Rhinos airlifted to new home

Weighing up to two and a half tons each, rhinos aren't easy to herd—let alone load onto an airplane and fly hundreds of miles. But in an effort to protect the endangered animals, that’s exactly what conservationists are doing.

As the first members of history's largest rhino airlift project, 10 rhinos were relocated from an overpopulated park in South Africa to a reserve in the neighboring country of Botswana. The new reserve is better protected from poachers, which often kill rhinos for their horns and sell them for money. And with better protection, the rhino population is more likely to grow.

National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence Dereck and Beverly Joubert helped out with the massive relocation project, called Rhinos Without Borders. On the day of the big move, the Jouberts and their team secured the rhinos in crates and loaded them onto a cargo plane, which flew the animals to Botswana's Maun International Airport.

After landing, the crates containing the rhinos were placed on trucks. Then the animals were escorted by dozens of soldiers to northern Botswana's Okavango Delta. Along the way, the group had to cross several rivers, and at one point a wheel fell off one of the trucks. To continue on, the rhinos onboard the disabled vehicle had to be moved by a crane to another truck.

Less than 24 hours from the start of their trip, the rhinos were finally released into their new home. With such a difficult journey to make, it's a good thing these animals had tough skin!

Text from "First Rhinos in Massive African Airlift Released in Botswana" by Brian Clark Howard, NG Staff; adapted by Rose Davidson, NG Staff