Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest or white-tailed gnu ("Connochaetes gnou") is one of the two closely related wildebeest species. It is a member of the genus "Connochaetes" and family Bovidae. It was first described in 1780 by Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zimmermann. The black wildebeest is typically in head-and-body length, and the typical weight is . Males stand about at the shoulder, while the height of the females is . The black wildebeest is characterised by its white, long, horse-like tail. It also has a dark brown to black coat and long, dark-coloured hair between its forelegs and under its belly.
Ol Pejeta Conservancy
Poaching and habitat loss are depleting rhino and elephant populations all over Africa. The African elephant is listed as "Vulnerable" on the IUCN list, the white rhino is "Near Vulnerable" and the black rhino is "Critically Endangered". Rhino horn is erroneously believed to have medicinal properties by many people in Asia, and is used as traditional dagger handles in Yemen. As of January 2014, it can fetch US$60,000–100,000. One kilogram of ivory can fetch US$1,000–3,000. With the tusks of an adult elephant weighing up to 50 kg, potential profits for poachers and traders are huge.
The trade in rhino horn and ivory is so lucrative that, increasingly, poachers are gaining access to automatic weapons, silencers and night-vision to carry out their work. Protecting wildlife from these criminals is an expensive business. Convention has it that the cost of protecting wildlife habitat doubles with the presence of black rhino. Currently, it costs approximately US$17,300 per square kilometre (US$70 per acre) to secure the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, who have a number of security and anti-poaching measures.