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Far on the other side of the planet, in a place that resembles a martian landscape full of red rocks and very little water, MPR News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard was recently tracking the critically endangered desert-adapted black rhino. The Minnesota Zoo works with 

 to protect these incredible, prehistoric giants. They face threats not only due to poaching but also climate change as droughts grow longer, more intense and more frequent.

Namibia, in southwest Africa, has the largest population of black rhinos and has done something that few other places have been able to do — greatly reduce poaching for their horns and preserve this unique ecosystem.

Our tracker Walter Geingob, with Save The Rhino Trust Namibia, explained that when the poaching started, the population dropped off. “We were down to five, now it’s eight thanks to some births,” he said.

Getting close to these creatures starts very early in the morning — before the heat of the day — and requires a very bumpy ride in a four-wheel drive vehicle over piles of rocks that barely resemble a road. Once we got close enough, we headed out on foot looking for any clue, including rhino poop.

“Inside the droppings you can see bits of branches all cut exactly the same length,” our tracker said after sifting through some dung we found.

All clues lead to one vital thing — water. It’s the end of the eight-month dry season and those seasons are worsening due to climate change. 

As we sifted around a mud puddle-like spring, I asked Geingob if he thought the rhino was here that morning. He said “Yeah, this morning. Zebras come in the night and dig. Rhinos then come early in the morning to lap up water."

He explained how their program works to protect rhinos: "The conservancy set up base camps in the area. These guys do foot patrolling in the area. They are monitoring the rhinos.”

These rhino rangers keep track constantly of rhino movements, providing protection and helping tourists get an amazing experience. That’s how they’ve reduced poaching — by making live rhinos more valuable than dead rhinos with a significant investment in the local communities. 

We were all whispering to each other because rhinos have excellent senses of sight and taste. However, their eyesight isn’t particularly great. Geingob explained use the vibrations of our movements and can see us as blurry, distant figures. The rhino then let out a big sneeze, just like a horse.

After a couple of hours of tracking, we came upon this bull black rhino. He marked his territory several times with an intense spray of his urine and by stomping around on a hilltop. 

Black rhinos are known to be aggressive, hence why we were very cautious and quiet. They can run up to 35 mph and with their poor vision, they charge without hesitation toward any sound. Geingob explained that in his personal experience, however, the rhinos are becoming used to tourists watching from a respectful distance away. Money from tourism and photography of rhinos are reducing the number of people coming to kill them while giving a financial boost to rural communities.  

The black rhinos in northwest Namibia’s Kunene region are some of the last truly wild and free rhinos, living outside of fenced-in national parks or game reserves. Whether they can avoid extinction and remain free will depend on all of us. 

Sven Sundgaard

Author

Namibia, in southwest Africa, has the largest population of black rhinos and has done something that few other places have been able to do — greatly reduce poaching for their horns and preserve this unique ecosystem.


Meteorologist Sven Sundgaard tracks the desert black rhino in northwest Namibia

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