Photo Courtesy of WWF

  email:  rebeccaxie@actcm.edu

 
PROTECTING RHINOS

IN THE WILD

There are wild elephants in the country, and numerous unicorns, which are very nearly as big. They have hair like that of a buffalo, feet like those of an elephant, and a horn in the middle of the forehead, which is black and very thick.
                                                         -Marco Polo

DEMAND ON THE RISE IN RECENT YEARS

In some Asian communities people consume ground rhino horn along with other plant and animal substances for fever reduction, a practice that has been going on for centuries. Another contributing factor in the increase of rhino poaching in the last two decades is the use of elaborately carved rhino horn for ceremonial daggers in Yemen and other parts of the Middle East. The increase of wealth in these areas has allowed more of the population to be able to afford these special daggers.

SOLUTIONS

Ensuring the survival of the world's five rhino species requires a combination of law enforcement, global education, and local action. Conservation bodies such as CITES and WWF are taking part in equipping and training park personnel and strengthening trade controls. In some areas the rhino's situation has become so desperate that park staff have been tranquilizing rhinos and sawing off their horn so that poachers will not kill them. 

Publicity efforts in key rhino consuming countries must be expanded to educate the public about the ripple of effects the extinction of rhinos could have throughout Africa and Asia.

Education efforts directed at traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and consumers must also be expanded to encourage them to continue exploring possible substituts such as buffalo horn, and synthetic materials. There are a few China-based companies such as Beijing Tong Ren Tang  which produce effective rhino horn substitutes in the form of pills. WWF and ACTCM applaud Beijing Tong Ren Tang's initiative in promoting alternatives to medicines derived from endangered species such as tigers and rhinos as it gives TCM practitioners and consumers the confidence that purchasing these alternative medicines will not contribute to harming wild endangered species.