Reuters AlertNet Lite - Zimbabwe dehorns rhino to deter poachers

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Zimbabwe dehorns rhino to deter poachers - paper

31 May 2007 09:18:39 GMT
Source: Reuters

HARARE, May 31 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe has started dehorning all of its rhino in an effort to deter the poaching of one of the world's endangered species, official media reported on Thursday.

The southern African country's rhino population was about 2,000 in 1980, but rampant poaching in the 1980s saw the number dwindle to 370 before climbing to the current level of 789, according to conservation group Save the Rhino International.

The group said a programme undertaken by the government to put the rhino in protection zones in national parks and private conservation areas had helped save the animals from cross-border poaching.

Henry Madzikanda, chief ecologist for Zimbabwe's Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, told the Herald newspaper that rangers and other officials would now spend the next two weeks dehorning rhinos.

There is a ready market, especially in the Far East, for rhino horns, which, like elephant tusks, are used mostly to manufacture jewellery, figurines and tourist trinkets.

"We want poachers to know that if they kill any rhino in Zimbabwe, they will not find any horns. We are keeping them all in highly secured places for our future generations," Madzikanda was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

Zimbabwe is home to some of Africa's largest game reserves, but local conservation activists say rhino, elephants and other species are at risk from trophy hunters and rampant poaching by those who struggling with poverty.

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Last updated:Thu May 31 09:20:14 2007