Photos from the Field - Zimbabwe 

 

 

Hello [firstname],

About 80 percent of Zimbabwe’s black rhinos and half of its white rhinos live within its Lowveld conservancies – low elevation wooded savannahs in the southeast of the country. These large tracts of land, converted from cattle ranches to wildlife management areas, were created to safeguard these highly threatened species. Zimbabwe is now the epicenter of a 15-year high in African rhino poaching. 

The IRF-supported Lowveld Rhino Trust track and monitors rhino populations to ensure their safety. Because poaching has reached crisis levels, they also proactively translocate rhinos from high-risk areas to safer locations, treat rhinos with gunshot or snare injuries and return them to the wild, and work with local communities and authorities to proactively prevent and apprehend poachers.  Poachers usually target adults. Rhino calves, still nursing and too young to survive on their own, are often left behind with life-threatening injuries and are rescued and bottle-reared until they are old enough to be released back into the wild. 

Our efforts to safeguard Zimbabwe’s rhinos work because of the brave and dedicated teamwork of the staff on the ground. Each person in our committed Zimbabwe team, from the rangers to the monitors to the vets and pilots, plays a critical role. We hope you enjoy this collection of images that portrays some of their heroic efforts and the Lowveld’s majestic scenery.