Watch The Sighting Here:
Wildlife guide Bernhard Bekker was fortunate to record this joyful, but sedate, moment. He submitted his video and account of the pairing to Latest Sightings.
The location of this special occasion is withheld to protect them from poachers.
How Did We Get Here?
The video depicts a mating pair of white rhinos. Typically, males live a solitary existence, while females gather in small herds of up to 14 animals.
When a male encounters a female in oestrus (a phase of sexual receptivity), he begins a prolonged courtship. Initially, she repels his advances but eventually tolerates his presence.
Once she has accepted him, he is ready to make his next move. While calling to her, he approaches slowly to within touching distance. By resting his head on her rump, he signals his intentions.
It is shortly after this that we pick up the action in Bernard’s video.
How Rhinos Mate
Standing still, she raised her tail to signal her readiness. Being the massive animal that he is, actual copulation is difficult to achieve.
After getting his chin onto her hindquarters, he leveraged his body upward until his forelegs straddled her hips. Then, slowly but surely, he inched along her body until their reproductive organs aligned.
Hope She’s Enjoying It
With the male appearing to do all the work, they finally coupled. Having achieved that milestone, the female promptly continued grazing.
With the male effectively riding piggyback style, the female managed to continue walking while he did his business.
Actual copulation in rhinos takes surprisingly long, anything from 20 minutes to an hour. All the while, the male’s face was a picture of studied patience (and concentration?).
Climax Or Anti-climax?
When the deed is done, it’s time for the male to begin the laborious process of reversing the effort it took to mount her.
Methodically, the male manoeuvred his body down her back, until only his chin was resting on her rump.
Then, it was just a matter of her walking forward a few paces for him to slide off entirely.
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Fanfare-free Fun
With that, the mating process was over. Probably hungry after all this time and effort, the male wasted no time in getting back to grazing.
As for the female, she just carried on as nonplussed as she had been throughout. Waddling as sexily as only a rhino can waddle, she wandered off.
Rhino mating pairs tend to stay together for up to three weeks, mating several times a day. All being well, some 16 months later, a single calf is born.
Devoted mothers, female rhinos only mate again after 2-3 years. But not before she has successfully chased off her last calf, forcing it to become independent.
A Difficult Life
Where once white rhinos roamed widely across East and Southern Africa, today they are only found in protected conservation areas, especially in South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Uganda.
Already under pressure due to human habitat encroachment, their numbers plummeted in the 20th century. Initially due to hunting and agriculture, their decline worsened when poaching escalated.
Through intensive conservation efforts, their numbers are gradually increasing in some countries, like South Africa.
Surely, we’re all holding thumbs that this video marks another important step in the species’ long-term survival.