Holly Gilvary
A South African university launched an anti-poaching campaign on Thursday to inject the horns of rhinos with radioactive isotopes that it said were harmless for the animals but which can be detected by customs agents. (AP Video: Alfonso Nqunjana)
RACINE — The Racine Zoo is preparing to welcome Ayubu, an Eastern Black Rhino male, to its “Land of Giants” area.
Five-year-old Ayubu will make the journey from the Lee Richardson Zoo in Garden City, Kansas, in a few days, according to the Racine Zoo.
After his arrival, Ayubu will be cared for in the Land of Giants rhino barn for quarantine for at least 30 days before he is available to be seen on exhibit. Although the Racine Zoo has exhibited paired rhinos in the past, male Eastern Black Rhinos are often solitary animals who thrive on their own.
Ayubu is being moved based on recommendations from the Associations of Zoos and Aquariums’ Eastern Black Rhinoceros Species Survival Plan.
The Racine Zoo said it has worked closely with Lee Richardson Zoo during the past year to plan Ayubu’s trip. Racine Zoo staff prepped the enclosures this past winter while Lee Richardson staff have worked on his crate training and other behaviors needed to ensure a successful trip.
Eastern Black Rhino males are most noted for their horns, which can weigh more than six pounds and exceed 50 inches in length. The horns are comprised of a protein called keratin, and are sought after by poachers as a “remedy” for various ailments or as a status symbol, according to the Racine Zoo.
Eastern Black Rhinos are critically endangered in their wild range, with numbers dropping from around 70,000 in the 1970s to about 1,650 today.
The AZA’s Eastern Black Rhinoceros Species Survival Plan aims to conserve Eastern Black Rhinos around the world, including by maintaining important genetic diversity within the captive population.
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