Comprehension: Protection for South Africa's Cheetahs and Rhinos

South Africa's game parks give the impression of wilderness, but are carefully managed and monitored. French conservationist Damien Vergnaud takes his cheetahs on runs and injects his rhinos' horns with poison, in order to protect these animals from danger.


Watch the video and answer the questions below. Decide if the statements are True or False.

1. The game reserve owned by Damien Vergnaud has 50 cheetahs.
a. True
b. False

2. There are fewer than 2000 Cheetahs left in South Africa.
True
False

3. The rhinoceroses are only protected at night.
a. True
b. False

For transcript and answers see below.

Transcript and Answers

The African wilderness, where animals roam free in their natural territory, has become more of a myth than reality.  These days, game parks are carefully managed by their owners, who try to balance profit-generating tourism, with the need for conservation.

 Frenchman Damien Vergnaud owns a game reserve in South Africa's Western Cape. He encourages the 15 cheetahs on his reserve to mate by organizing a daily run. The exercise raises the females' body temperature, stimulating hormone production. 

"They gather around us because they know that in the car, there's something for them to eat. So our aim is to separate the males and the females, to give the females the better position, since they're the ones running after the prey."

"I just want this one to go a little bit away. OK, 3,2,1 GO! 

 "All right, well done Ngoni, thank you!"

 Cheetahs are classified as a vulnerable species - with fewer than 2,000 left in South Africa today. And they're not the only ones in danger.

 With 668 rhinos killed last year, and almost 200 killed since the start of this year, they too are at risk. Rhinos are killed for their horns, which are used in traditional Asian medicine. The poaching crisis has forced owners like Damien to take drastic action.  In December 2011, he poisoned the horns of three adult rhinos with a substance that’s toxic to humans. He also injected the rhino horns with a dye that would be detected with x-ray machines at airports.

 "Poisoning the rhinos' horns may seem like a violent or extreme response but ultimately it's a measure of the aggression with which our rhinos are attacked for their horns."

 As if that wasn't enough to ensure these rhinos' safety, an armed - and masked - patrol keeps guard of the animals at night.
                    
"Where are the females?"

 "Each and every hour of the day, there is someone with these rhinos, following them and patrolling with them, making sure they are ok. We will go to extreme measures, yes, to protect the rhinos."

From poisoning rhinos, to exercising cheetahs like greyhounds, managing Africa's "wilderness" has become a full-time job. But according to owners like Damien, extreme threats to these animals calls for equally extreme measures to protect them.

Answers:

1. b
2. a
3. b

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