For the armed men who guard him at the Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy, the support has been overwhelming. Photos of the rangers guarding Sudan went viral, and it’s sparked a surge in donations for their GoFundMe campaign, CTV News reports.
“We’re blown away by all your donations and messages of support!” rangers wrote on the campaign page.
The photos, which have been retweeted and shared thousands of times on the social media, show the ‘Rhino Rangers’ guarding Sudan as he goes about the business of being a rhino, The Independent reports.
The 90,000 acre sanctuary is home to 105 black rhinos, 23 white rhinos, and three of the world’s last remaining northern white rhinos. These are among the rarest animals in the world.
The campaign was started in February, but it was a bit slow to get off the ground. Until the photos came out and went viral, The Independent reports. As it stands right now, nearly $64,000 (£42,608) out of a hoped for £75,000 ($111,849.26) has been raised.
Funding for the sanctuary usually comes from Kenya’s lucrative tourism industry, but it’s been hit hard by Ebola as well as terrorist attacks, so the money is desperately needed for to help the rangers to continue protecting the remaining rhinos.
Rhino horn has no medicinal value. It’s about the same as biting your fingernails, GrindTV reports. Despite this fact, the horns are still prized in Asia due to the ancient belief that they can reduce fevers and seizures. As such, rhino horns can fetch as much as $30,000 per pound.
In just a span of 20 years, from 1960 to 1980, the population of these magnificent rhinos plummeted from more than 2,000 to only 15 because of rampant poaching, and now the rangers are doing whatever they can to keep Sudan alive.
In an interview with World of Animals, ranger Simon Irungu said the armed patrols head out at dusk and return to camp in the morning, and they continually find themselves in the line of fire to protect the rhinos.
“With the rising demand for rhino horn and ivory, we face many poaching attempts and while we manage to counter a large number of these, we often risk our lives in our line of duty,” Irungu said. “Our conservancy is among the least damaged by poaching now, thanks to a dedicated and united team and the support of our management and beyond.”
To help keep Sudan safer, he was fitted with a radio transmitter, and his horn was removed, Eldoie Sampere told GrindTV in an email.
“The only reason his horn has been cut off is to deter poachers,” Sampere told The Dodo, per GrindTV. “If the rhino has no horn, he is of no interest to poachers. This is purely to keep him safe.”
The protection of the remaining northern white rhinos in the sanctuary is crucially important as they are believed to be the only animals of their species capable of breeding.
In 2009, the rhinos arrived at the sanctuary as part of a group of four from a zoo in the Czech Republic. It was hoped that they would breed and keep the race going. The group consisted of two males and two females, but one male died last October, CTV News reports. At age 40, Sudan is nearing the end of his expected life span.
“It’s really sad to see that this particular rhino has to be put on 24-hour armed watch for its survival,” Kelvin Alie, a program director for the International Fund for Animal Welfare told CTV News. He added that animal welfare organizations are using a “holistic approach” and addressing the issue by trying to stop poaching and the demand for animal products. The organizations are also supporting wildlife law enforcement, he said.
“That’s the rangers, the people on the frontline,” he said. “We also work with customs and border officials to ensure that we address the issue of trafficking and the movement of products.”
The rangers are drawn from the Kenya Police reservists and are equipped with the most up-to-date equipment and training, The Independent reports. The money raised will pay the men, whose lives are at risk on a daily basis, for the next six months.
The men noted that two rhinos at the sanctuary were killed within the last 18 months, but in both cases, the poachers didn’t get away with the horn. The rhinos killed weren’t northern white rhinos.
Hopefully the campaign will help the rangers to keep the rhinos — and themselves — safe.
