Brussels 02.11.2021 A rhino with tears in his eyes: heartbreaking images show a Southern White rhino ‘weeping in pain’ after poachers hacked off his horn and crushed part of the bone in his skull in South African game reserve.

Southern White Rhino can be seen with tears running down from his eyes while lays his head on the ground.
The male rhino was saved by the charity Saving the Survivors and he is kept on a reserve in South Africa.
Images show the rhino’s skull is exposed behind the huge bloodied hole where the horn was hacked by poachers.

South Africa holds the majority of the world’s rhinos numbering over 2,000 and has been the country hit hardest by poaching criminals, with more than 1,000 rhinos killed each year between 2013 and 2017.

There were 394 recorded poaching incidents in South Africa in 2020, poaching numbers have declined significantly in recent years, but are still too high. On average in the country, a rhino is killed for it horn each day.

Photographer Simon Needham, 55, who works with several wildlife charities in South Africa told his story about the suffering rhino. He explained that this animal was one more victim of poacher’s barbarism, butchering rhino’s horn, and crushing his skull. The owners of the game reserve abandoned the animal, presuming he was dead, but the police noticed him and informed Saving the Survivors charity about him.
The owners of the reserve surrendered him to charity as he was worthless to them. In spite of pain and suffering from the atrocious skull injury the rhino had a strong will to survive.