Rhinos - in praise of

I can't tell you where or when these pictures were taken because rhinos as a species have never been more at risk of extinction. We have lost two subspecies already in the past year.

For these gentle jurassic giants, it seems the clock is ticking. When we are lucky enough to see rhino in their natural habitat it is almost with a sense of anticipated loss. How much time will they have? will their bouncy inquisitive young even have a life in our lifetime?

So here are just a few pictures showing rhino doing what they do best - which is eating lots of grass or leaves, and rubbing shoulders with each other. They also love to lie around in sticky mud and leave calling cards at steaming middens.

They are frighteningly easy to kill.  They are creatures of habit and territory.

They stand still, like well behaved targets for poachers or hunters bullets, while they try to work out if you are a threat or not.  

We all know where the markets are for rhino horn and ivory. 

 So why can the carnage not be controlled?

Rhino horn is made from the same stuff as human hair and toenails.

 The needy could use their own.

They can move suprisingly fast when they get going.

white rhino grazing in golden fields

a

a young black rhino visiting the pool for a drink

The remains of a young white rhino who died with his back foot caught in a poachers cable snare.  It must have taken a few days before he fell headfirst into a donga (ditch) and probably died of stress and thirst.    This is the skull and jawbones - all thats left to be seen, after human and wildlife scavengers have taken what they want.