We are thrilled to announce that our rangers have recorded a rhino calf born in the Chyulu Hills, the second in less than two years.

This brings the small Chyulu population of Eastern black rhinos up to 9 individuals, which Big Life protects in partnership with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).

They are the last survivors of a population that once stretched the length of the Chyulu Hills, and was one of the densest concentrations of black rhinos in East Africa. The survival of this distinct subpopulation, and its genes, is vital.

We have 63 rangers dedicated to their protection who, so far this year, have patrolled the equivalent of walking from Los Angeles to New York 5 times.

It was on one such foot patrol that our rangers saw tiny, three-toed footprints following larger ones on a trail through thick bush. Clear evidence of a rhino calf.

Rangers immediately suspected the mother was Namunyak. She is ordinarily a regular on our camera traps, but she had not been seen for a few months. Our rangers had been hoping this meant she was guarding a precious secret.

So there was huge relief and excitement when Namunyak was seen on one of our 42 camera traps with a little calf in tow. Namunyak means ‘blessed’ in the Maa language and she has certainly blessed us all.

Namunyak is about 14 years old and this is her first calf. She could have up to 7 calves in her lifetime, so we hope this is the first of many. For an animal that lives up to 40 years, long birth cycles mean protection is even more important.  

We are still unsure of the sex of the calf, but it was born sometime last spring and likely sired by Chester. Rhino calves are extremely vulnerable when they are young, and so we are cautious about announcing births prematurely.

Now that it has survived the first 6 months, it’s chance of survival increases every day. If all goes well, this calf could live until 2065. Long before then, it’s our firm intention that the Chyulu Hills will host one of East Africa’s densest rhino populations once more.

We are extremely grateful to KWS, Chester Zoo, USFWS, and Royal African Safaris for their support of our rhino protection program.