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Most South Africans are indifferent as to who wins the election with at least one exception. Dr. Player is
passionate about the US election. "God help us (environmentalists) if Bush gets in" – is his terse comment. As
Vice President, Al Gore had visited with Player on a trip to South Africa and in a recent interview indicated
that, Dr. Player would be one of those invited to the White House if he became president.
Player, elder brother of former golfing great, Gary Player who twice won the US Masters tournament at
Augusta, is confident the black rhino will endure if the practices put in place to save the white rhino in the
1950s are repeated. "We placed a ring of steel around the rhino", – Player says of those days. By that he means
that fences surrounding the reserve were strengthened and patrolled by armed wardens. In addition as many in-
dividual animals as possible were identified and closely monitored over the years.
In the 1950s all this was done on horseback. Today a tranquilizing dart will drop a rhino within five min-
utes.
All this is now done from the air as we observed. A program of identification, funded by the World Wild-
life Fund, was underway when we visited the park. And we are invited to come along.
A fixed wing aircraft is used to spot the rhinos at which stage a helicopter crew is called in to dart the
rhino, land close to the fallen animal, notch the ears for easy future identification, then administer the antidote
and get out.
A quick exit is out of the question when producer and camerawoman Maureen McNamara accompanies the
chopper to take close up shots of the entire operation. Only when the ranger administers the antidote, one min-
ute away from a fully mobile rhino does he instruct McNamara. "Get up a tree. Quick", – he says. Seconds
later, he shoves her unceremoniously up into the relative safety of the tree canopy.
"Never, ever run from a rhino," – we are told. – "If you run you are dead!" Rhinos have very poor eyesight
but good hearing and an exquisite sense of smell.
Back-up cameraman Steve Marx is next to being up a tree when faced by a rhino. He is out with a foot pa-
trol when they come across a lone cow. She is curious, rather than annoyed by all the movement deliberately
made to attract her attention. She trots forward to investigate and prods the tree immediately below Marx’s
foot. He captures everything on camera.
At top speed of 36 miles an hour the 3,000-pound rhino would easily have demolished the relatively small
tree. But that is not the case and Marx returns with a story he will, one day, tell his grandchildren.
Hopefully, if the ongoing programs at Hluhluwe-Umfolozi are adopted elsewhere, they will know just what
he is talking about.
Almost certainly, the black rhino will survive in South Africa. It remains to be seen if the same will be said
of the rest of Africa.
Words and Expressions:
− veld – вельд, степь, плоскость
− lush – сочный, буйный, пышный
− rhino – носорог
− to haunt – неотступно преследовать
− brink – грань, начало, край
− extinction – вымирание
− wanton – несдержанный, необузданный, подвижный
− slaughter – убой, забой
− to roam – бродить, путешествовать, скитаться, странствовать
− cartilage – хрящ
− curative – целебный, целительный
− dagger – кинжал
− poaching – браконьерство
− remnant – остаток; остатки
− apartheid – апартеид, расовая изоляция
− rationale – разумное объяснение; логическое обоснование, основная причина
− soaring – вздымающийся, возвышающийся; высокий, грандиозный
− buffalo – буйвол; бизон
− to cavort – прыгать, скакать
− premature – необдуманный, непродуманный, опрометчивый, поспешный
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