Communal Conservancy Black Rhino Relocation Project

Namibia holds almost a third of all the black rhinoceros remaining in Africa, and 95 percent of the south-western subspecies (Diceros bicornis bicornis). Rhino numbers have increased steadily under an well-established and innovative conservation and management programme, but the future of the south-western black rhino will depend on Namibia's ability to maintain adequate standards of protection, biological management, monitoring and sustainable utilisation of rhino, and expand available areas of range to accommodate further population increase.

The North West (Kunene) population, which is the largest population of black rhinoceros outside a protected area, has increased over the last twenty years under strong partnerships between the Ministry of Environment & Tourism (MET), NGOs (Save the Rhino Trust), concessionaires and the local people in Kunene and Erongo Regions.

However, over the last 15 years, annual growth rates of the Kunene black rhino have steadily declined even as the population has increased. Also, new challenges now face the area, particularly the need to secure the long-term sustainability of monitoring programmes and to further integrate tourism with conservation objectives. Annual growth over the last 5 years stands at 2.5% and dropped below 2% in 2003. This is well below the IUCN/SSC recommendation.

Being an extremely arid area all translocations should be well planned with the aim to expand the current range into identified areas within neighbouring communal conservancies, and MET should be able to react on a short notice when conditions are at the best for the rhinoceros to be translocated. It is crucial that surface water and peak conditions prevail at the identified release sites to ensure the best chance of such an operation to succeed. Specific individuals will be identified from the database earmarked for the operation; such individuals need to be found at very short notice when conditions are ideal and therefore at least 20 to 25 animals will be fitted with transmitters in 2006. Once conditions are at their peak in the release sites during 2007 the individuals will then be located by air, caught and moved immediately to the release site. Free release as practiced in Namibia has given us excellent results over the last three capture seasons and cuts down the tremendous costs of boma training animals. MET wants to translocate to bulls to the Kliprivier in Khoadi-Hoas communal conservancy where a single cow resides; during this translocation newly custom-built equipment will be field tested for the first time.

The Trust is providing financial assistance to assist in the hiring of a helicopter to be used for the capture and translocation of two male black rhinoceros from the Palmwag concession area and two receiver units for follow-up post-release after the planned operation. As per Namibian policy transponders will be inserted in all animals immobilised. In addition, Mr. P. Hitchins, the world expert on rhinoceros ageing, will train field personnel in the field ageing and development of an adapted field ageing reference for Namibia.

The objectives of this proposal are therefore:
To hire a helicopter (Hughes 300) with experienced capture pilot;
A receiver unit that will be used in post-release monitoring of the black rhinoceros (fitted by MET with radio transmitters during capture) in Khoadi-Hoas conservancy by both the shepherds of the conservancy (the conservancy needs a receiver to be able to follow the rhinoceros as training will be given to assist them to start a rhinoceros tracking tourism enterprise which is well controlled and well organised; 
A second receiver unit to be used by SRT in monitoring of the animals fitted with transmitters in the concession area who will be translocated to other conservancies in 2007;  
Transponders will be fitted in three places in all animals immobilised; and
To train staff in different procedures (e.g. field ageing - P. Hitchins)