As of March 2012 135 rhino have been poached in South Africa. This is a frightening number considering we are only 3 months into the year. The increase in poaching incidents is being driven by the dramatic increase in demand for ground rhino horn in the East. The price of Rhino horn is estimated at R540 000/kg, which means it’s currently worth more than gold.
No single organisation has the resources or manpower to fully address the issues involved in reducing rhino poaching. These poaching syndicates are highly sophisticated operations, involving highly resourced individuals and sadly even vets.
In response to this serious challenge, Wildlands Conservation Trust and 12 other conservation organizations launched Project Rhino KZN (www.projectrhinokzn.org) on the 22nd of September 2011, World Rhino Day, to support the development and co-ordination of rhino conservation interventions, aimed at eliminating rhino poaching and securing rhino populations in KZN. These organisations have collectively identified the priority projects to fund, both within state-owned, private and communal protected areas. Their focus is on increasing intelligence, surveillance, field ranger competence, advocacy, communication sharing, public awareness and education.
The Wildlands Conservation Trust is focusing its efforts on the development of effective surveillance systems, with initial emphasis on GSM based tracking and monitoring systems, as well as aerial support.
Project Rhino Tracker makes use of GSM based systems, which will ensure key rhino populations are monitored remotely and will allow for a far more rapid anti-poaching unit response. Project Rhino Aerial Support is a new initiative that Wildlands has launched with a view to eventually support effective helicopter and light aircraft for rhino conservation efforts. The helicopter acts as an “eye in the sky” for field rangers as it can access remote dirt roads, monitor the reserve boundaries and observe known suspects homes for any signs of suspicious activity. There is little doubt that the positioning of additional aircraft and helicopters across northern KZN would have a significant impact on rhino poaching, especially in the private communal areas that do not enjoy the same level of paramilitary support that Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife’s conservation areas do.
To this end, Project Rhino KZN has formed a benchmark partnership through which a Cheetah Light Aircraft has been secured which will be based in the Mkhuze area. WWF secured the funds to cover the purchase costs of the new aircraft, African Conservation Trust (ACT) have undertaken to cover the associated insurance costs and to manage the use and maintenance of the aircraft, and Wildlands have undertaken to raise the funds required to employ a fulltime pilot / operations co-ordinator. The other Project Rhino partners will share responsibility for raising the funds required to run and maintain the aircraft. This is an amazing collective response by the Project Rhino KZN partners.
“We believe that these projects will help curb the poaching crisis in our country. Collectively all the organisations involved in Project Rhino KZN are doing everything they can with the resources they have to try win this fight against these criminal syndicates. A video that recently went viral of Dr William Fowlds holding his deceased, poached rhino Themba, in the Eastern Cape – is a true reflection of the pain all conservationists feel with regards to the consistent loss of these amazing creatures,” comments Kevin McCann, Strategic Manager at Wildlands Conservation Trust. “We are however positive that our Projects and those of our collaborative partners will be successful in curbing the killings.”
WILDTRUST (registered as the Wildlands Conservation Trust - IT No: 4329/1991/PMB)