Ten black rhinos have died after being moved to Tsavo East National Park, the Kenyan government announced. The only survivor was injured after being attacked by a lion. Eleven of the endangered animals had been moved in an attempt to start a new rhino population. However, it was soon revealed that the water in the park was too salty, causing the rhinos to become severely dehydrated. The government had originally planned to move fourteen rhinos to the new habitat, but transportation of the final three was canceled after the initial deaths. Speaking at a press conference, Tourism Minister Najib Balal blamed the deaths on negligence and poor communication among government officials, the BBC reports. Between 2005 and 2017, the Kenyan wildlife ministry has transported 149 rhinos with only eight deaths, according to the Associated Press. With fewer than 5,500 black rhinos in the world, the animals are critically endangered. Kenya is home to 750 of the remaining rhinos. The black rhino deaths come shortly after the devastating loss of the last male northern white rhino in the world, which died in March. Rhinos across Africa have been under threat from poachers, who kill the animals and sell the horns on the illicit Asian market. The Kenyan government has launched an independent investigation into the black rhino deaths, Reuters reported. Get The Brief. Sign up to receive the top stories you need to know right now. Please enter a valid email address. * The request timed out and you did not successfully sign up. Please attempt to sign up again. Sign Up Now An unexpected error has occurred with your sign up. Please try again later. Check the box if you do not wish to receive promotional offers via email from TIME. You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Thank you! For your security, we've sent a confirmation email to the address you entered. Click the link to confirm your subscription and begin receiving our newsletters. If you don't get the confirmation within 10 minutes, please check your spam folder. Write to Alejandro de la Garza at alejandro.delagarza@time.com.<doc-sep>Last month, officials with the Kenya Wildlife Service attempted to move 11 endangered black rhinos from two national parks, Nairobi and Lake Nakuru, to a third, Tsavo East. Nine of them died shortly after arriving in their new home from what an autopsy has shown to be salt poisoning. Today, the Kenyan government announced that a tenth rhino has died and that the eleventh — now the sole survivor of the translocation operation — was attacked by lions yesterday and is clinging to life. The black rhinoceros is a Critically Endangered species, according to the IUCN Red List. Only about 5,500 individuals are believed to survive in the wild today, 750 of them in Kenya. Last month, officials with the Kenya Wildlife Service attempted to move 11 endangered black rhinos from two national parks, Nairobi and Lake Nakuru, to a third, Tsavo East. Nine of them died shortly after arriving in their new home from what an autopsy has shown to be salt poisoning and dehydration. Today, the Kenyan government announced that a tenth rhino has died and that the eleventh — now the sole survivor of the translocation operation — was attacked by lions yesterday and is clinging to life. According to a report from eNews Channel Africa, Kenyan Tourism Minister Najib Balala said at a press briefing in Nairobi this morning that an investigation had determined that “negligence” by the transfer team had led to the 10 rhinos’ deaths due to “multiple stress syndrome intensified by salt poisoning.” The rhinos were taken to Tsavo East National Park in southern Kenya, one of the country’s oldest and largest parks, in order to establish a new breeding ground for the animals in the hopes that they would start a new population. The black rhinoceros is a Critically Endangered species, according to the IUCN Red List. Only about 5,500 individuals are believed to survive in the wild today, 750 of them in Kenya. Autopsies found the water at the endangered black rhinos’ new home in Tsavo East had such a high concentration of salt that it was harmful to the animals, Balala said at the press conference. The BBC reports that Balala added that the Kenyan government had sampled the water in Tsavo East before relocating the rhinos there, but failed to take the results of those tests into consideration. The rhinos ultimately died of dehydration, upper respiratory tract bacteria, and gastric ulcers. Balala also announced that the eleventh relocated rhino was in critical condition after the lion attack. The rhino “was treated and so far we are monitoring that eleventh rhino,” he said. Several Kenya Wildlife Service officials who were involved in the relocation operation have reportedly been suspended. The Kenyan arm of the WWF runs the rhino translocation program with the Kenya Wildlife Service. Though WWF Kenya CEO Mohamed Awer described the translocation process as “extremely challenging” in a statement to CNN, he said the risk was worth it given the odds stacked against the species. “At a time when three rhinos are poached on average a day for their horns, any losses are particularly painful,” Awer told CNN. “Translocating wild animals of this size is extremely challenging and not without risk, but black rhinos are under enormous threat so efforts to try and better protect them, such as translocations, are crucial for future generations.” Kenya’s Tourism and Wildlife Ministry said that nearly 150 black rhinos were translocated to new habitats in the country between 2005 and 2017, and just eight died after being transferred. Poaching driven by the demand for rhino horn for use in traditional medicinal practices in China and Vietnam is the chief threat facing the world’s remaining black rhinos. There are no scientifically proven medical benefits associated with rhino horn, which is made of keratin, the same substance as human hair and fingernails.<doc-sep>
(CNN) — A tenth black rhino has died in Kenya after wildlife workers relocated the animals to a new national park, a major setback for a critically endangered species. The rhino was one of 11 moved to the Tsavo East National Park this month. One rhino who survived the transfer was injured by a lion in an attack at its new home, Tourism Minister Najib Balala told reporters Thursday. Wildlife officials are monitoring the rhino closely as it undergoes treatment, he said. An investigation concluded most of the rhinos died after drinking water with a high concentration of salt at their new home. As a result, they suffered from dehydration, upper respiratory tract bacteria and gastric ulcers, Balala said in a statement. “The high salt levels led to dehydration that triggers thirst mechanism, resulting in excess water intake of the saline water that further exacerbates the problem,” Balala said. Wildlife officials had conducted water and environment quality assessments at the new park, but the results were not considered before the move, he said. He blamed the animals’ death on negligence, and poor communication and coordination among the officers involved in the transfer. Several wildlife officials have been suspended over the botched transfer. Why were the animals moved? The rhinos were moved from Nairobi and Lake Nakuru national parks to Tsavo East National Park to start a new population in the area. “At a time when three rhinos are poached on average a day for their horns, any losses are particularly painful,” said Mohamed Awer, CEO of World Wildlife Fund Kenya. With about 5,000 left worldwide, the black rhino is critically endangered, according to the World Wildlife Fund. By the end of last year, Kenya had about 745 black rhinos, according to Kenya Wildlife Service. Through relocation and density management, conservationists hope to increase the growth rate and strengthen the population’s gene pool. Rhino conservation is crucial Rhinos are targeted by poachers, fueled by the belief in Asia that their horns cure various ailments. Experts say the rhino horn is becoming more lucrative than drugs. The western black rhino was declared extinct seven years ago as a result of poaching. Just this year, the world’s last male northern white rhino died, leaving the subspecies on the verge of extinction. All five remaining rhino species worldwide are considered threatened, according to the conservation group Save the Rhino. Experts say if poaching continues, rhino deaths could surpass births. CNN’s Spencer Feingold contributed to this report