“ The Earth does not belong to us; we belong to the Earth.” – Marlee Matlin
A couple of months back I made a much looked forward to trip to Solio in Kenya.
Solio has a picturesque Game Reserve, that nestles comfortably between Mount Kenya on one side and the Aberdare Mountains on the other side. And while the Reserve has lions, leopards, giraffes, zebras and birdlife that have made it their home, it is famous for one subject.
A subject I have met only occasionally before and have never got any image that I could even think of looking at twice.
The rhino.
Now, there has been a lot of news about how rhinos are seriously endangered and about how there was one last surviving male white rhino that died recently. So, let me spend just a few lines on some important distinctions.
There are two African rhinos – the black and the white.
There are three Asian rhinos – the Sumatran, the Javan and the Indian.
All the Asian rhinos are at risk, but the Sumatran and Javan especially so with less than 100 each of them estimated to be surviving.
The African white rhino, which is what I will be focusing on, has two sub species – the northern white rhino and the southern white rhino.
It is the northern white rhino which has only two females that are known to be alive. The last known male had died recently and that was the event that had caught a lot of media attention.
The southern white rhino was seriously endangered with less than 100 of them alive in the early 1900s. But, in a remarkable and unfortunately uncommon turn of events, conservation efforts have resulted in the numbers now increasing to more than 18000 of them.
One interesting fun fact is that the white rhino is not actually white.
In the Afrikaan language, ‘weit’ means wide which refers to the wide mouth it has in contrast to the black rhino and that was how they distinguished this rhino. The Englishman thought they meant “white’ and the name stuck.
Anyway, back to Solio.
Its such a picturesque forest. It has a river, a swampy area, a pretty wooded area, open plains and of course, the mountains looking benignly down at them.
There is a beautiful acacia forest in the middle, where the acacia trees spread out generously while being bathed by the beautiful wintry sun. Fallen down trees, which were quite a few, made the scene look even better. A river runs close by where you find the water birds socializing while also helping themselves to succulent meals. Another patch close by has trees standing tall and wearing their leaflessness as a badge of their loneliness. When the fog rolls over, this place looks hauntingly magical.
Then there are the plains. Wide open, grass covered, gently undulating lands. You usually reach them after a short ride through shrubbery and then the land suddenly bursts open. It is here that you usually see the white rhinos and the occasional black one.
Solio, our guide informed us, has around 600 rhinos. That’s quite an impressive number. It also means that sightings are not very difficult.
I had gone to Solio with the main objective of taking wide angle images of these impressive beasts and I got a few decent ones that I am happy with. However, what left a deeper mark on me was completely different.
One chilly morning as we entered the reserve, there was a fair bit of fog that was stubbornly hanging around and the whole place looked cold and gloomy and the rhinos also seemed reluctant to come out to the plains. We were frantically searching for rhinos to compose into the frame. A little later, we were on a slightly elevated patch of flat ground and we could make out the ghostly figures of two rhinos strolling around through the gloom and the gentle diffused rays of light. There was an element of serenity and calm that seemed just so simple.
We were here when there was a fair bit of rain and the skies often turned into the most magnificent canvas of drama between the thunderous clouds and glorious light. From a photographer’s perspective, such scenes scream for a subject and we would be desperately looking for a rhino who we can compose into the scene.
We succeeded sometimes in that and moved on to other images. But, back home, when I was looking at all my images, these 'other' images were the ones that spoke to me, that moved me in a manner that was different from the usual joy of taking a dramatic image.
To see these beasts walking under these gorgeous skies, through the shadowy fog, free of any fear looked so natural and peaceful. To see the calves playing with each other, adults fighting with each other over territorial rights or the right over females, or to see them peacefully minding their own business is to see them in their natural environment, free and wild.
Wild creatures occupying a little space for themselves. This is how the earth was supposed to be.
Then we, humans came in with our insatiable greed and the destruction began. Now a few people who care deeply have to fight for pockets of land where there is a constant struggle to keep these animals safe.
Isn’t that such a pity?
Ghostly figures at peace in their misty world
Thunderous clouds and in contrast, a peaceful rhino focused on his meal
When they fight...its a fully focused and intense battle
A cooperative rhino showing off its best profile
On a lovely morning, amidst the clouds a mother keeps pace with her wandering kid
The sun is setting, its time for this rhino to move away from the plains
Wide open skies, green meadows, a few gossiping birds for company...the perfect life
Stormy clouds about their future...the southern white rhino has bounced back,
but threats are ever present
Peaceful. Serene. That is the world they need...and deserve
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When I started this newsletter, I had set myself an audacious goal of writing 500 of these fortnightly posts without missing a single one. Well… just a couple of years into that, I missed out on one.
December was a month which had me down with some minor health issues and while I still could have written a post, I just felt a tad low on energy to do so and, well…maybe the miss was not noticed, but since there was a miss, I felt compelled to acknowledge it. ( I am strange that way :) )
All good now, and 2025 promises some exciting and interesting possibilities which you will undoubtedly hear more about !
Wishing all of you a gorgeously wonderful year ahead and thanks a lot for the constant support and encouragement that you have given me along the way !
Amazing images as always.