Dumisani Zwane, game capture manager at Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, has watched 6 orphaned white rhinos give birth in the wild after years of rehabilitation.
The females were rescued as calves from around 2017, after poachers killed their mothers. Reported on 31 July 2026, their births mark a hard-won return to the wild population.
Care Built Around Release
Rescued calves often arrived stressed and refused food. Some had injuries from defending their mothers; one had lost part of an ear. Not all orphans survived.
Milk stayed part of their diet for up to two years. Calves then moved to grass and supplementary feed, bonded with other orphans, and progressed through larger camps, including a 50-hectare enclosure built to mimic natural conditions.
Release
Rhinos were released only once they could graze unaided and showed natural behaviour. Bonded animals were kept together for reassurance. Staff assessed habitat quality, predator numbers, elephant density, and poaching risk before choosing sites, which remain undisclosed.
After release, the females began associating with wild bulls. Ezemvelo tracked them through biological monitoring rather than vet checks, so each pregnancy, lasting about 16 months, came as a surprise.
The Team Behind It
"Many people fed these animals, cleaned after them and cared for them every day," Zwane told News24. Vets, carers, donors, and conservation groups sustained work that was never originally budgeted.
Ongoing Risk
Poaching has killed thousands of rhinos in South Africa over the past two decades, and security remains a priority. Zwane declined to say how the mothers and calves are now protected.
Six calves cannot undo what their mothers endured. But they prove that long rehabilitation can return orphaned rhinos to the wild as breeding adults.
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