But our conservation footprint extends far beyond the reaches of Tsavo. We work to secure and support field efforts in special wildernesses across Kenya. This month, we venture to one of these landscapes — a place that has become a refuge for one of Africa’s most critically endangered species.

– Angela Sheldrick

Meru is among Kenya's best-kept secrets. Widely regarded as one of Kenya’s last remaining true wildernesses, this jewel of a national park sits in the very heart of the country.

Rugged and remote, Meru is a staggeringly diverse ecosystem, home to a mosaic of distinct habitats. The rolling Nyambene Mountains, with their fern-filled peaks, tumble into semi-arid desert bush and grasslands. Anchored by the Tana River, 13 permanent rivers criss-cross through Meru, flanked by sandy beaches and doum palms.

Meru will always hold a special place in my memory. It was where I spent one of my last safaris with my dad. We went there for a Christmas holiday, joining Daphne’s brother, Peter Jenkins, the founding warden of Meru National Park.

It was bliss. We camped along the Kindani River (in a campsite that is today the Meru Rhino Sanctuary), lazed in the shade of the palm trees fringing the river, and swam in its crystal-clear waters. Towards the end of the trip, as we sat around the campfire and shone a torch on the water, we were alarmed to see a pair of red eyes gleaming back at us — a crocodile had relocated to ‘our’ bend in the river. Needless to say, our swimming jaunts ended then!

Meru National Park was established in 1966, around the same time that Elsa the lioness made it a household name. Beyond the big cats who dominate the kopjes and crocodiles who preside over the river, a wide array of creatures, wild and wonderful, call the park home. From elephants, caracals, aardwolves, cheetahs, leopards, and giraffes, over 500 animal species and 720 plant species can be found in Meru.

But to me, the stars of Meru National Park are its rhinos. Meru is a stage upon which a chequered — but ultimately triumphant — history with rhinos has played out, mirroring the species’ saga across the country.

Historically, Meru was a stronghold for Kenya’s eastern black rhino. It was considered to have the highest concentration of the species in northern Kenya, with over 200 individuals in the park alone, not taking into account the peripheral areas. That all changed in the 1970s, when a wave of poaching swept across Africa. Driven by demand for rhino horn in the Far East, poachers targeted known concentrations of the species. Between 1970 and 1983, 98 percent of Kenya’s black rhino population was killed. A nationwide population that once numbered 20,000 dwindled to just 350 in a little over a decade.

Meru National Park suffered the greatest. Times had changed since my treasured childhood camping trips. The stronghold had become a graveyard: Poaching eradicated nearly all the park's black rhino population. Between 1974 and 1979, 125 carcasses were recorded in Meru alone, with untold numbers that went undiscovered. By the early 1980s, all the black rhinos on the periphery of Meru had been killed, leaving an estimated five scattered survivors inside the national park. By the turn of the century, both rhino species were locally extinct in Meru.

It could have ended there. Fortunately, Kenya is a country that takes great pride in its natural heritage. While the scourge of poaching was tackled at a field and international level, conservationists banded together with the Kenya government to rebuild its rhino population.

The indomitable Mark Jenkins had now become Senior Warden of Meru National Park. Working alongside the KWS, they began slowly reintroducing rhinos back into the landscape. This is no small undertaking for any species — but particularly one as complex as the rhino.

Set against the backdrop of poaching, Kenya took an intensive approach to rhino conservation by establishing new populations within dedicated rhino sanctuaries. These secure, fully fenced sanctuaries were set up in former rhino ranges, allowing reintroduced populations to breed naturally and create their own territories.

Meru Rhino Sanctuary began with one white rhino, named Mokora. White rhinos, which had long been extinct in Kenya, were reintroduced to the country in the 1960s from South Africa to support conservation efforts. The Meru team chose to begin the sanctuary with white rhinos because they are less aggressive and territorial than black rhinos. Mokora was born in Meru in 1971, then moved to Lewa in 1986 for his safety, only to return more than a decade later as the founder of the new population.

From the reintroduction of a single rhino, Meru Rhino Sanctuary was born. A founding population of six white rhinos were brought to Meru from Solio Ranch in 2001. In the years that followed, a further 20 white rhinos were introduced from Lake Nakuru National Park, Lewa Downs, and Solio Ranch.

Now that a white rhino population had successfully been established within Meru, it was time to reintroduce black rhinos back into their traditional rangelands. As with white rhinos, they began with one male, Kalele, who was also translocated from Lewa Downs. In 2005, 20 black rhinos were brought to the sanctuary from Lewa Downs, Lake Nakuru National Park, and Nairobi National Park. This was the tricky part: Unlike their stolid cousins, black rhinos are notoriously mercurial. Much to everyone’s relief, however, they embraced their new home largely without incident.

But even as the population within Meru Rhino Sanctuary flourished, threats loomed. In the early 21st century, a second wave of poaching dented Africa’s already fragile rhino population. Between 2008 and 2015, at least 5,940 rhinos were killed across the continent.

To help the rhino population recover, protected sanctuaries were the solution. In 2017, we funded a large-scale project to upgrade and extend the fenceline securing Meru Rhino Sanctuary, doubling its size from 35 square kilometres to 83 square kilometres. In 2022, we funded an additional extension, bringing the total fenceline extension to 48.6 kilometres.

The state-of-the-art electric fenceline includes 20 strategic corridors that allow the free movement of animals, except for rhino, in and out of the sanctuary. These corridors were placed in known wildlife routes, essentially turning the sanctuary into a seamless (yet high-security) enclave within the wider Meru National Park.

A rhino sanctuary is only as effective as its security. As we installed Meru’s state-of-the-art fenceline, we also built four security bases dotted along its perimeter. KWS rangers guard the sanctuary day and night, while SWT funds a full-time staff of 12 who monitor the fenceline every single day for any breaks or security breaches. Where we can, we also support KWS operations in Meru National Park, donating two Land Cruiser security vehicles, vehicle upgrades and maintenance, ranger camping gear, and other essential equipment.

Our wider support for Meru National Park has spanned more than a decade. In 2013, we established a SWT/KWS Mobile Veterinary Unit in Meru. To date, the team has attended to 1,244 animals, including 242 rhinos. Operations include ear notching exercises, translocations, and treatments for injuries and illness.

In 2014, we installed permanent ‘boots on the ground’ in Meru: our SWT/KWS Meru Anti-Poaching Team. Rangers conduct daily patrols to uncover illegal activities, confiscate snares, gather intelligence, and support field conservation efforts. Their mere presence also acts as a powerful deterrent to would-be poachers and other perpetrators.

Suffice it to say, enormous efforts go on behind the scenes to secure Meru Rhino Sanctuary and the wider national park. All the while, the rhinos go about their daily lives, blissfully unaware of the machinations in place to ensure their safety.The sanctuary may be fenced, but sitting within, you would never know it: It feels vast, untouched, and utterly wild.

And that is exactly as it should be. Through the years, Meru’s rhino population has begun to flourish of its own accord. Adults are breeding, babies are being born, and the next generation of rhinos is taking root. I hope, in the fullness of time, that all Kenya’s rhinos are again able to roam freely across the country’s protected lands. But for now, Meru Rhino Sanctuary is giving them a place to recover and repopulate In fact, it has turned into an important feeder for other rhino populations across the country.

Meru Rhino Sanctuary is a reminder that no cause is truly lost. From a population of zero rhinos not that long ago, it is presently home to 100 white and 45 black rhinos. This year alone, six black rhinos were born within the sanctuary. This little jewel very much represents a species saved from the brink — and, we hope and believe, with an entire future ahead of them.