The name 'White' originates from a mistranslation of the Afrikaans word "wyd" meaning 'wide' [lipped] and is nothing to do with the rhinos' colour. The white rhino is much larger than its black relative and is the second-largest land mammal in the world. The poaching of rhino for their horns has almost exterminated all of the 5 species of rhinoceros. The white rhino is now well protected in game reserves in their native Zululand and what was the rarest species of rhino is now the commonest. Its cousin the Northern white rhino is now nearing extinction with only some 25 animals surviving. Our 'crash' of white rhino consists of 2 breeding bulls, 3 breeding cows, a young bull, an elderly female and 3 young calves. Our 3 calves were born during our 2008 season with Flannery the male calf arriving first in July to mum Meru, followed by a female calf named Cara in October to mum Winnie and finally in December we saw the arrival of Kimba, another female calf, to mum Piglet. In the wild, white rhinos are sociable grazers living in family groups called a 'crash'. After a gestation period of 485-515 days they give birth to a single calf weighing 50-60kg (110-130lb); an adult can attain a weight of three tons. They are agile for their size and are able to run at 50kph (32mph). Although their eyesight is relatively poor their acute sense of smell and hearing more than compensate.

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