In total, Tanzania, where the white rhinoceros has been extinct, will receive 36 animals during the project.
Remains of the species have been found in the Ngorongoro area in northern Tanzania, according to local authorities. The animals died out as a result of poaching in the 1970s, says local rhino expert Emmanuel Kaaya.
At the same time, the population of black rhinoceroses has decreased from an estimated 10,000 animals in the 1970s to 212 animals in 2021.
The majority of the world's remaining white rhinoceroses live in South Africa. The number was estimated to be just under 14,000 in 2023.
Over 10,000 animals in South Africa are estimated to have fallen victim to poaching since 2007, according to the International Rhino Foundation.
That's why we're relocating them to countries like Botswana, Rwanda, Congo-Kinshasa, and now Tanzania, said South African Inkosi Gumede Zwelinzima when he handed over the animals.
If the rhinoceroses thrive, some of them can be introduced to other reserves in the country, hope conservation organizations.
It's unclear why the species are called "white" and "black" rhinoceroses, as both are rather gray. The white rhinoceros tends to be larger, has a different mouth and a longer horn.
