The Black Mambas: The World's First All-Woman Anti-Poaching Unit

This true story introduces the Black Mambas, twenty women in camouflage uniforms who became South Africa’s first female park rangers and the world’s first women-led anti-poaching unit. Many grew up in villages near the Olifants West Nature Reserve but had not seen the animals protected there. The rangers patrol the reserve unarmed, look for evidence of poachers, and help safeguard rhinos, pangolins, and other wildlife. Their positions offer a way to support their families, despite objections to women doing work seen as dangerous. Training and patrols also build a sisterhood among the rangers.