From survival to expansion: Kenya faces new challenge as rhino numbers grow

NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 27— Kenya’s success in rebuilding its black rhino population from the brink of extinction is creating a new conservation challenge — finding enough secure habitat for the growing numbers. Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) Director General Professor Erustus Kanga said the country’s black rhino population had reached 1,147 by the end of 2025, with conservation efforts now shifting from preventing losses to creating space for the species to expand. Kanga spoke on Saturday during the African premiere of RHINO, a documentary directed by Tom Martienssen and narrated by Tom Hardy, which was screened at Trademark Hotel in Nairobi.

“We really suffer from our success,” Kanga said, pointing to increasing territorial competition among rhinos as populations recover. The screening was attended by US Charge d’Affaires Susan Burns and UK High Commissioner Matt Baugh, alongside conservation leaders, rangers, veterinary experts and other stakeholder He said the expansion of habitat was becoming critical because territorial fights had resulted in deaths in some sanctuaries. We must create distance,” Kanga said, calling for continued investment and partnerships to expand the land available for rhino conservation.

The population recovery marks a dramatic turnaround for a species that was severely depleted by poaching and illegal international wildlife trade in the 1970s and 1980s. Kanga said Kenya’s black rhino population had fallen to about 350 animals by the late 1980s, prompting the establishment of secure sanctuaries and intensified protection. He said the recovery had been driven by generations of rangers, scientists, veterinarians, communities and conservation organisations working to protect the animals.

Kanga said Kenya was now working towards a new black rhino recovery and action plan, expected to be launched by December, as the country seeks to sustain the gains made under the current plan. He said the previous recovery plan was on course to meet its target of 1,200 black rhinos. 21 rhinos return to Loisaba One of the clearest examples of the shift in Kenya’s conservation strategy is the establishment of a new rhino population at Loisaba Conservancy.

In January 2024, 21 black rhinos were moved to Loisaba from Ol Pejeta, Lewa and Nairobi National Park after years of planning involving KWS, conservancies and international conserva…