 Reference Base  Reintroduction of black rhino to North Luangwa National P... |
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| Location: |
Africa - Southern Africa - Zambia |
| Subject: |
Translocation - Records |
| Species: |
Black Rhino |
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The 4,600 km' North Luangwa National Park, situated in the mid to upper Luangwa Valley, has been jointly managed since 1986 by the Zambian Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) and the Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS) in the form of the North Luangwa Conservation Project. The resulting long-term continuity in support of law enforcement and management led to the required levels of security that made the reintroduction of black rhinos to the Park, and in effect to Zambia, feasible. In 2001 the South African Development Community Regional Programme for Rhino Conservation carried out a positive evaluation of North Luangwa as a suitable reintroduction site (Dunham, K. M., 2001, Reintroduction of Black Rhino in the Luangwa Valley, Zambia. IUCN SADC Regional Programme for Rhino Conservation. IUCN, Harare, Zimbabwe). A truly international and regional effort led to the release of the first five animals into a central fenced sanctuary in North Luangwa in June 2003.
These animals were part of an agreement between FZS, Frankfurt Zoo, South African National Parks and ZAWA. Frankfurt Zoo has sent two black rhino calves, born in the zoo, to South African National Parks and a third will follow later this year. Two of these animals form the basis of the arrangement to give the five animals to Zambia, through the mediation of the Frankfurt Zoological Society. This part of the reintroduction is just the first step towards the goal of establishing a founder population of at least 20 animals in the Park over the next 3 years. The re-establishment of a viable population of black rhino in one of its most important historical range states is a further positive step forward in the conservation of this Critically Endangered species, as well as signalling the start of a new era for wildlife in Zambia.
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