Copyright © 2000 The Earth Times All rights reserved
August 12, 2000
By SACHA SHIVDASANI

The numbers of two species of African rhinoceros continue to increase, according to new estimates from the Geneva-based World Conservation Union (IUCN) and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The latest estimates show that there are now more rhino in Africa than at anytime since the early to mid 1980s.

In 1999, African rhino numbers in the wild reached just over 13,000, up from 8,300 in 1992. The estimates were prepared by the IUCN's African Rhino Specialist Group. Martin Brooks, Chairman of the group, said that "even though the overall numbers are positive, there is no room for complacency."

Intensive conservation efforts have helped increase the number of African rhinos. The populations of the continental black rhino (Diceros bicornis) and the southern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum) saw the greatest increase in numbers.

The report sites the white rhino has one of the world's greatest conservation success stories, up from approximately 20 in 1895 to just over 10,300 by 1999, with a further 721 in captivity world wide. By contrast, there are only between 24 and 31 northern white rhinos existing in a single population in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The black rhino numbers have increased in the wild from a low of 2,450 in 1992 to just over 2,700 by 1999. The report says that while this is encouraging, the future of the one of the four black rhino subspecies, the western black rhino, is bleak with only about 10 animals remaining scattered across northern Cameroon.

The overwhelming cause of the rhino's decline during the past 50 years has been poaching. In the Far East, and in East Asian communities elsewhere, rhino horn is still prescribed as an ingredient in traditional remedies to reduce fever. It is also in demand in some Arab nations, where is viewed as a status symbol and used as door knobs and dagger handles.

Wide spread poverty threatens rhino populations because even the small amounts earned by poachers are incentive enough to risk fines, imprisonment or death. War and civil unrest have also had a significant impact on conservation efforts. According the WWF, almost 70 percent of northern white rhino populations were killed during the 1960s and 1970s as poaching went unchecked amid civil wars.

Brooks said that "One of the greatest challenges facing the future of rhinos in both Africa and Asia is maintaining sufficient conservation expenditure and field effort." Successful conservation of rhino habitat comes at a high price, as much as $3,000 per square mile. International donor support helps to offset the continuing declines in government funding. Error: Unable to read footer file.