Support Mounted Rangers Fighting Rhino Poaching

Dear friends and supporters

September is World Rhino Month – our busiest and most inspiring time of the year. It’s a month to celebrate our extraordinary wildlife heritage and the people who protect it. KwaZulu-Natal is home to one of the largest and most genetically diverse rhino population in South Africa, yet this legacy remains under threat from increasingly sophisticated poaching syndicates.

Rhino Month always brings a flurry of action and awareness, and this year is one of our busiest. We’re running conservation talks at schools and rolling out the month-long Civvies Day for Rhino campaign. We’ve been honoured as the main beneficiary of the Concours d’Elegance Classic Car Show in Durban and showcased our work at the Sign Africa show in Johannesburg. Celebrating the work of African rangers, we will again be participating in the Tusk Wildlife Ranger Challenge, this time running in Bonamanzi Game Reserve. We have life-size rhino models for public engagement, generously sponsored by Composite Innovations and Stuttafords, and will also be hosting K9 demonstrations, presentations, and Rhino art activations with partners like Wild Tomorrow and Blue Sky Society (phew!). Each of these activities strengthens awareness, grows support, and raises vital funds for our rangers on the ground – including our mounted patrol teams.

Your support makes this possible. Thanks to donors like you, our rangers and their horses receive the training, equipment, feed and veterinary care needed to stay effective and healthy on patrol. In the first half of 2025, South Africa recorded 195 rhinos poached – still too many, but 35 fewer than the same period last year. June even saw a historic low, with just 22 rhinos lost. This encouraging trend is evidence that coordinated efforts, including mounted patrols, are making a real impact.

From all of us at Project Rhino, thank you for standing with our mounted rangers and their horses. Together, we are safeguarding one of the world’s most important rhino populations – and inspiring the next generation of wildlife guardians.

Dear friends and supporters

Thanks to your ongoing support, Project Rhino has been able to respond swiftly and effectively to the continued threat of wildlife crime - both on the ground and from the air.

Rhino Poaching Update
South Africa continues to face an unrelenting threat from rhino poaching, with 103 rhinos killed in the first three months of 2025 - an average of over 34 per month. SANParks reserves and KwaZulu-Natal were among the hardest hit. Despite this, there have been encouraging developments, including 15 arrests linked to poaching crimes during the same period.

36 Months of Impact
Over the past three years, Project Rhino’s K9 Unit and partners have made meaningful progress in combating wildlife crime. The K9 team has removed 3,374 snares, responded to 269 emergency callouts, and helped apprehend 50 criminals. They’ve also recovered illegal firearms, stolen vehicles, rhino horn, and millions of rands’ worth of counterfeit goods and narcotics. These efforts extend beyond wildlife protection, also contributing to broader community safety and security.

ZAP-Wing and Aerial Support
Our aerial unit, the Zululand Anti-Poaching Airwing (ZAP-Wing), flew over 1,460 hours in the past 36 months, supporting the detection of poaching activity, rescuing rhino calves, and responding to emergencies. We’re beyond grateful to welcome a new aircraft to the fleet - generously sponsored by The Brady Hunter Foundation! This vital addition enhances our capacity to fly further, faster, and more frequently, giving our rangers a powerful tool in protecting endangered wildlife across vast landscapes.

Looking Ahead and Thank You
We are strengthening our joint training programmes and preparing for major fundraising events, including the Oceans 8 Charity Swim in June, the Run for Rangers in July, and the Ball for Conservation in September.

To our GlobalGiving supporters: thank you. Your ongoing support fuels our efforts on the ground and in the skies. Together, we are making a real and lasting difference for rhinos and all who protect them.