It appears that one particular good thing on the Ol Pejeta Conservancy certainly seems to come in twos! We’re happy to announce yet another two pairs of black rhino calves born on the Conservancy, each within a few days of each other, one pair at the end of May / beginning of June, and the other just this month!

The earlier births saw 7 year old Lemoile become a first-time mother on 30th of May. Just one week later, on 6th of June, Carol, a 1980-born indigenous Ol Pejeta female, gave birth to her eighth calf.

And then, two weeks ago, on 8th of August, Waya, a 14 year old, also indigenous to Ol Pejeta, gave birth to her second calf, followed two days later by Dada, an 8 year old who was among 30 rhinos that had been translocated from Solio in 2007. This is Dada’s first calving.

Earlier in the year, we reported two black rhino calves that were born within a week of each other in January, closely replaying another similar pair of births a year earlier. Later, a single calf was born to Sub on the 29th of March this year.

This year has seen an impressive seven black rhino births on the Conservancy so far since January. Sadly, however, there have been a few losses of black rhinos as well during the year, due to various health-related and other causes. Batian, an 8 year old female, recently died during a premature delivery, taking the baby with her – a double tragedy. Earlier on, Irungu, a male who had incurred some injuries in a fierce fight, succumbed to the injuries despite all efforts to save his life, his advanced age serving to slow down the healing process to a tragic halt.

The Ol Pejeta Conservancy is East Africa’s largest Black Rhino Sanctuary. Black rhinos are listed among the world’s most critically endangered species, owing to loss of habitat and, more prevalently, poaching for their highly valued horns.

Providing black rhinos with a safe environment in an attempt to pull the species back from the brink of extinction takes a lot of input in form of time, skills and finances. The Ol Pejeta Conservancy constantly needs support in order to keep the Rhino Programme running.

To make your donation, please visit http://awf.org/section/engaging_you/ol_pejeta/ol_pejeta_rhino/. (Our online donations are made through the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF), one of our conservation partners. However, you can be sure that your donation comes directly towards the Ol Pejeta Conservancy), or email info@olpejetaconservancy.org.