Flying rhinoceros lands in Israel

A young rhinoceros was up in the air on Thursday afternoon as it flew from South Africa to Israel to join the Ramat Gan Safari herd.

The new addition, a two-year-old female, will join the park’s nine rhinos in the coming weeks.

The rhino comes from a safari in Pretoria and was sent to Israel as part of a worldwide conservation effort to breed the endangered animals.

Safari spokesperson Sagit Horowitz explained that the female rhinos at the park tend to pair up, but the odd number until now meant that Keren, a beast who arrived from the same Pretoria safari, was left without a pal with whom to frolic. Horowitz said the hope is that the two will eventually pair off and become firm friends.

Introducing the youngster, who weighs about half a ton, is a carefully controlled process. The new female will be placed in a fenced off area close enough for the rest of the herd to smell and see her. Only after several weeks of get-to-know-you will she finally join the main rhino enclosure.