Rare wildlife to celebrate this World Endangered Species Day

Passed in the United States in 1973, the Endangered Species Act protects wildlife internationally by banning the import of endangered wildlife into the US, and requires protection of critical habitats. In the five decades since the act was passed, 99% of the species protected by the list have avoided extinction.

The wild tracts of land we help conserve are home to a number of Vulnerable, Threatened, Endangered and Critically Endangered species (as defined by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species). As part of our ongoing long-term goal to increase the world’s wilderness, we help provide critical habitat for threatened and endangered species, from the cantankerous black rhinoceros to the boisterous wild dog to the gentle gorilla. We can’t afford to lose them.

Seeing black rhino in their natural wild state has become a rare opportunity. While both white and black rhinos are threatened by rampant poaching for their horns, black rhino numbers have dwindled so severely that, at around just 6,400 mature individuals in total, they’re sadly classified by the IUCN as Critically Endangered.

At Wilderness Desert Rhino Camp, we are not only proud to offer guests the exceptional opportunity to track this rare desert-adapted species on foot, but also provide a base for Save the Rhino Trust’s tracking and monitoring teams. This is a group of guardians dedicated to protecting imperilled black rhinos. Wilderness Desert Rhino camp’s core purpose is to protect this iconic species; every guest, every visit, actively contributes to their conservation.

Namibia is home to the largest free-ranging populations of black rhino on the continent, but the elusive Eastern black rhino can also be spotted in Rwanda’s Akagera National Park, where they’ve been successfully reintroduced.

See them at: Wilderness Desert Rhino Camp, Wilderness Magashi

An abundance of prey. Large tracts of untouched wilderness. Space to run. The ideal habitat for wild dogs is becoming increasingly rare. Wild dog populations fluctuate, as they’re sensitive to human encroachment and disease. One bout of illness can eradicate an entire pack, and with the number of adult individuals totalling only some 1,400 across the continent (according to the IUCN), we can’t afford to lose them.

Also popularly known as the painted wolf, the wild dog is the most persecuted predator on the continent, and the second-most endangered carnivore here. A century ago, around 500,000 of these high-energy canines ran, played, and hunted across most of Africa. The packs we have left, we protect fiercely.

While sightings are rare, our daily conservation efforts in Botswana’s Linyanti Wildlife Reserve and across many of our concessions in the Okavango Delta, as well as Zimbabwe’s Hwange and Mana Pools, help create ideal breeding grounds for many packs, making it possible to see them at many of our camps in Southern Africa. Ongoing citizen science projects encourage guests to report their sightings, where every single piece of information helps us understand and conserve these remarkable predators.

See wild dogs at these Wilderness camps: Vumbura Plains, Chitabe, Linkwasha, Ruckomechi, DumaTau, Mombo, Tubu Tree

Mountain gorillas have survived decades of poaching, war, habitat destruction and disease; threats so severe it was thought the species could have become extinct towards the end of the twentieth century.

The slow recovery of mountain gorillas in Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park is testament to the country’s commitment to protecting these precious animals and their habitat. Numbering around 600 in 2010, there are now over 1,000 mountain gorillas across the Virunga Massif.  It’s a start, but there’s more work to be done.

Carefully monitored gorilla tourism has grown to become a mutually beneficial business, and communities on the periphery of gorilla habitats have come to see them as a vital asset.

Their rarity makes encountering them all the more special. For one precious hour a day, guests of Wilderness Bisate, Bisate Reserve and Sabyinyo get the chance to spend time in the presence of these extraordinary creatures, their mannerisms and habits so similar to our own. Gorilla permit fees go straight into conservation funds, and every guest who takes this sacred trek to see them, directly contributes to their wellbeing.

See gorillas at Wilderness Bisate, Bisate Reserve and Wilderness Sabyinyo

Gentle. Majestic. Endangered. Though they may seem abundant on a visit to Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia, where herds by the hundreds browse, swim and breed, elephant populations across the continent have decreased dramatically in the last few decades. African savannah elephant numbers have fallen by at least 60% in the last 50 years, while the population of African forest elephants has decreased by more than 86% over the last 30 years, leading to them being listed as an endangered species. Elephants require vast space, and fences and human encroachment threaten their ancient migratory instincts.

As part of our ongoing conservation commitments, Wilderness has been working with Ecoexist in Botswana since 2019, funding the collaring of elephants, which provides valuable information about their movement habits. The more we know about how and why they move, the more we can mitigate human-wildlife conflict with the communities who share space with elephants.

See elephants at all Wilderness camps in Botswana, Zambia, Rwanda and Zimbabwe, including Mokete, DumaTau, Chikwenya, Toka Leya and Magashi.

It’s hard to imagine that predators which rank at the top of the food chain could be listed as a vulnerable species in need of protection. As apex predators, lions are regarded as umbrella species; when lions thrive, the entire ecosystem around them thrives. But in the past 30 years, Africa’s lion population has halved. Habitat loss, the illegal wildlife trade, poaching and human-lion conflict has escalated, putting increasing pressure on the population. In the 1950s, over 400,000 lions roamed Africa’s plains; today that number sits somewhere between 20,000 and 30,000.

In an effort to stabilise lion numbers, Wilderness has partnered with CLAWS (Communities Living Among Wildlife Sustainably) in Botswana. Offering both a logistical and physical presence, as well as monitoring and additional collaring where needed, we are assisting CLAWS to refine and further improve their work in mitigating human-lion conflict through fostering coexistence and the expansion of CLAWS’ early warning system. Wilderness also pledges ongoing support to the Desert Lion Conservation Project, which works in the northern Namib Desert.

See lions in Rwanda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia, including at these Wilderness camps: Magashi, Shumba, Linkwasha, Vumbura Plains and Hoanib Skeleton Coast.