Dec 14, 2023
Recently, Wildlife World Zoo, Aquarium & Safari Park welcomed the birth of a female white rhino. This was no ordinary or overnight conservation success story according to its president, Kristy Hayden. The process began nearly 10-years ago with a significant financial commitment of hundreds of thousands of dollars by the forty-year-old, for-profit organization to acquire and import 3 unrelated females from South Africa. After the animals were identified and their protection and care secured while awaiting permitting and transport, the project was met with extended delays by USFWS. These necessitated finding 3 younger animals suitable in size for transport, the need to build a new expansive rhino habitat and barn, and eventually, once they arrived, time to reach reproductive maturity. The goal by the late owner and director, Mickey Ollson, was to help improve the genetics of the North American population as part of ensuring survival of the species, even as poaching and habitat loss issues are hopefully resolved throughout the African continent in the future.