List of 10 useful 'Rhino horn is not medicine' quotes

World Rhino Day 2011: “At the root of the rhino crisis is the myth that rhino horn contains curative properties. For that reason, World Rhino Day 2011 is highlighting efforts to debunk the myths and diminish the demand for rhino horn.”

The world’s leading conservation and environmental organizations – among others – are speaking out against the use of rhino horn as a medical treatment. Check out this list of quotes with source links and a few videos.
Rhino horn quotes

1. “Although there is no scientific proof of its medical value, rhino horn is highly prized in traditional Asian medicine, where it is ground into a fine powder or manufactured into tablets as a treatment for a variety of illnesses such as nosebleeds, strokes, convulsions, and fevers.” – WWF, African Rhino Poaching Crisis
2. “The unfounded rumour that rhino horn can cure cancer most likely sealed the fate of the last Javan rhino in Vietnam. This same problem is now threatening other rhino populations across Africa and South Asia.” – Dr. A. Christy Williams, WWF, Rhino horn demand leads to record poaching
3. “We will be leading global action to clamp down on this cruel and archaic trade, and to dispel the myths peddled to vulnerable people that drive demand for rhino products.” – UK Environment Secretary Caroline Spelmen, UK to lead international rhino horn clampdown
4. “The tragedy is that rhino horn is made of keratin, the same stuff that makes up human hair and nails. It has no medicinal value, you might as well eat your fingernails.” – Mark Jones, Executive Director, Humane Society International/UK, It is devastating to see rhinos killed for a cure that doesn’t work
5. “To all this, I say that something that works for everything usually works for nothing. I also say that something that has been used for hundreds or thousands of years does not make it right.” – Dr. Albert Lim Kok Hooi, oncologist, A horny story
6. “Apparently, based on the results of this study, rhinoceros horn can reduce fever, but only at rather high dosage levels when prescribed as a single drug.” – Ethnopharmacology of Rhinoceros Horn. I: Antipyretic Effects of Rhinoceros Horn and Other Animal Horns. In this study, fever-induced rats showed temporary lowering of temperature after being injected with an extremely high concentration of rhino horn extract, however, there was no antipyretic effect at the dosage levels comparable to what would be prescribed to a human patient. Download the study here.
7. “The Secretariat is also very conscious, however, of the need to respond to the belief that rhinoceros horn is efficacious in the treatment or prevention of cancer. It is despicable that criminals are financially exploiting sufferers, and their relatives, at a time when they will be struggling to cope with distressing and sometimes terminal medical conditions.” – CITES (CoP15 Doc. 45.1). Download it here.
8. Regarding rumors that rhino horn is a cancer treatment: “There is no evidence that rhino horn is an effective cure for cancer and this is not documented in TCM nor is it approved by the clinical research in traditional Chinese medicine.” – Lixin Huang, Statement opposing the use of rhino horn in medicines by the American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine
9. “Tests also showed that rhino horn, which, like fingernails is made of agglutinated hair, has no analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-spasmolytic nor diuretic properties, and no bactericidal effect could be found against suppuration and intestinal bacteria.” – WWF Scientific Tests Fail to Show Rhino Horn Effective as Medicine
10. “For some time I have been contemplating to publish a paper which should have a headline in giant newsprint to say that RHINO HORN IS NOT AN APHRODISIAC. There is even no evidence that rhino horn was ever regularly used for this purpose. Such a paper should be followed by another with more giant newsprint announcing that RHINO HORN IS NOT MEDICINAL. Consensus now appears to be that even if rhino horn is mildly anti-pyretic to lower fever symptoms, the benefits do not outweigh those of cheap over-the-counter medicines readily available in any pharmacy.” – Dr. Kees Rookmaaker, Rhino Resource Center Newsletter #25, November 2011

Read the original post here: http://www.rhinoconservation.org/2011/11/13/list-of-10-useful-rhino-horn-is-not-medicine-quotes-with-source-links/

Kruger Park enlists 150 new rangers to protect rhinos

An additional 150 rangers will be deployed to the Kruger National Park in 2012 in a bid to combat rhino poaching, Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa said on Sunday.

Molewa, addressing a National Press Club briefing in Pretoria, said that would add to the existing 500 rangers currently employed in the park.

Molewa's announcement follows the killing of 11 rhino in the country in 2012 so far.

Two poachers have been killed and another two have been arrested in connection with the rhinos poaching in the Kruger National Park this year.

In 2011, 448 rhino were killed in South Africa.

Fence as early warning system
"This ongoing poaching of our rhino population is a great source of concern to the government." Some 232 people had been arrested for rhino poaching, Molewa said.

Molewa said her department would meet with the Department of Public Works about re-erecting a 150-kilometre stretch of fence along the border with Mozambique.

SA National Parks (SANparks) chief executive David Mabunda, who was also at the briefing, said the fence, if approved, would cost an estimated R250-million to build.

"We still have a fence or what used to be a fence. That part of the fence is in a bad state of repair," said Mabunda.
The proposed fence would be electrified, but would not be so strong as to electrocute people who crossed the border. Mabunda said it would operate more as an early warning system.

Mostly Mozambicans
He said most of those caught poaching were Mozambican nationals with some South Africans involved. Very few Zimbabweans were involved in poaching in the Kruger National Park.

He said Mozambicans living across the border of the park were extremely poor and could therefore be enticed by organised crime.

"We need an appropriate organised response."

Molewa said further meetings were planned with Mozambican officials.

Fundisile Mketeni, the Water and Environmental Affairs deputy director general for biodiversity and conservation, said the fact that a recent auction to hunt a rhino in KwaZulu-Natal had raised R950 000 gave an indication of the value attached to rhinos and the associated poaching.

'Economic crime'
"We are dealing with an economic crime," he told the briefing.

Molewa said she had decided not to effect a "blanket moratorium" on hunting.

Following a recent meeting with provincial environmental MECs, a decision had been made to implement measures, including moratoriums, in "targeted areas, environments and or provinces where such will be necessary".

South Africa has some 22 000 rhino, which according to Mabunda is about 80% of the world's rhino population.

Currently, the country's rhino population, 22% of which is in private hands, was growing. However, he warned that if poaching levels continued to climb, from 2015 South Africa could see a fall in its rhino population.

Education campaigns envisaged
In the 1960s and 1970s Africa's rhino population was being exterminated at the rate of an estimated 8 000 animals per year.

The horn of rhino is valued for dagger handles in Yemen while in China and Vietnam, it is prized in traditional medicine to treat fevers.

Molewa said she hoped that draft memorandums of understanding on wildlife trafficking would be signed with both Vietnam and China.

She said it was envisaged that both countries would embark on campaigns to educate their populations. --Sapa

By GIORDANO STOLLEY, M&G
Read original story here.

Join the fight against rhino poachers

IT is YOU who the environmental affairs minister wants to enlist to help win the war against rhino poaching.

Speaking at a National Press Club briefing in Pretoria yesterday, Edna Molewa called on South Africans to assist in stopping the slaughter, which has already claimed the lives of at least 11 rhinos this year.

It is a war that needs to be won quickly as, if poaching levels continue to rise, SA will see its rhino population of 22 000 declining drastically.

“It is clear that this is an organised crime of the highest degree. And in dealing with organised criminals, we need inputs and actions from all South Africans,” Molewa said.

She has called on the numerous rhino anti-poaching organisations to give input on what should be done.

Molewa said part of the government’s plan was to deploy an additional 150 rangers in the Kruger National Park this year. This would add to the 500 who are already in the park.

A fixed-wing aircraft has been donated and would be used to patrol the park’s eastern boundary.

But even with the extra rangers operating in the Kruger Park, SANParks chief executive David Mabunda said this was “still mission impossible”.

There was a ratio of 50 000 hectares of park land per ranger. The ideal, he said, would be a ratio of 10 000ha per ranger, although this would mean increasing the workforce to 1 600 people.

Mabunda said crime intelligence was key in the fight against poaching.

Molewa also said her department planned to deploy conservation specialists at key ports of entry. A sea port and OR Tambo International Airport would also be getting a special facility where conservation officials would be able to inspect and examine wildlife consignments.

Molewa said she would be meeting with Department of Public Works officials today over plans to re-erect a 150km stretch of fence along the border with Mozambique. This fence would be electrified and be used as an early-warning system.

Mabunda said the majority of poachers caught in the Kruger Park were from Mozambique and came from poor communities.

“They are ideal recruits for organised crime,” he said.

Part of the fight in the war on poaching was co-operation with various countries linked to the trade in rhino horn.

“We managed within this short period of time to prepare the draft memorandum of understanding with China and Vietnam on wildlife trafficking and enforcement, which we hope to sign in the first half of this year,” Molewa said.

She added there had also been discussions on cross-border law enforcement operations between SA and Mozambique.

The minister noted that with this co-operation and that of various government departments, 232 suspected poachers were arrested last year.

By Shaun Smillie, Independent Online

Read original story here.

South Africa rhino poaching hits record: WWF

Rhino poaching in South Africa has hit a new record high, with 341 of the animals lost to poachers so far this year as black-market demand for rhino horn soars, wildlife group WWF said Thursday.

Poaching deaths have already outstripped last year's total of 333, the previous record, WWF said.

Officials blame the poaching surge on organised crime syndicates selling rhino horn for use in Asian medicinal treatments -- especially in Vietnam, where it is believed to cure cancer.

"In order to save rhinos from extinction, the criminal syndicates operating between South Africa and Vietnam must be uncovered and shut down for good," Joseph Okori, WWF's African rhino programme coordinator, said in a statement.

"Vietnam should follow South Africa's example and start sending poachers, traders, smugglers and sellers to jail."

WWF also confirmed last week that rhinos have gone extinct in Vietnam.

The organisation said the country's last Javan rhino was found shot with its horn removed.

Booming demand has driven the price to half a million dollars per horn, according to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

South Africa, which lost just 13 rhinos to poaching in 2007, has responded to the surge by dispatching army troops to fight poachers and stepping up arrests.

But it has struggled to stop poaching syndicates that use helicopters, night vision equipment and high-powered rifles to hunt their prey.http://news.ph.msn.com/regional/article.aspx?cp-documentid=5486702

SA rhino poaching at record high

The number of rhinos poached in South Africa has reached a record high, the WWF said.

“Statistics from SA National Parks show that 341 animals have been lost to poaching so far in 2011, compared with a record total of 333 last year,” the fund said in a statement.

Three of the five rhino species globally were critically endangered. The last reported poaching took place in the Free State on October 24.

The carcasses of an adult pregnant cow and another younger cow were found at the Sandveld nature reserve near Bloemhof. This was followed by a WWF announcement in the same week that rhinos in Vietnam have gone extinct.

“The carcass of Vietnam’s last Javan rhino was found with a gunshot wound and without its horn.” There were now fewer than 50 Javan rhinos left globally, all held in one national park in Indonesia.

In an effort to increase South African numbers, 19 black rhinos were successfully moved from the Eastern Cape to Limpopo yesterday as part of the WWF black rhino range expansion project.

The week-long transfer was completed yesterday. This was the seventh black rhino population established in the country by the WWF. Close to 120 black rhino have been relocated to date.

“This was possible because of the far-sightedness of the Eastern Cape provincial government, which was prepared to become partners in the project for the sake of black rhino conservation in South Africa,” the WWF’s project leader, Jacques Flamand, said in a statement.

During a meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) last year, the international community concluded that the increase in poaching was caused largely by demand for horn products in Vietnam.

“The unfounded rumour that rhino horn can cure cancer most likely sealed the fate of the last Javan rhino in Vietnam,” said the WWF’s Asian rhino expert doctor, A Christy Williams. “This same problem is now threatening other rhino populations across Africa and South Asia.”

South Africa has been the focal point of poaching because it has the largest population of rhinos in the world, the WWF said.

“Since armed protection for rhinos in South African national parks is strong, poaching syndicates are likely to shift to countries with weaker enforcement power, including possibly Asian countries that may be caught off guard,” said global species programme director at WWF Carlos Drews.

Despite this, legal loopholes which allowed the export of rhino hunting trophies were being exploited. In an attempt to restrict the trophy hunting, Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa proposed amendments to the norms and standards governing the practice.

Molewa submitted the suggested amendments for public comment on September 30. These covered the norms and standards for marking rhino horn and trophy hunting of white rhino, the department said in a statement early October.

“The proposed amendments are intended to address the abuse of the permit system,” said spokesperson Albi Modise. “Although illegal hunting is the main threat that could impact on the survival of rhinoceros in the wild in the near future, stricter provisions relating to hunting are required.”

In September, a delegation of Vietnamese officials visited South Africa to discuss enhancing law enforcement co-operation between the two countries.

“Vietnam should follow South Africa’s example and start sending poachers, traders, smugglers and sellers to jail,” said the WWF’s African rhino programme coordinator, Joseph Okori.

“In order to save rhinos from extinction, the criminal syndicates operating between South Africa and Vietnam must be uncovered and shut down for good.”

http://www.citypress.co.za/SouthAfrica/News/SA-rhino-poaching-at-record-high-20111103-2

Rhino Crisis Round Up

South Africa’s rhino death toll now stands at a record 341.

The total includes 16 critically endangered black rhinos. A whopping 197 of the 341 killings occurred in South Africa’s famed Kruger National Park.

Global slaughter

This grim news comes less than ten days after the Javan rhino subspecies (Rhinoceros sondaicus annamiticus) was declared extinct. The last individual was found dead in 2010, with a gunshot wound and her horn removed.

WWF’s Asian rhino expert, Dr. A. Christy Williams, explained that the false notion of rhino horn usefulness as a miracle cure for cancer is driving the global slaughter.

The unfounded rumour that rhino horn can cure cancer most likely sealed the fate of the last Javan rhino in Vietnam. This same problem is now threatening other rhino populations across Africa and South Asia.

Rhino horn and ivory trade expert Dr. Tom Milliken of TRAFFIC pointed out that rhino populations in both Africa and Asia are threatened by the same demand for rhino horn.

It’s tragic that the Javan rhino has been wiped out in Vietnam by the same forces that are driving rhino poaching in Africa. This is the ultimate wake-up call for the Vietnamese government to turn aggressively on its internal rhino horn market.

Not only are South Africa’s rhinos targeted in national parks and on private farms, the country’s legal trade in rhinos is serving as a smokescreen for laundering rhino horns for the illegal market.

WWF noted that loopholes in South Africa’s trophy hunting permit process and rhino horn stockpile management are being exploited, and that “improvements are needed”.

Shared responsibility

Countries which are involved in supplying rhino horn, transporting rhino horn, and consuming rhino horn share responsibility for the rhino crisis.

Dr. Carlos Drews, Global Species Programme Director at WWF said international efforts to crack down on the rhino horn trade need to be stepped up.

Since armed protection for rhinos in South African national parks is strong, poaching syndicates are likely to shift to countries with weaker enforcement power, including possibly Asian countries that may be caught off-guard.

To break the illegal trade chain, governments in source, transit and consumer countries must all scale up their efforts.

Unfortunately, South Africa appears to be sending mixed messages about halting rhino horn demand.

Although considering “stricter provisions” on rhino hunting to curb loophole abuse, a spokesperson for South Africa’s Water and Environmental Affairs Ministry claimed that the Department is also looking at a “legal rhino horn trade” scheme (which would essentially validate the myth that rhino horn is a miracle cure for cancer).

There was no mention of the potential effect of China’s multimillion-dollar rhino horn “business” on rhino horn demand, or further explanation regarding South Africa’s role as the supplier of at least 103 live rhinos to China since 2007.

Rhino calf killed in Namibia

A baby rhino was found snared in Namibia’s Huab Conservancy, with the tiny horns hacked off.

According to The Namibian, tracks found near the body showed that the mother had stayed with her baby for several days.

Bernd Brell from the Save the Rhino Trust was quoted as saying that the killers attempted to “hide the evidence”.

… the poachers removed the horns of the calf before they cut of its hind leg to hide the evidence of a snare. Then they split open the carcass’s belly from the throat to the back in order to attract scavengers, in the hope that the animal would vanish and no sign of poaching would remain.

This was the first reported rhino murder in the Kunene Region in 17 years.

Javan rhino survey

Regarding Asian rhinos, there is concern that the last surviving population of Javan rhinos may contain only a handful of females.

Out of 17 rhinos recorded via camera trap in the eastern half of Ujung Kulon National Park, four were breeding females, according to The Jakarta Globe.

Recently, the video cameras were moved to the western half of the park, which is “more remote”.

It is hoped that additional female Javan rhinos will be found; the results could be known in a few weeks.

Hope for Javan rhinos

However, there is hope for Javan rhinos in Indonesia, thanks to Operation Javan Rhino.

The International Rhino Foundation (IRF) along with an international team of partners, is working to expand the useable habitat for Javan rhinos in UKNP by creating the 4,000 hectare Javan Rhino Study and Conservation Area (JRSCA).

We are doing this by constructing small bridges, an electric fence, and a patrol road; eradicating invasive species which have taken over a good portion of the habitat; planting rhino food plants; providing a water supply and saltlick; and constructing additional guard posts. The continued survival of the Javan rhino depends on their population increasing in numbers as rapidly as possible, and in spreading the population out so that ‘all the eggs are not in one basket’.

http://www.inamibia.co.na/news-and-weather/15-africa/2889-rhino-crisis-round-up.html

Rhino Air: Hold onto your horns! Dangling miles above the earth, the amazing flight which saved a herd of rhinos from certain death

Dangling from cords tied to their ankles, 19 hulking animals were transported out of the South African hills inaccessible by road in the country's Eastern Cape.
And these incredible images show exactly how conservationists used a military helicopter to carry the herd of 1,400-kilo rhinos to their new home, away from poachers.
Conservationists put the endangered beasts to sleep and hoisted one at a time for the 15-mile flight.
The big move was orchestrated by World Wildlife Fund experts, who yesterday drove the rhinos 1,000 miles to fresh breeding ground in the northern Limpopo province.

Flying high: Each animal, which weighs at least two tons, spent 20 minutes in the air being flown to safety

Today photographer Michael Raimondo, who captured the spectacular scenes, said each animal spent around 20 minutes in the air.
He said: 'It was quite incredible. These things are so heavy - some of them weigh a couple of tons.
'The main aim was to ensure the rhinos were moved in a way that would not distress them, so they were darted and put to sleep before being lifted.'
Mr Raimondo, director of environmental body Green Renaissance, was among a team of 25 who helped with the painstaking process.
He added: 'We couldn't get trucks to them as they were in a very remote area, so military choppers were needed to bring them out.
'The helicopters had been tried and tested during exercises so we knew they could carry incredibly heavy things.'

Hold onto your horns: Even though the rhinos were fast asleep, they were blindfolded to stop them becoming frightened if they suddenly woke up

Heavy load: The rhino's were darted and put to sleep before being airlifted to a secret location in a bid to increase the number across South Africa

The mammoth cargo included males that were nearly four metres long, and weighed up to 2,000 kilos.
Black rhinos are under threat across Africa, where poachers in safari parks and private reserves kill and maim the beasts for their horns.
New figures published today by the WWF revealed that more of the vulnerable animals have been slaughtered in the first 10 months of this year than during the whole of 2010.
Official statistics show that that 341 rhinos have been lost to poaching this year in South Africa, compared to 333 last year.
This week's herd was the seventh to be transferred to new bushland by WWF, which is attempting to increase the population.
The precise locations were not revealed in an effort to prevent criminals from targeting the animals.
WWF project leader Jacques Flamand helped revive the animals after each helicopter journey, which took place around half a mile above the ground.
He said: 'The operation was difficult due to the number of animals and the long distances involved.

Flight of the Rhino: Black rhinos are under threat across Africa, flying the animals out of danger was the only option for conservationists as their habitat was inaccessible by road

What just happened? One of the rhino's is woken up in his new home by Conservationist Jacques Flamand after taking a 15 miles flight upside down

'But wildlife veterinarians, conservation managers and capture teams worked cooperatively to ensure the success of the translocation. We were united in a common cause.'
The project was the first of its kind in South Africa, but previous trips with elephants in Malawi demonstrated how humane the procedure could be.
Dr Flamand added: 'Previously rhinos were either transported by lorry over very difficult tracks, or airlifted in a net.
'This new procedure is gentler on the darted rhino because it shortens the time it has to be kept asleep with drugs, the respiration is not as compromised as it can be in a net and it avoids the need for travel in a crate over terrible tracks.'
The WWF Black Rhino Range Expansion Project has been running in South Africa for eight years, and seen 120 animals moved.
The operation is one of many conservation attempts to curb the death of the animals, which are classified as 'critically endangered'.
The increase in illegal hunting has been fuelled by a demand for horn in the Far East, where it is ground up and used in traditional medicines.
Earlier this year experts said the substance was being sold on the black market for around POUNDS 35,000 a kilogram - making it more valuable by weight than gold.
A world-first scheme launched in June saw a DNA database of rhino horns set up to crack criminal networks that kill and torture the beasts.
Black and white rhinos are popular sights in South Africa's array of game parks, which are visited by millions of tourists every year, many from Britain

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2057192/South-African-rhino-herd-saved-poaching-death-air.html

South Africa record for rhino poaching deaths

Some game farms in South Africa have resorted to de-horning rhinos before poachers get to them

The demand for rhino horns has led to record poaching this year in South Africa, wildlife charity WWF has said.

Figures from South Africa National Parks show 341 rhinos have been killed so far in 2011, already outstripping last year's record total of 333.

WWF says the spike in poaching in Africa and South Asia is largely caused by increased demand for rhino horn in Vietnamese traditional medicine.

Poachers saw off a darted rhino's horn, leaving the animal to bleed to death.

In the five years up to 2005, an average of 36 rhinos were killed each year in South Africa.

The WWF said law enforcement efforts were increasing, but were not sufficient to stop the smuggling and sale of their horns by organised crime rings.

South Africa has been the focal point of poaching because it has the largest population of rhinos in the world, with 1,916 black rhinos and 18,780 white rhinos, the conservation group said.

The rhino horn trade is regulated by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) and at present South Africa only allows the export of horns as hunting trophies.

WWF said improvements were needed in the regulation of hunting permits and the management of rhino horn stock piles in the country.

"Since armed protection for rhinos in South African national parks is strong, poaching syndicates are likely to shift to countries with weaker enforcement power, including possibly Asian countries that may be caught off-guard," Carlos Drews, global species programme director at WWF, warned in a statement.

South Africa's government has commissioned a study into whether legalising trade in rhino horn could help to bring down poaching.

In Vietnam many believe that ground rhino horn can be used to cure cancer - although there is no scientific proof of this - and horns taken to the the Middle East are used to make handles for ornamental daggers

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15571678

South Africa detains Thai rhino poaching suspect

Some black rhinos are being bred in zoos to protect the species

A Thai man suspected of having links to a rhino poaching syndicate has been detained in South Africa.

He is suspected of being an associate of another Thai national, Chumlong Lemtongthai, a South African Revenue Service spokesman told AFP news agency.

Mr Lemtongthai is in custody charged with organising illegal rhino poaching expeditions.

Wildlife charity WWF said this week that demand for rhino horns had led to record poaching in South Africa.

The latest suspect's name cannot be released until he is formally arrested.

He has a previous conviction in South Africa for smuggling lion bones and other illegal animal products and was trying to enter the country on a fake passport, Revenue Service spokesman Adrian Lackay was quoted by AFP as saying.

Officals allege the syndicate ran by Mr Lemtongthai would obtain trophy hunting permits and then buy the rhinos' horns from the hunters for an average of 65,000 rand ($8,342; £5,201) per kilogramme to send overseas.

WWF says the spike in poaching in Africa and South Asia is largely caused by increased demand for rhino horn for use in traditional medicine in Vietnam and other parts of Asia.

In Vietnam many believe that ground rhino horn can be used to cure cancer - although there is no scientific proof of this - and horns taken to the the Middle East are used to make handles for ornamental daggers

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15591397

South Africa hardens its stance on rhino trophy hunts

Alarmed by record levels of rhino poaching this year, South Africa is launching a crackdown on one of its most lucrative tourist attractions: trophy hunting.
So far this year, 324 rhinos have been illegally killed in South Africa, usually shot by organized gangs of criminals who sever the rhino horns for trafficking to Vietnam and China. The slaughter this year is expected to far exceed the record total of 333 rhinos killed by poachers last year.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/africa-mideast/south-africa-hardens-its-stance-on-rhino-trophy-hunts/article2199740/

Survey of endangered Javan rhinos finds far fewer females than males in Indonesian park

JAKARTA, Indonesia — A survey of endangered Javan rhinos in an Indonesian park has found far fewer females than males, a potential setback in efforts to save the species.
Video cameras set up in the eastern half of Ujung Kulon National Park recorded 17 rhinos this year. Just four were female.
Park official Arif Junaedi said Friday the cameras have now been moved to the more remote western half of the park, and that “hopefully many more females remain” there. The results should be known in November.
Only 40 to 60 Javan rhinos remain in the park, which is the animal’s original habitat. They are the last known living members of the species, with none in captivity.
The last known Javan rhino in Vietnam was found dead in April, apparently after poachers killed it for its horn.

 http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/survey-of-endangered-javan-rhinos-finds-far-fewer-females-than-males-in-indonesian-park/2011/10/28/gIQA2QYzOM_story.html

Two white rhino were illegally shot and their horns removed in a Free State reserve, provincial environmental spokesman Kgotso Tau says.

The carcasses of an adult pregnant cow and another younger cow were found at the Sandveld nature reserve near Bloemhof on Monday morning.
Tau said it seemed the rhino were killed during Sunday night.
Various tracks were found in the vicinity and it was suspected that the poachers were in the reserve on foot.
“We were lucky that poachers had not been active in the province until now,” said Tau.
He said rhino guards were deployed in all Free State reserves.
The incident was the second rhino poaching incident, to remove horns illegally, in the Free State this year.
Another adult rhino cow was illegally shot at the Willem Pretorius reserve near Ventersburg in February this year.
A total of 309 rhino had been poached in South Africa this year, the national department of environmental affairs said earlier.

http://www.timeslive.co.za/scitech/2011/10/26/white-rhinos-poached-in-the-free-state

Rhino poaching suspect to stay behind bars

An alleged rhino poaching syndicate leader, who illegally used permits acquired by prostitutes and strippers to hunt rhino, was denied bail by the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg.
In September, the Kempton Park Magistrate's Court ruled that Chumlong Lemtongthai was a flight risk, but he challenged magistrate Eric Mhlari's decision this week, saying it was unconstitutional to deny him bail because he was not a South Africa, the Saturday Star reported.

High court judge Motsamai Makume upheld Mhlari's decision on Friday, saying Lemtongthai had no family in South Africa or property.

He also cited an affidavit by one of the Thai women, who was going to be called as witness, in which she said she feared for her life after receiving calls from Thai nationals who threatened her, the newspaper reported.

The state alleges that Lemtongthai paid Thai strippers and prostitutes to use their permits to hunt rhino.

Once the rhino was shot, the women would then be called to come and pose for photos with the carcasses.

Lemthingthai's company, Xaysavang Trading Export Import is being charged R65 000 per kilogram of rhino horns. The state alleged that 26 rhinos were shot, the Saturday Star reported.

He is expected to appear back in the Kempton Park Magistrate's Court on November 8 on charges of fraud and contravening the Customs and Exercise Act. -- Sapa

http://mg.co.za/article/2011-10-29-rhino-poaching-suspect-to-stay-behind-bars/

Protest against rhino poaching

TO raise awareness and get more people behind the move to stop the cruelty of killing rhinos, the Joburg Zoo will host a march against rhino poaching on 13 November.

Black rhinos are being poached almost to extinctionThe march will run from 10am to 12pm and participants are encouraged to bring their own placards bearing anti-rhino poaching messages. Normal zoo entrance fees will apply.

According to Candice Segal, the zoo’s marketing assistant, the march will take place within the zoo. “The route will start at the bandstand and go through main roads such as Seal Street, Cat Walk, Wetland Walk, up Memorial Boulevard and around Tiger Trek, Jungle Junction and end at Phila, the black rhino’s enclosure,” she added.

The idea is to raise awareness about rhino poaching; it will also allow zoo staff and visitors to voice their opinions on rhino poaching and its “devastating effects” on South Africa’s rhino population.

“We had a lot of activities around rhino poaching when Phila, the rhino, first came to the zoo in October 2010. The march is the first for the zoo with regards to the issue of rhino poaching,” explains Segal.

Anyone who wants the illegal rhino horn trade and killing of rhinos to stop is invited to join the march.

There are two white rhinos and one black rhino at Joburg Zoo. Phila, the black rhino, was attacked twice by poachers and shot nine times, but survived. As a result, it was moved from Modimolle, in Limpopo, to the safety of the zoo.

Phila arrived in Joburg on 25 October 2010 to find temporary sanctuary while it recovers fully from its injuries, explains the zoo’s website.

Rhino poaching has escalated rapidly in recent years. The reasons for this are varied: disadvantaged people hunt wildlife for food and some for traditional medicines. There is also a large illegal trade in rhino horn, mostly with Asian countries.

In South Africa, in 2010 alone; about 333 rhinos were killed by poachers because of the rising demand for rhino horn. Some people misguidedly believe that the horn has properties that can cure cancer and impotence.

Because of demand and vigilant protection measures that have been instituted, rhino poachers have become more sophisticated, and use helicopters to spot the animals in the bush and night vision equipment at night to avoid getting caught. Each horn weighs about 10kg.

Black rhinos are listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species.

http://www.joburg.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7376&catid=88&Itemid=266

Baby Rhino Rescued From Tree

A crying three-week-old rhino was discovered with its head trapped in the fork of a tree.

• Poachers had hit the calk over the head with a machete and shot its mother dead.
• It took a half hour to free the calf since its head had swelled up.

A three-week-old South African rhino was rescued from a thorn tree after fleeing poachers who shot its mother dead and hit the calf over the head with a machete, a report said Thursday.
"I heard the little one cry, I saw it was trapped and was hurting, but I could not do anything until the vet arrived," game farm owner, Neels van Rensburg told Die Beeld newspaper.
The bleating baby white rhino was discovered with its head trapped in a v-shaped fork of a small tree near the carcass of its mother on a game farm near Pretoria. The cow had been shot in the heart and head.

 

http://news.discovery.com/animals/baby-rhino-rescued-poachers-110915.html

Rhino Killer Shot by Police

Call it justice, karma, or rhino relief. A serial rhino killer has been shot and killed by Swaziland police after he shot at them. ‘Lucky’ Maseko was wanted in South Africa for attempted murder, and environmental crimes, including the deaths of at least ten rhinos in the last two years. Swaziland is where he wound up after leaving a trail of death from South Africa, “Swaziland has been targeted because there is low risk here compared to doing the same in SA. The situation will get worse if the country amends the Game Act because criminals from other countries and even locals will know that it is safe to poach in Swaziland. They will use the weak legislation to their advantage,” said a conservation official there. (Source: Swaziland Times)
Maseko was just one of three rhino killers shot dead by Swaziland police. After the shooting of the rhino poachers, two rhino horns, guns and ammunition were recovered. An individual who commits such heinous crimes against human beings repeatedly is known as a serial killer. Will that term ever be extended to include humans that repeatedly cause the deaths of animals, especially if the killer is contributing to the extinction of an entire species? After all, humans are actually just primates and also animals. So what exactly is the difference? Animal poachers who repeatedly kill animals have been known to shoot at conservation rangers sometimes killing them. Shouldn’t the law recognize the relationship between animal destruction and violence against humans in psychopaths and sociopaths and punish them accordingly?
Maseko was listed on the INTERPOL website was wanted. He was also one of South Africa’s most wanted, for various poaching charges and skipping bail. In South Africa he was once caught at a police roadblock with guns near a nature preserve containing rhinos. It was assumed he intended to kill some of them.
Swaziland is a very small country bordered on three sides by South Africa, so it is sort of inside the borders of South Africa. In the 1990s they were losing one rhino  per week due to poaching. Today they might be down to just about 100.
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/rhino-killer-shot-by-police.html

Turning rhinos into fast bucks

When it comes to poaching, Wollworths has moved beyond the egg section. Woolworths recently threw its weight behind rhino conservation with its MyPlanet scheme that encourages customers to contribute to the MyPlanet Rhino Fund (an Endangered Wildlife Fund initiative) by swiping their cards at participating retailers. Well done Woolworths - but take a deeper look, because a leopard doesn't change it's spots.

http://www.noseweek.co.za/article/2614/Turning-rhinos-into-fast-bucks

Owner dehorns rhinos

The owner of a Jeffrey's Bay nature reserve believes dehorning the rhino on his property will minimise the risk of the animals being poached.

Johan Lottering has dehorned 10 of the 13 rhino on the reserve after being tipped off about a possible attack by poachers.

He said they plan to do this every two years.

Lottering said the horns have been stored in a safe at a bank.

“It is in a safe deposit in the bank because it’s too dangerous to keep it on the farm. We twice received tip-offs that people were about to strike over weekends but we had people out in the veld 24 hours a day over weekends,” he said.

Hundreds of rhino are poached every year in South Africa.

In the most recent incident, environmental officials and police have reportedly launched a manhunt for poachers who killed two white rhinos in the Sandveld Nature Reserve in the Free State.

http://www.eyewitnessnews.co.za/Story.aspx?Id=76425

Thai rhino horn suspect seeks bail

A Thai national accused of buying rhino horns through permits acquired illegally by strippers and prostitutes took his battle to be freed on bail to the Johannesburg High Court on Wednesday.

The man claims the State has no grounds for detaining him.

Chumlong Lemtongthai was challenging last month’s ruling by the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court that he was a flight risk as he had nothing tying him to South Africa.

In opposing his bail, the State had argued it was possible for Lemtongthai to skip the country despite his travel documents being in the investigating officer’s possession because he could bribe Home Affairs officials to get other documents. Magistrate Eric Mhlari agreed, saying it was not impossible for people without documents to travel.

But, arguing in court on Wednesday, Lemtongthai’s counsel, advocate Laurance Hodes SC, disagreed, saying the magistrate had erred in refusing bail and that it was unconstitutional to deny a person bail simply because they had no family in South Africa.

“The magistrate erred in holding that he was of the opinion that the fears of the State that the appellant may not stand trial, it being possible that the appellant might flee the country, there being nothing binding the appellant to South Africa, led him to conclude bail should be refused. The magistrate erred in finding the appellant constituted a flight risk.”

Hodes said Mhlari had also erred in finding that the State had a strong case against Lemtongthai, saying he had a solid defence to charges of contravening the Customs and Excise Act and fraud. The man was willing to pay R100 000 bail and there was no evidence to prove he would skip bail.

However, prosecutor Allen Simpson differed, arguing that no amount of money would be sufficient to keep Lemtongthai in the country. “Money is clearly not an object, so he is indeed a flight risk.”

Judge Motsamai Makume reserved judgment for tomorrow.

Lemtongthai is accused of running a syndicate that used Thai prostitutes and strippers, who would pose as hunters.

The State said 26 rhinos had been shot this way, and Lemtongthai had sold the horns for R65 000 a kilogram.

http://www.iol.co.za/news/crime-courts/thai-rhino-horn-suspect-seeks-bail-1.1165912

Could legalising rhino horn trade stop poaching?

South Africa is considering legalising rhino horn trade - in a bid to combat rampant rhino poaching, but the suggestion has been met with mixed reaction in Southern Africa.

Demand for rhino horn is at an all time high and South Africa, which has the largest reserves of the wild animal, is a prime hunting ground for poachers.

Over the past three years, gangs are said to have killed more than 800 rhinos for their horns, which can fetch £22,000 ($35,055) per kg on the black market.

Poachers use a chainsaw to cut away the rhino's horns, after darting it with a tranquilizer - drugged and helpless the animal bleeds to death.

Large syndicates are involved in this multi-billion dollar trade worldwide - exporting the horns from Africa to parts of Asia and the Middle-East.

Despite many anti-poaching measures 310 have been killed in South Africa this year, more than 330 had been killed at the end of last year - and the numbers are set to increase, experts warn.

In the five years up to 2005, an average of 36 rhinos were killed each year.

Some say today's efforts are "too conventional" and are not enough.

Africa's rhino population

• 80% Africa's rhino population is found in southern Africa
• There are 4,500 black rhino in southern Africa
• The black rhino population has decreased by 95% since the 1980s
• There are 20,000 white rhino in South Africa alone
• About 80% of Africa's rhinos are found on state-owned land and the rest on private property

Sources: WWF and Campfire Zimbabwe

Now South Africa has commissioned a study into whether legalising trade in rhino horn could in fact help to bring down poaching, the Department of Environmental Affairs announced recently.

"We are impartial at this stage but we are looking at all the suggestions which could help us in the fight against poachers," the department's spokesperson, Albie Modise, told the BBC.

"We are awaiting submissions and would consider this if we get authentic scientific backing that this would be effective," he said.

The idea is that legalising rhino horn trade would make South Africa directly responsible for meeting the demand for the horns - taking power out of the hands of poachers and placing it in the hands authorities who would also be sensitive to current conservation efforts.

These authorities would do market research into global markets of the trade, said Mr Modise.

The department says rhino horn stock piles could also be sold to fund further rhino conservation efforts.

Mr Modise says the suggestion first came up at a rhino summit held last year to find ways of tackling poaching in southern Africa.

Rhino horn trade is regulated by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) and at present South Africa allows the export of horns only as hunting trophies.

The legal debate

But the consideration has drawn heavy criticism from international conversation group WWF, which says this would be a setback by decades the efforts made to stabilise the rhino population.

"We understand the need to come up with new ways of combating the rhino horn trade but we are against the notion that legalising it is the answer," said Morne du Plessis, of WWF in South Africa.

Continue reading the main story

“Start Quote

We must be open to the idea of engaging with the markets and finding ways which would make Africa benefit from the demand”

End Quote Charles Jonga Director of Campfire Association Zimbabwe

"How can we control legal rhino horn trade when we can't even control illegal trade. There are too many unknowns for us to even start thinking in that direction," Mr du Plessis said.

If WWF believed legalising the industry would be of benefit - it would be done research on the matter itself, he added.

Instead, WWF believes that such a move would only further endanger the lives of rhino - and possibly drive them to extinction.

There are currently 4,500 of the critically endangered black rhino (Diceros bicornis) spread across southern African nations - a shocking decline from the 1980s when 75,000 of the mammals were mostly found in Zimbabwe.

The two sub-species of white rhino (Ceratotherium simum) have a population in the region of 20,000 in South Africa alone.

But Campfire Association Zimbabwe - which advocates being able to make a living from wildlife - supports the idea of legalising the trade, saying it is time efforts looked at untested measures as opposed to the current ones which are not always effective.

"We view this as part and parcel of placing value on the rhino species. We are looking forward to a time when communities would benefit directly from living with the species," says Charles Jonga, who heads Campfire Zimbabwe.

He said his organisation, which was founded in the 1980s, had found that communities which were directly involved in conserving wildlife and were also able to earn a living from it were more keen to protect the animals from poachers.

If the trade were legal, Campfire Zimbabwe says, it would give power to countries with rhinos to set appropriate conditions to the sale - for example insisting that the horn not be used for medicinal purposes or perhaps to get clarity on what markets use the horns.

Mr Jonga said the demand needed to be met and not shunned, adding that there were ways of doing this without driving the rhino population to extinction.

"We must be open to the idea of engaging with the markets and finding ways which would make Africa benefit from the demand and indeed the communities where the rhinos are found," said Mr Jonga.

"We must also look at possibilities of breeding the rhino in our communities," he added.

Conservationists suspect that most of the illegally harvested rhino horns destined for south-east Asia are used for medicinal purposes.

In Vietnam many believe that ground rhino horn can be used to cure cancer - although there is no scientific proof of this - and those horns taken to the the Middle East are used to make handles for ornamental daggers.

Some measures have been put in place to curb poaching in South Africa including the deployment in recent months of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to protect the animals from poachers by patrolling "hotspots".

Millions of dollars have been invested over the past few years on high-tech technology, upping conservations efforts and starting up range expansion programmes all in a bid for counter the effects of poaching on the rhino population.

While many countries are desperate for answers to the poaching problem - and many agree that a lot more can be done to save rhinos, critics says South Africa's idea might be too unconventional and untested to get the supports it needs.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15355494