In June, African Parks translocated 16 Southern White rhinos from &Beyond Phinda Game Reserve in South Africa to Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The move was part of an ongoing wildlife restoration project within the Garamba Complex to restore mega-herbivores to the region. The translocation of the rhinos is part of an initiative to restore the ecological functions of the region after the loss of the Northern White rhinos in the country.
The translocation was done in collaboration with the government of the DRC, the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, &Beyond, animal airlift specialist Conservation Solutions and Barrick Gold Corporation as the key sponsor.
Peter Fernhead, CEO of African Parks, said: “We are thankful to our partners for making this translocation possible: the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo for their visionary conservation leadership, the local communities for their support and eagerness to protect this iconic species, Barrick Gold for funding the project and their technical support in executing it, and &Beyond Travel for providing the founder population of rhinos.”
Images of the translocation can be seen on &Beyond Travel’s Instagram page.
