Kenyan authorities rejoice at birth of square-lipped white rhino

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - Kenyan wildlife authorities expressed excitement Tuesday over the birth of a new, extremely rare white rhino.

The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said it was "thrilled to report the sighting of a two-day-old jumping white rhino calf in Lake Nakuru"

The rhino was born in Lake Nakuru National Park, and officials noted that "the sex of the latest addition to the white rhino family is not known, but its mother has been identified as the beautiful, fertile Maimuna"

KWS Acting Director General Erustus Kanga stated that there was no rhino poaching in Kenya in 2022 and thanked Kenyans for making this possible, but urged them to work to maintain this record in 2023.

The Africa Wildlife Foundation (AWF) warned in a recent report that rhinos have become victims of organized crime.

"In the wild, the adult black or white rhino has no enemies other than humans. Rhinos are hunted and killed for their horns. The greatest demand for rhino horn is in Asia, where it is used for ornamental carvings and traditional medicine. Rhino horn is touted as a cure for hangovers, cancer and impotence," according to AWF.

Habitat loss is also a major threat to rhinos. AWF's solutions to rhino conservation include raising public awareness about the illegal trade in rhino horn, establishing rhino sanctuaries, recruiting wildlife scouts and working with law enforcement to protect the endangered animals.

According to the latest KWS census, there was a rhino population of 1,258 animals - 745 black rhinos, 510 southern white rhinos and three northern white rhinos - in the country at the end of 2017. The last male northern white rhino died, bringing the number of northern white rhinos in Kenya and worldwide down to two.

in 1970, there were still five hundred northern white rhinos living in several sub-Saharan countries in East and Central Africa.

Poaching caused the population to dwindle to 15 animals by 1980 before increasing to 32 by 2003. Today, there are only two female rhinos left, both born in captivity in Kenya.