Not Many People Know This but the Rhinoceros Is Actually on the Watch List for Endangered

Rhinoceros

Not many people know this but the rhinoceros is actually on the watch list for endangered species

In almost all rhino conservation areas, there are other valuable plants and animals. The protection of rhinos helps protect other species including elephants, buffalo, and small game. Rhinos contribute to economic growth and sustainable development through the tourism industry, which creates job opportunities and provides tangible benefits to local communities living alongside rhinos. Rhinos are one of the "Big 5" animals popular on African safaris and they are a popular tourism draw in places like the Eastern Himalayas.

HABITAT LOSS

Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park in Sumatra is thought to have one of the largest populations of Sumatran rhinos, but it is losing forest cover due to conversion for coffee and rice by illegal settlers. In southern Zimbabwe, privately owned rhino conservancies have been invaded by landless people. This reduces the amount of safe habitat for rhino populations and increases the risk of poaching and snaring.

REDUCED GENETIC DIVERSITY

The small size of the Javan rhino population is in itself a cause for concern. Low genetic diversity could make it hard for the species to remain viable.

NATURAL DISASTERS

Ujung Kulon National Park, home to Javan rhinos, is highly vulnerable to tsunamis and a major explosion of the Anak Krakatau volcano could easily wipe out all life in the protected area.

DISEASE

In recent years four Javan rhinos, including one young adult female, are thought to have died from disease, probably transmitted to wild cattle in the park and subsequently to the rhinos.

PROTECTING SUMATRAN RHINO HABITAT

In Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, the critically endangered population of 60–80 Sumatran rhinos is threatened by the conversion of forest to cash crops on both the eastern and western sides of the island’s central mountain range. WWF works with park officials to collect population data on the rhinos, and with local communities to halt deforestation and preserve and restore natural habitat. We also support antipoaching efforts in the park.

TACKLING ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE

WWF is setting up an Africa-wide rhino database using rhino horn DNA analysis (RhoDIS), which contributes to forensic investigations at the scene of the crime and for court evidence to greatly strengthen prosecution cases. In South Africa and Kenya, it has been circulated into law as legal evidence in courts and rhino management. This work is done with institutions like the University of Pretoria Veterinary Genetics Laboratory.

In Namibia, WWF we worked with the government and other partners to develop innovative new transmitters to track rhino movements and protect them against poaching. We also helped set up and promote a free and confidential phone hotline that allows people to inform the authorities about poaching safely and anonymously. WWF developed this tool with the Government of Namibia and Mobile Telecommunications Limited. Rhino poaching in Namibia is now at an all time low.

TRAFFIC, the world’s largest wildlife trade monitoring network, has played a vital role in bilateral law enforcement efforts between South Africa and Vietnam. This has gone hand-in-hand with written commitments to strengthen border and ports monitoring as well as information sharing in order to disrupt the illegal trade chain activities and bring the perpetrators to justice for their crimes against rhinos.

STOPPING FOREST CONVERSION

Surveys by WWF, Sabah Wildlife Department (SWD) and Sabah Foundation (SF) found the largest known Sumatran rhino population on the island of Borneo. Together we run rhino monitoring units to prevent poaching. WWF also works with local landholders, agri-businesses, and the government to stop the conversion of more than 7,722 square miles of forest to oil palm and timber plantations between Kinabatangan and SebukuSembakung. The destruction of this forest would likely lead to poaching of the remaining Sumatran rhinos in the area.

MONITORING AND TRACKING JAVAN RHINOS

WWF conducts ongoing research on the Javan rhino, which continues to reveal critical information about behavioral patterns, distribution, movement, population size, sex ratio and genetic diversity. We also work closely with the Ujung Kulon National Park Authority to keep track of rhino populations. In 2010, we received camera trap footage of two Javan rhinos and two of their calves in the dense tropical rainforests of the protected area. The videos prove that one of the world’s rarest mammals are breeding. Before these camera trap images surfaced, only twelve other Javan rhino births were recorded in the past decade.

ESTABLISHING NEW POPULATIONS

WWF and its partners are working on the development of a program to translocate Javan rhinos from Ujung Kulon National Park to establish a new population in other suitable habitat in Indonesia. This new habitat would eliminate the threat of natural disasters and create two populations.

MONITORING AND PROTECTION OF WHITE RHINOS

To monitor and protect white rhinos WWF focuses on better-integrated intelligence gathering networks on rhino poaching and trade, more antipoaching patrols and better equipped conservation law enforcement officers. WWF is setting up an Africa-wide rhino database using rhino horn DNA analysis (RhoDIS), which contributes to forensic investigations at the scene of the crime and for court evidence to greatly strengthen prosecution cases. In South Africa and Kenya, it has been circulated into law as legal evidence in courts and rhino management. This work is done with institutions like the University of Pretoria Veterinary Genetics Laboratory. We also support a South African white rhino web-based data system.

STRENGTHENING LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT

Rhinos

WWF supports accredited training in environmental and crime courses, some of which have been adopted by South Africa Wildlife College. Special prosecutors have been appointed in countries like Kenya and South Africa to prosecute rhino crimes in a bid to deal with the mounting arrests and bring criminals to face swift justice with commensurate penalties. TRAFFIC, the world’s largest wildlife trade monitoring network, has played a vital role in bilateral law enforcement efforts between South Africa and Vietnam. This has gone hand-in-hand with written commitments to strengthen border and ports monitoring as well as information sharing in order to disrupt the illegal trade chain activities and bring the perpetrators to justice for their crimes against rhinos.

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