NPR : News

Filed Under:

Flying Rhinos: Photos You Don't See Every Day

By: Kristofor Husted // November 9, 2011
comments

Paging Danny Glover. A new species needs your help.

These photos, which came to us via email from the World Wildlife Fund, show an amazing scene: Nineteen sedated black rhinoceroses were airlifted out of an area in South Africa, and spent about 10 minutes upside down in the air en route to a new home.

These thick-skinned mammals, weighing up to 3,000 pounds each, were being transported to the Limpopo Province in South Africa. Led by the WWF's Black Rhino Range Expansion Project, nearly 120 black rhinos have been relocated, with the hope that a new home will help protect the critically endangered species from poachers.

This new technique in removing rhinos from dangerous situations is gentler than previous methods, according to Dr. Jacques Flamand, World Wildlife Fund project leader. "The helicopter translocations usually take less than ten minutes, and the animals suffer no ill effect," he said in a statement. "All of the veterinarians working on the translocation agreed that this was now the method of choice for the well-being of the animals."

Poachers have been responsible for the demise of other rhino species as well. About 65,000 black rhinos thrived in 1970, according to the International Rhino Foundation, but less than 5,000 roam the planet today.

Copyright 2011 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Arts & Culture

NPR

China Builds Museums ... But Will The Visitors Come?

China is on a spree to build world-class museums and has opened about 100 of them annually in recent years. Two of the biggest opened on the same day last fall on opposite banks of Shanghai's Huangpu River. But filling these museums — with both art and visitors — is proving more challenging.

Food

NPR

African Cities Test The Limits Of Living With Livestock

Hipsters may just be discovering the joys of backyard chickens, but in African megacities, people have been bringing their animals into the slums with them for decades. That's creating a new ecosystem of animals and huge numbers of people living closely together like never before.

Politics

NPR

Oklahoma's GOP Senators Find Themselves In Tornado Aid Bind

Sens. Tom Coburn and James Inhofe have become the faces of pushback on federal emergency spending. Now the deadly and devastating tornado in their home state has put them in an awkward position.

Technology

NPR

Microsoft Reveals New Xbox One Game System

Microsoft unveiled its new Xbox One Tuesday, displaying a device that takes new steps in game consoles' journey into becoming all-purpose entertainment and communication devices. The new console replaces the Xbox 360, which has been on the market for more than seven years.

Leave a Comment

Help keep the conversation civil. Please refer to our Terms of Use and Code of Conduct before posting your comments.