Fireside Stories from the Black Rhino Frontline
Who’s on the Podcast
Dr. Simon Morgan - Life on Foot with Black Rhino
Conservationist & Wildlife ACT Trustee
Former black rhino tracker with extensive on-the-ground experience at Phinda Private Game Reserve.
Recorded fireside as the African bush fades from gold to shadow, this episode of Sundowner Sessions sees Brett in convo with conservationist and Wildlife ACT trustee Dr. Simon Morgan.
Simon reflects on his early conservation career at Phinda, where he spent years tracking black rhino on foot, logging more than 2,500 encounters with one of Africa’s most formidable animals. Pre-dawn starts, nocturnal back-tracking, reading the smallest signs in the sand — this was conservation in its rawest form. Long before dashboards and data models, it was a clipboard, a GPS, and world-class trackers who could follow a rhino’s night journey step by step.
“According to the law of averages, I’m lucky to be alive.”
What comes through clearly is that working with black rhino isn’t about bravado. It’s about stillness, instinct, and knowing when not to move. Simon shares moments where standing dead still, trusting experience, or circling a single tree were the difference between walking away and not walking away at all.
The conversation moves into the unpredictable reality of frontline conservation, failed dartings, subcutaneous injections that didn’t work, helicopters trying to steer animals that refused to follow any rulebook, and encounters that escalated in seconds. These are the stories that rarely make it into documentaries: the chaos behind even the most carefully planned operations.
“Black rhinos don’t follow the rules.”
Beyond the close calls, Simon also speaks about his transition from fieldwork into conservation finance, and the urgent need to recognise nature as a critical asset. By placing real value on ecosystems and natural capital, conservation can move beyond protection alone and toward long-term sustainability, activating private investment to help nature do what it already does best.
Grounded, honest, and quietly funny, this episode captures what Sundowner Sessions is all about: real stories, told fireside, by people who’ve lived them.
Until next time - keep your sundowners cold and your stories wild.
Interesting Facts from the Episode
- Black rhinos are mostly nocturnal, with up to 90% of their activity happening at night.
- Standing still can be safer than running - black rhinos have poor eyesight and rely heavily on scent and movement.
- Black rhinos regularly consume toxic and hallucinogenic plants that would be lethal to humans.
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