Member Blog: A new rhino enters the savannah

Boarding pass? Check. Passport? Check. Two-tonne rhino? Check.

A five-year-old southern white rhino has completed the journey of a lifetime, travelling from New Zealand to Australia to begin an exciting new chapter at Werribee Open Range Zoo.

After months of careful planning, Nyah (pronounced Nai-ah) arrived from Auckland Zoo aboard a Singapore Airlines flight as part of the Australasian Southern White Rhino breeding program. The program plays a vital role in maintaining a healthy, genetically diverse insurance population for this vulnerable species.

For Nyah, the long journey was just the beginning of her next big adventure. Werribee Open Range Zoo Savannah Keeper Resistance said she travelled calmly and settled into her new home remarkably quickly.

“Nyah is an incredibly playful rhino, so as soon as she stepped onto the savannah, she was zooming around everywhere,” Keeper Resistance said. “She was playfully chasing the keeper utes, buses and even the ostriches. Her tail was up in the air as she explored her new surroundings, smelling the different scents left by the other rhinos, giraffes and zebras. It was incredible to see her thriving after such a long journey.”

Nyah has already begun getting to know her new surroundings, including meeting female rhinos Sisi and Letaba. The trio shared playful horn touches, an important part of rhino communication that helps build trust and strengthen social bonds.

“She was incredibly curious about everything and clearly loved having such a big open space full of zebra, giraffe, oryx, eland, waterbuck and ostrich to explore,” Keeper Resistance said.

Getting Nyah ready for her international move was a months-long process. Auckland Zoo keepers used specialised training to help her become comfortable entering and resting inside her transport crate voluntarily, ensuring she felt safe and confident throughout the journey.

On moving day, Nyah’s crate was carefully lifted onto a truck, transported to the airport and loaded into the aircraft for the four-hour flight to Australia, before completing the final leg of her journey to Werribee Open Range Zoo.

Over the coming days, Nyah will gradually be introduced to male rhino Umgana, with keepers hopeful the pair will form a successful breeding match.

“Hopefully this will one day result in another rhino calf joining the crash and give our three-year-old calf, Jabulani, a new playmate,” Keeper Resistance said.

Native to southern Africa, southern white rhinos are classified as Near Threatened, with an estimated 15,000 individuals remaining in the wild. They continue to face threats including poaching for the illegal rhino horn trade, as well as habitat loss and fragmentation.

The Australasian Southern White Rhino breeding program supports the long-term future of the species by helping maintain genetically diverse populations in protected zoo environments. These populations provide an important safeguard for rhinos, while inspiring people to care about wildlife conservation and supporting conservation efforts in their native range.

While Nyah’s journey to Werribee Open Range Zoo marks an important step for rhino conservation in Australasia, protecting the future of this incredible species also relies on conservation efforts in their native range.

Through our partnership with WildLandscapes East Africa and the Uganda Wildlife Authority, work is underway to restore rhinos to the landscapes where they once roamed.

Within Kidepo Valley National Park, a dedicated rhino sanctuary is being established to support the return of rhinos to northern Uganda. Rhinos once thrived in this region, but were sadly wiped out more than 40 years ago due to poaching and other pressures.

Our partnership with this program began in 2025, with the shared goal of supporting rhino reintroduction, strengthening conservation efforts and helping drive positive economic outcomes for local communities.

This partnership is supporting:

The establishment of a rhino sanctuary in Kidepo Valley National Park – completed early 2026, creating a safe and secure environment for rhinos to return to this historic landscape.
The reintroduction of southern white rhinos – helping restore a species that has been absent from northern Uganda for decades, with the first four Southern white rhinos transferred in March 2026.
The development of a reintroduction plan for black rhinos – laying the foundations for the future return of another iconic rhino species.

By protecting rhinos both in managed conservation environments and in the wild, these efforts provide hope for the long-term survival of these remarkable animals.

Your membership helps make conservation efforts like this possible. By being a member of Zoos Victoria, you are supporting vital wildlife conservation programs that protect threatened species, restore populations in the wild and help create a future where rhinos and other endangered animals can thrive.