Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu, February 16

The government is all set to translocate ten rhinoceroses from the Royal Chitwan National Park to the Royal Shuklaphanta Wildlife Reserve (RSWR) beginning from this Saturday.

The total number of rhinos in the reserve will reach 16 after the completion of the

relocation bid.

The translocation is being carried by the Department of National Park and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) in association with King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation and Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) Nepal programme.

Officials at Department of National Park and Wildlife Conservation say that the translocation process is a means to manage rhino populations which is on the decline.

"The objective of the translocation is to establish a new viable rhino population in Shuklaphanta and save the endangered species from any natural or other calamities," they said.

For translocation, conservation officials and park rangers select likely candidates — healthy adult or juvenile rhinos, male and female, who are likely to breed and thrive in their new habitat.

The optimal candidate for translocation is a fully-grown, ready to breed female rhino.