Kathmandu, Feb.28: In wake of its growing population entailing ecological disturbance and increasing human-confrontations at the Royal Chitwan National Park (RCNP), one horned rhinos are being translocated to the Royal Bardia National Park (RBNP), a WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) press release stated here today.

The Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC), with technical assistance from the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation and financial assistance from the World Wide Fund for Nature, Nepal Programme, started the translocation of ten rhinos from the RCNP to the RBNP yesterday.

“This initiative has been taken in a bid to provide a second home for the one horned rhinos to protect it from the natural and other disasters and also to minimize the incidence of human-rhino interactions in the RCNP,” read the press release. “Of the targeted 10 rhinos, two have already been translocated yesterday. The relocation of all ten rhinos is expected to take about seven to 10 days.”

The DNPWC has already translocated 42 rhinos between 1986 and 1999. “More than 50 rhinos roaming in the Bardia Park today are part of the two viable populations — one in RCNP and the other in RBNP — of the species in the country,” added the press statement.

Once on the verge of extinction in the early 50’s, the conservation of the then endangered species that began in the late 60’s, has today resulted into more than 400 rhinos in the RCNP alone.

But, together with the number growth of the protected species came other problems like its inadequate habitat, death of the rhinos as a result of fighting against each other, hostile meeting with neighbouring human in the park’s buffer zone, among others.

The RCNP, according to WWF, has only some pockets of habitat for rhinos. “Due to natural succession of the Khair, Sisso, Simal and other trees, the grassland habitat is shrinking.”

As a result, high population densities of the rhino have been found in the border areas of the park that has high diversities of habitat types, said the international fund for nature. And it is the same bordering areas where the buffer zone is located.

Which means the risk of confrontation between human and  rhinos has doubled. “Crop raiding by the rhinos in the adjoining crop fields as well as occasional rhino related human casualties have already occurred in the park,” the press release confirmed.

Rhinos invading the human settlements in the neighbouring areas of the park has been one of the burning problems in national park management in the Terai. That is yet another reason, the protected species faces threat from dissatisfied locals in the buffer zone. Cashing in on the situation of the local hatred are poachers engaged in killing of rhinos for their horns.

The one horned rhino is the prime attraction of the RCNP — the most visited natural site in the country. Included in the World Natural Sites of UNESCO, RCNP attracts more than 100,000 tourists every year.