The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has reintroduced 16 southern white rhinoceroses to Garamba National Park, marking the return of white rhinos to the country after the last wild northern white rhino was poached there in 2006. The rhinos were brought from a South African private reserve to Garamba, located in the northeastern part of the DRC. The operation was led by the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature (ICCN), in collaboration with African Parks and Barrick Gold, a Canadian mining company that sponsored the effort. The reintroduction of the rhinos is seen as a commitment to biodiversity conservation in the DRC. Garamba National Park, one of the oldest wildlife parks in Africa, has been heavily impacted by poaching and conflicts in the region. The southern white rhino subspecies, once believed to be extinct, has seen a significant recovery in population due to conservation efforts, although the northern white rhino remains functionally extinct with only two individuals remaining.
Photo Credit: Keith Markilie
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