Political disturbances in the Congo in 1963 wiped out about 900 of the 1000 square-lipped rhino living in Garamba National Park (Curry-Lindahl, 1966).
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The few dozen rhino in the area not protected by the Reserve were under such severe poaching pressure that an attempt was made to move some of the animals east of the Nile to the safety of Murchison Falls National Park. This was accomplished in two operations, the first in March, 1961, from which six rhino are still surviving, and the second in June, 1964, which introduced another six. The total number of square-lipped rhino now in the Park is 12, of which three are adult females and four are immature females (Savidge, 1964). Recently a calf has been born.
In an attempt to protect the population remaining in Uganda the Uganda GameDepartment, with the financial aid of the East African Wildlife Society and the World Wildlife Fund, established the Ajai's White Rhino Reserve at Inde, West Nile District. The Reserve contains about 60 rhino in 61 square miles (159 hectares). The Reserve is located on the western side of the Albert Nile about 50 miles down the river from Lake Albert and includes the town of Inde (Figure 1). Vegetation communities include Echinochloa grassland in the swamps bordering the river, Combretum - Acacia - - Hyparrhenia savannah, and the post-cultivation community of Eragrostis - Chloris - Hyparrhenia on the better drained ground, and Combretum - Terminalia - Loudetia savannah on the summit of Biliba Hill. The presence of long grass in the Reserve often made it difficult to locate the rhino. However the chattering cries of the oxpeckers (Buphagus eryhrorhynchus (Stanley) ) who attend these animals frequently led to their detection. Rangers at Inde report that the rhino were commonly seen in groups of a dozen or more, but since regular patrols of the Reserve were initiated, the concomitant disturbance has broken the herds into smaller groups. For this reason, patrols are now kept to a minimum. The movements of the rhino within the Reserve are clearly correlated with the occurrence of rain. During the dry season the rhino descend into the Ala and Obei swamps bordering on the Albert Nile. At this time they are extremely difficult to observe except when they make their occasional wanderings onto higher ground. When the rains come the animals move inland at least 10 km, to the Biliba Ridge area in particular. Rhino trails, marked with dung heaps and mud wallows, are more commonly seen running inland from the swamps. Some border the bottom of the Ridge while others run diagonally up its side. After a short rain most fresh rhino footprints lead inland from the swamp, while after a dry period the trend is reversed. The Uganda Game Department is presently keeping poaching to within reasonable limits. A greater danger is the growing population of the nearby tribes with their demand for land resulting in squatters moving into the Reserve. Provided the poachers and squatters can be kept in check it appears that this vigorously growing population may eventually outrun its food supply. Presently fire sweeps most of the grassland each year and contains the spread of bush. However there are areas which appear to be overgrazed thereby preventing burning which allows the bush to spread. Eventually it might become necessary to reduce some of the bush and tree cover to allow the return of the grass. At the same time any surplus population of rhinos could be used to populate other areas.
Ceratotherium simum. However this species has been reported from the upper part of Bed II at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, ca. 400,000 years B. P. (Leakey, 1965), and it probably ranged over most of the continent before more efficient hunting methods by tribe
Six square-lipped rhino were also introduced in 1966 to Meru National Park, Kenya from South Africa and are doing well.
The square-lipped rhino is more frequently, though misleadingly, referred to as the white rhino. However, it is no lighter in colour than the black rhino and these names refer better to the temperament of the respective species. Both rhinos assume the colour of their most recent mud bath and consequently are generally either black, grey, brown or rufous. 'White rhino' seems to have been derived from a phonetic translation of the Africaans witrenoster, while a literal translation is 'wide rhino' referring to the wide mouth in the square-lipped species.
The square-lipped rhino is more frequently, though misleadingly, referred to as the white rhino. However, it is no lighter in colour than the black rhino and these names refer better to the temperament of the respective species. Both rhinos assume the colour of their most recent mud bath and consequently are generally either black, grey, brown or rufous. 'White rhino' seems to have been derived from a phonetic translation of the Africaans witrenoster, while a literal translation is 'wide rhino' referring to the wide mouth in the square-lipped species.
The presence of long grass in the Reserve often made it difficult to locate the rhino. However the chattering cries of the oxpeckers (Buphagus eryhrorhynchus (Stanley) ) who attend these animals frequently led to their detection.
While the black rhino is often aggressive toward man, the square-lipped species is very rarely so and then only when a calf is present.
The movements of the rhino within the Reserve are clearly correlated with the occurrence of rain. Water is probably necessary for regular watering and mud wallows may also be an essential part of the habitat. During the dry season the rhino descend into the Ala and Obei swamps bordering on the Albert Nile. At this time they are extremely difficult to observe except when they make their occasional wanderings onto higher ground. When the rains come the animals move inland at least 10 km, to the Biliba Ridge area in particular. Rhino trails, marked with dung heaps and mud wallows, are more commonly seen running inland from the swamps. Some border the bottom of the Ridge while others run diagonally up its side. After a short rain most fresh rhino footprints lead inland from the swamp, while after a dry period the trend is reversed.
