World Rhino Day is September 22! #worldrhinoday

On September 22, 2013, the fourth annual World Rhino Day will be celebrated with special events organized both online and offline by zoos, NGOs, conservancies, schools, businesses, and concerned citizens.

World Rhino Day is September 22, 2013.

This year, the big day falls on a Sunday, which has prompted some celebrants to include Saturday, September 21 — making it a weekend of sharing the rhino love! With World Rhino Day just around the corner, here’s a round up of some of the World Rhino Day events:

AUSTRALIA

Werribee Open Range Zoo will be running the following activities for World Rhino Day:

  • Rhino Rap with Rap artist ‘Hugo’ and Zoo Member children will be written and recorded with an accompanying video clip prior to the event for showing on the day, and for weeks after;
  • Rhino play with puppet theatre, rhino foot print stamps, baby toy rhinos to feed;
  • Rhino information, jokes/riddles and messaging at our Safari Bus Station.

Taronga Western Plains Zoo, in Dubbo, NSW, Australia will be joining people across the globe to celebrate World Rhino Day 2013, over the weekend of 21st and 22nd September.

Visitors can help the raise vital funds for the zoo’s conservation partner, the International Rhino Foundation (IRF)!

  • Enter the zoo and follow the ‘Rhino Trail’; discover more about the world’s rhinos and what is being done to help them, at special World Rhino Day keeper talks and rhino feeds!
  • Lucky guests of the Wild Africa Encounter, Billabong Camp or Zoofari experiences will get the chance to see some of the resident rhinos up close, and discover more about their conservation.
  • Visitors have the chance to WIN a Wild Africa Encounter for 4 people! PLUS the Zoo’s Education department will also be running rhino themed classes and‘Zoo Adventures’, there will be donation buckets at the ‘Jump for Rhinos!’ jumping castle, and ‘Munch for Rhinos!’ Munch Mobile, and staff will be raising extra money with raffles and rhino crafts!

Three One 2 One cafe in Richmond, Victoria (Australia) is matching all tips for the month of September for a donation to SAVE African Rhino Foundation!

Three One 2 One is raising funds for the SAVE African Rhino Foundation.

KENYA

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya invites you to get involved by sharing your rhino photos on their Facebook page and adding a caption! Write an encouraging message that will reach out to millions of people urging them to help save this species.

MALAYSIA

TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, is planning a virtual World Rhino Day event and will be sharing rhino photos, facts, and other information on their Facebook page.

Time zone alert: Malaysia will be the first rhino range state to welcome World Rhino Day! Malaysia is home to a handful of wild Sumatran rhinos, as well as a rescue center, where three rhinos are currently residing.

NEPAL

In the Chitwan National Park buffer zone, Mrigakunja User Committee will hold a World Rhino Day celebration featuring a drawing and essay competition among the eco-club members at local schools.

NEW ZEALAND

Auckland Zoo in New Zealand is celebrating World Rhino Day on both Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd September.

To raise money for the Auckland Zoo Conservation Fund (which currently supports Rhino conservation) all of the zoo’s Rhino keepers are having their heads shaved on Rhino weekend!

Auckland Zoo will have the following activities:

  • 3 Rhino encounters each day.
  • Each visitor to the Zoo will receive a handout with a Rhino quiz and a rhino colouring in activity.
  • Rhino touch table with rhino artifacts
  • Competition to guess how much a wheelbarrow full of Rhino poo weighs
  • Display of how much food a Rhino eats per day
  • Display of Rhino enrichment items
  • Rhino hats as giveaways
  • Information displays about the 5 different types of Rhino
  • Information about our 3 rhinos and how to tell them apart
  • Information on the different features of rhinos, i.e., their ears, horn, skin etc.
  • Facepainting!

Connect with Auckland Zoo on Facebook.

SOUTH AFRICA

Join Project Rhino KZN and Kinglsey Holgate for World Rhino Weekend at the Boardwalk Shopping Centre, where more than 5,000 pieces of rhino art created by children in South Africa, Mozambique, and Swaziland will be on display!

ProjectKZN02 Kingsley Holgate and other celebrities will be speaking to an estimated 30,000 visitors over the weekend and South African soccer team — Thanda Rhinos — will make a special appearance. White “rhino crosses” will be sold to raise funds for Project Rhino KZN’s work and schools, businesses, artists and conservation leaders are lining up to take part in this weekend of targeted action, fundraising and awareness!

Project Rhino KZN has also created two three-minute video clips (in English and Vietnamese). In these, children from KwaZulu-Natal speak out vehemently against rhino poaching and their words are supported by thousands of hand-drawn pictures from children in the rest of South Africa, Mozambique and Swaziland. Project Rhino KZN encourages all World Rhino Day supporters to hear the heartfelt pleas of children asking for rhino poaching to be stopped, and to share the videos!

No one is too young to celebrate World Rhino Day: A talented group of nursery school children in South Africa have created a rhino out of cardboard boxes and newspaper, and giving it a colorful paint job.

This colorful rhino was created by nursery school children in South Africa in honor of World Rhino Day 2013.

The rhino will be displayed on the corner of Napier and San Souci Roads in Parktown for World Rhino Day!

In celebration of World Rhino Day weekend, Goldfields Mall in Welkom is giving customers the opportunity to clad their rhino sculpture “Mapompana” (the Short Fat One) in R10 notes on Saturday 21 September in aid of Anti Poaching.

Mapompana

Mapompana is one of the largest solid concrete rhino sculptures in South Africa and is loved by young and old. Children have become accustomed to climbing on Mapompana whilst parents enjoy refreshments
in the Piazza.

For the second year in a row, a “Paint-a-thon” will be held at Greenwhich College in Johannesburg, South Africa. Student volunteers are giving up their Saturday night to paint pictures of rhinos. The emphasis is to paint at night in order to also raise awareness that this is when the rhinos are most vulnerable. Photo courtesy of Natasha Griffiths.

paintathon8

UK

This year Save the Rhino plans to send 5 of their famous rhino costumes across the UK to take part in local events, as well as holding an event in London.

Save the Rhino is looking for 5 enthusiastic volunteers and would like to hear your ideas. What would you do with a rhino costume for a day? For your chance to be involved with World Rhino Day, please visit their website at savetherhino.org and download the short application form. You can also get in touch with Katherine at katherine (at) savetherhino (dot) org for more information, or phone 020 7357 7474.

Port Lympne Wildlife Park in Kent, home to 15 (!) black rhinos is hosting a World Rhino Weekend, with lots of fun activities planned to ensure everyone learns something new about rhinos!

PortLympne

“The Changing Face of the Rhino” will be presented on September 18th at the Royal Geographical Society in London with Dr. William Fowlds, a South African safari veterinarian. Tickets can be purchased from rhinolecture.eventbrite.co.uk and cost £20 including a drinks reception from 6pm.

The Changing Face of the RhinoThis event aims to raise awareness for the plight of the rhino through, and also to raise charitable funds to continue the work of, the educative curriculum of Voices of Conservation, along with supporting TUSK Trust and Born Free Foundation.

Celebrate the last day of Marwell Wildlife Go! Rhinos trail with a visit to Southampton to see the incredible rhino sculptures before their departure to Marwell Zoo and subsequent auction. Download the free Go! Rhinos smartphone app or a trail map from gorhinos.co.uk.

Be sure to attend the Marwell Saving Species presentation at the Rhino enclosure at 4.15pm for a free raffle ticket to meet Kiri and Sula, their gorgeous white rhinos, and enter to win a face-to-face encounter with these gentle giants on the day. This prize is for up to four people!

Colchester Zoo will be supporting World Rhino Day, celebrating all five remaining rhino species and raising awareness about the trade in rhino horn! On Sunday 22 September, the Zoo will host a stall near the rhino enclosure with information on the current poaching crisis, the five remaining rhino species and information about rhinos at Colchester Zoo and on the UmPhafa Private Nature Reserve. You can help raise funds for the zoo’s chosen charity, Save the Rhino International, by purchasing rhino items from the stall, making rhino badges and masks and taking part in rhino-related activities.

Colchester Zoo’s rhino keepers are also offering a special opportunity for 50 people to meet Flossy the rhino! This will be a first come, first served event; with 2 groups of 25 visitors taking part at two times slots throughout the day. A requested minimum donation of £5 for adults and £3 for children is required for this special session, and tickets will be available at the stall (Please note, 10 – 15 year old children only are permitted to take part in this event and all children must be supervised by an adult). All proceeds will go towards Action for the Wild’s support of Save the Rhinos.

USA

The Buffalo Zoo in New York will hold a special event on World Rhino Day to raise funds for the International Rhino Foundation. Tickets are $5 and include a presentation on the five rhinos species, raffles, snacks, and refreshments.

BuffaloZoo

The Henry Vilas Zoo in Madison, WI, will hold a World Rhino Day celebration on September 22 from 3:00 pm — 6:00 pm at Capital Brewery, located at 7734 Terrace Avenue in Middleton. The event will feature Rhino Facts Trivia and Raffle Drawings!

Connect with Henry Vilas Zoo on Facebook.

The San Diego chapter of the International Rhino Keeper Association is celebrating World Rhino Day by hosting a party called “Winos for Rhinos” from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm at Vinz Wine Bar, located at 201 E Grand Ave, Escondido, CA 92025!

This event features wine tasting and a wine raffle! From 11:30 am to 6:00 pm, 20% of Vinz Wine Bar’s proceeds will go to the International Rhino Keeper Association.

The Saint Louis Zoo is thrilled to celebrate World Rhino Day on September 21st from 10am – 3pm. Come on out to visit the rhinos in the River’s Edge. There will be crafts and activities for kids and give-a-ways, including bookmarks and wristbands! Talk with a rhino keeper and help save the critically endangered black rhino!

Milwaukee County Zoo (located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is celebrating World Rhino Day with two keeper talks to learn about the five species of rhinos, the poaching epidemic, and the Milwaukee County Zoo’s two black rhinos, Mimi and Brewster. Talks will be given in front of the outdoor black rhino exhibits at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

2014RhinoCalendar

The International Rhino Keeper AssociationRhino Conservation Calendars are NOW on sale for $22 USD until September 22nd (and $26 after 9/22). Calendar sales directly benefit the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary! Download the 2014 Rhino Conservation Calendar order form.

September marks the return of Megafauna to the Lost Rhino Brewing Company beer menu! The popular offering, introduced last year, pays homage to the Brewery’s rhino namesake. Megafauna translates as “large animal” and is fittingly making its comeback appearance during the month when World Rhino Day is celebrated, September 22nd.

megafauna - Lost Rhino Brewing Company

For every pint of Megafauna ordered in the Tasting Room during the month of September, Lost Rhino will donate 25¢ to Save the Rhino International!

Annamiticus will launch Episode 1 of the educational web series “Ancient Rhinos of Southeast Asia” on September 22. “Ancient Rhinos of Southeast Asia” is an educational web series which takes viewers on a historical journey of two Asian rhino species from their once plentiful existence to their decimation, and finally, to today’s unprecedented international effort to rescue these critically endangered megafauna from the edge of extinction.

Wondering what to wear on World Rhino Day?

WorldRhinoDayTshirt How about a rhino t-shirt: Annamiticus is contributing t-shirt proceeds from the month of September to the International Rhino Foundation‘s Sumatran and Javan rhino conservation programs. These two species are the rarest of rhinos: The Sumatran rhino currently numbers fewer than 100, and there are no more than 50 Javan rhinos still surviving.

VIETNAM

Education for Nature – Vietnam (ENV) has released a new PSA to increase awareness about the plight of the world’s rhinos. You can help spread the word by watching and sharing the video now:

http://youtu.be/6R2SvN0zusQ

Join the World Rhino Day celebration!

If you are planning a World Rhino Day event, please post the details to the World Rhino Day Facebook page (facebook.com/WorldRhinoDay) and/or send me an email: info (at) worldrhinoday (dot) org.

World Rhino Day posters: If you’d like to download and print a large or small World Rhino Day 2013 poster, download them from the World Rhino Day poster page. The LARGE hi-res poster is 16 x 20 in. (29.3 MB) and the small poster is 8.5 x 11 in. (286 KB).

And be sure to take photos and videos of your World Rhino Day celebration so we can include them in this year’s World Rhino Day compilation video!


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