- checking login information
Loading...Eight Rhinos Poached in New Year
- Jake Richardson
- January 12, 2012
- 7:02 am
- 89 comments
It has been less than two weeks into 2012 and already eight rhinos have been poached in South Africa. They were found in Kruger National Park, shot with AK-47s apparently by criminals who entered from Mozambique.
Last year about 450 rhinos were poached in South Africa, with 252 in Kruger park. If you are unfamiliar with Kruger, it is South Africa’s largest wildlife park, visited by tourists from all over the world. The South African army has been called to help prevent the poachings by working with police, but the criminals are well-organized and sometimes employ hi-tech devices such as night vision goggles, and even small helicopters, so they can land undetected at night and get away before they can be apprehended.
What drives the poachers is high demand from Asia for useless traditional medicines, but rhino horn is composed mainly of the same material found in human fingernails and toenails, called keratin. Meaning not only are rhinos dying for no reason, the people who pay top dollar for it are wasting their own money and fueling the destruction of one of the world’s largest mammals, which are at perilously low numbers.
The last rhino in Vietnam was killed off, due also to ridiculous claims rhino horn is medicinal.
Image Credit: Amada44/Public Domain
Related Links
Read more: Conscious Consumer, Nature & Wildlife, Wildlife
have you shared this story yet?
go ahead, give it a little love
Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may
not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.
people are talking
While we know that animal products can have a negative impact on health, this study is so small &…
hmmm, thank you.
Thank you. Very,very useful info. Will share.
It does take conscious committment to 'regenerate' and support the well being. I am having fun explo…
Yes, when you have a desk-bound job, your brain gets lazy too........
89 comments
+ add your ownvery sad news
very sad news, but thanks for sharing
so much to save, so easy to destroy...
Why oh why is this happening. Didn't we lose the Vietnamese and the Black rhino to extinction last year?? Where the hell are our donations going? The Rhino Trust are talking about cutting off the horns - this is so very sad VBUT IT IS THE ONLY WAY to stop the poaching - we MUST do this if only to allow numbers to increase. Or should we just wait thinking someone is protecting them and then hear the news we all dread - another beauty lost to extinction.....
Very sad.
sad. :(
I do agree "just shoot poachers on sight" above mentioned post,yeah shoot them as how they did to rhinos. Moreover, to prosecute who demands rhino and its products.We must save rhino.
Why don't they prosecute the people buying the rhino horns? As long as there is a demand for this, no one will be able to end the senseless killing of Rhinos. I agree with Nina. Shot poachers on site until poachers get the message.
Thats alot in such a short period of time. Another 10 years there wont be any left to shoot. I really hope a tiny mosquito carrying malaria find these poachers. They have karma coming.
Disgusting.
login to add your comment
use your care2 login
add your comment