31 Jan 2018

A game drive in the Khama Rhino Sanctuary was somewhat of a surreal experience without the presence of the ever cheerful, magnificent and sociable Noody recently.

Having grown so much accustomed to the rare black rhinoceros species which one could effortlessly relate to, reality recently hit when it was noticeable that the approachable animal was no more.

Notably, areas in the sanctuary such as the restaurant, the education centre, the campsites, where the tourism icon- Noody used to frequent were empty characterised of musical sounds of birds on trees whistling, tweeting, and chattering. On the ground there was a consolation of thrifty squirrels which were chirping and moving in seemingly erratic patterns.

A glimpse of the pool side where Noody used to quench his thirst could only reveal birds busy pecking the tree bucks. Reality struck that thousands of tourists who enjoyed the warmth and camaraderie exuded by the black rhino which exhibited rare humane attributes was no more.

In an interview on the restaurant gardens Khama Rhino Sanctuary Trust acting manager Mr Thapelo Baiphethi said a postmortem report was recently released by Vet and Agric Consultants who have found out that Noody died of kidney failure due to old age.

“The cause of death is chronic kidney failure which comes with age and fits in with the observed symptoms of weight loss. No foul play is therefore suspected,” stated the report.

Speaking to BOPA soon after the death of Noody in November last year, the wildlife veterinary surgeon Dr Erik Verreynne said samples were sent to pathologists in South Africa. Now Vet and Agric Consultants analysis of samples show that at the time of Noody’s death he was still drinking water and browsing which was confirmed by the presence of a full bladder, clear water in the stomach, fresh green browse in the stomach and fresh browse in the oral cavity.

Further the report indicated that chicken fat clots were found in his heart which indicated slow terminal stage with a weakened Noddy who went down during the morning of his death with a gradual dropping blood pressure that separated the serum and cellular contents of the blood.
The Vet and Agric report concluded that the hand raised black rhinoceros which was donated to Botswana by Zimbabwe at the age of 16 years died at the age of 27 years due to kidney failure and old age.
Mr Baiphethi revealed that preparations were underway to probably erect Noody’s memorial next to zoologist, Daniel Lipscombe who was killed by rhinos in 1996 in boomers. The zoologist was engaged to acquaint the wild rhinos to their new habitat at the time the Khama Rhino Sanctuary was established.

Meanwhile, Noody has undoubtedly left an indelible mark in Botswana’s tourism. Baiphethi noted that tourists from abroad who had not heard of Noody’s death ended up being affected emotionally.

“His death has affected a lot of our clientele. A lot of tourists are emotionally affected when they find out. Sometimes tourists come and end up not seeing the black rhino at all because the ones that we have are very limited and they hide deep in the bushes.

Tourists may end up not seeing the black rhino at all. Noody was always available for them,” he said.

The rare species died having completed his course of producing two offspring with Chinga, a female black rhino in the sanctuary.
 

“Black rhino is rare to find. So far we have five black rhinos and 50 whites.  In the market, a black rhino costs about P350 000 to P400 000, while a white rhino can cost between P270 000 and P320 000,”he disclosed.

He noted that they continued to intensify anti-poaching measures at Khama Rhino Sanctuary to ensure that endangered species were protected.

He emphasised the need to preserve black rhinoceros which was a browser by nature adding that its scarcity was evident even nationwide.  

“In the whole of Botswana there are around 30 black rhinos and there are more than 300 white rhinos,” he divulged. Ends