Wildlife Conservation South Africa Project #14141

Protect and Save the life of Our Rhinos

by Action Change (Formerly GVI Trust)

Project Report | Apr 16, 2018
Take a little to save a lot

By Kate Arbon | Science Officer

Dear Supporter,

Under the threat of poaching, reserves will go to extreme measures to keep their rhinos safe. A few years ago Karongwe made the decision to dehorn all of their rhinos, in an effort to discourage poachers by making less of a reward available to anyone who risks trying to poach.

As a rhino’s horn grows constantly – just like our hair and fingernails – dehorning must be done every couple of years, and recently the reserve repeated dehorning on some of its rhinos which were due. GVI were asked to assist in the process so it was all hands on deck. The immobilised animals need to be kept in an upright position and can’t lean on one side for too long or they will injure their legs, which means the 1.5-tonne rhino must be supported and occasionally rolled from one side to the other - no easy task, even with a dozen people helping.

Although everyone was happy to help, it was also a sobering reality check. The image of a defenseless rhino having its horn removed with a chainsaw is not easy to forget and some can find the experience difficult to process at first. But all agree it isn’t the dehorning that’s upsetting, but the fact that this is the length we must go to if we want to protect these vulnerable animals.

Sadly, even after being dehorned a rhino can still fall victim to poachers. Because the base contains nerves and blood vessels it’s not possible to safely remove the entire horn and even the small amount that remains is worth an extraordinary amount on the black market. This is why, despite an entirely dehorned rhino population, Karongwe’s anti-poaching unit can never rest easy and know that the rhinos are safe, and must continuously monitor for poaching activity.

The GVI Trust is fully committed to helping these efforts, including recently funding vital repairs to anti-poaching vehicles so that the team don’t lose their ability to respond to threats quickly. Whether with funds raised from our amazing supporters, or by getting dirty and tired in hands-on tasks, we will do whatever we can to keep these incredible animals safe for another generation.

Thank you, as always, for your ongoing support.

The Karongwe Team

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Jan 16, 2018
Tracking our White Rhino Population in Karongwe

By Leah Brown | Base Manager

Dear Supporters,

We’re very excited to update you all in relation to our last project report! As you know our science team has discovered and started utilizing the integrated software program called DigTrace. This program allows the user to create 3D models of vertebrate footprints, which can be compared and used to identify an individual’s tracks without even seeing them! Although we are still refining the smaller details of the software, we are getting closer to accomplishing an innovative and passive method of tracking our white rhino population here on Karongwe.

In order to create these invaluable models, we must first find the perfect footprint! Our research team are in the field twice a day every day, keeping an eye out for tracks of these often elusive mammals. As we are in the early stages of creating footprint ID kits, we must be able to correctly identify each individual rhino and find a clear track so we can start to build our initial database.

DigTrace uses a technique called photogrammetry, which requires upwards of 40-60 overlapping photographs of a footprint with a scale for reference. The entire overview and every possible side-on view of the footprint must be taken in order to create the model. Thick vegetation and course soils typical of our reserve often make it difficult for the team to photograph clear images, which is proving to be a small set-back in our model development. Nevertheless, we are adamant on building a large catalogue of footprints in the hope that soon we can identify our rhinos without the need to disturb them in their natural habitat. This is especially important in regards to mothers with young calves; and with a small number of brief sightings recently reported of a new calf on the reserve, it is imperative that we focus all of our efforts into creating this catalogue.

Your support during our search to expand our tracking techniques has been invaluable. With the development of this exciting program, together with our continuing investigations into finding reputable wireless camera traps will prove vital in our fight against the war on rhino poaching.

With Gratutude,

GVI Karongwe

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Oct 20, 2017
Let's continue to keep our Rhino's safe

By Leah Brown | Base Manager

Dear supporters,

Recently, GVI Karongwe’s science team has invested countless hours in an exciting new development for anti-poaching efforts on the reserve. We discovered a program called Digtrace, which enables you to input photographic images of tracks to create a moveable 3D image. Eventually we hope to create an ID kit for each individual on the property to enable us to identify these animals in their complete absence. This technique will be especially useful for certain individuals who intentionally avoid human and vehicle presence.

The search for the software stemmed from recent concerns about the location of a rhino mother and newborn calf who hadn’t been seen on the property for over 10 months. Attempts to search for them using evidence of their tracks was unsuccessful as the sound of our vehicles triggered motherly instincts. With such young offspring, rhino mothers are innately protective and will keep their young away from any potential threat or unusual noise. It was only in September of this year, a total of 10 months after her last confirmed sighting, that we finally positively identified this pair from a vehicle. Her calf was now almost a year old – an age where rhino calves are more capable of identifying and fleeing from danger.

It was an enormous relief to confirm that our entire rhino population was safe. But what could we do to ensure we wouldn’t experience such a worrisome time again? Digtrace was the answer! Our science team is working hard to collect enough images from the footprint our rhinos leave behind to compile these invaluable ID kits. To help us collect this data at a faster rate we are currently searching for wireless camera traps that provide downloadable real-time images. We will place these traps in areas where we are aware of rhino presence and will use these instant updates to visit sites of fresh tracks. These cameras will also be placed in identified hot-spot poaching areas – a potential huge leap forward for anti-poaching efforts on Karongwe.

As you can imagine these traps are expensive, but incredibly worthwhile to ensure the protection of this iconic species.

Thankyou for your ongoing support.

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