) has travelled far in her young life. Soon she will be embarking on an incredible journey with two royal well-wishers following her every step. Princes William and Harry have asked to be kept informed as the Eastern black rhino prepares to be airlifted from Europe to Africa with hopes she will help bring a new dawn for her kind.
Over the past three years Olmoti has been enjoying the fresh air of North Yorkshire’s Flamingo Land, having arrived as a calf from Zurich zoo with her mother, Samira. Last week she bade farewell to her keepers to begin the first stage of a venture that will bolster the fortunes of critically endangered rhinos, whose numbers have crashed because of poaching for their horns.
Olmoti is one of five young rhinos being prepared to live in Rwanda’s Akagera National Park, a 400-square-mile patchwork of savannah, woodland and low mountains which has seen remarkable efforts to confront poaching. The increased footfall of rangers and sophisticated technology has reduced the illegal killing of the park’s wildlife by 97 per cent in three years.
Having joined the other rhinos at the Dvur Kralove Zoo in the Czech Republic – a facility which has successfully bred 45 rhinos in captivity and already translocated several to Tanzania where they have produced calves – Olmoti and her companions will spend the next seven months being trained to survive in the wild. The hope is the three female and two male rhinos will be flown to the Rwandan capital, Kigali, next spring and then on to Akagera.
major driving force behind the project is Chester Zoo’s chief executive Dr Mark Pilgrim. He is also coordinator of the black rhino breeding programme for the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria, which has worked with Rwandan authorities.
The vision of Olmoti one day becoming a mother to a new generation of Rwandan-born black rhinos delights Flamingo Land owner Gordon Gibb.
“The release of Olmoti, our beloved rhino, into the wilds of Rwanda is the culmination of my life’s work and that of our animal collection,” he explains. “Using our facility as a safe sanctuary to breed critically endangered animals is something we have been doing for decades. Our inspiration has always been to return offspring back to the wild and to replenish dwindling world populations. This is the only way of preventing the extinction of this majestic species.”
Olmoti’s odyssey is a “story of huge significance”, adds Mr Gibb. “We will be watching her journey with great interest and pride and, in addition to the security teams which will be quietly protecting Olmoti from poachers, she has two very impressive individuals monitoring her progress.
“Prince Harry, who is President of African Parks, and Prince William, a tireless supporter of rhino conservation, have asked to be kept informed of Olmoti’s progress, which we will do.
“With all the love, hard work, dedication and now a Royal interest, she has been given every chance to flourish.”
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