ISimangaliso dehorns rhino
Programme intensified in response to increasing pressure from poachers
THE iSimangaliso Wetland Park, on the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, has taken the decision to strengthen its rhino protection efforts by expanding its horn-removal strategy.
The park is one of the most important refuges for the country’s rhino population, with both black and white rhino protected in the World Heritage Site’s ideal habitat.
The uMkhuze section of the park is one of the oldest sanctuaries for the majestic animals, many of which were translocated in the past decade into the Eastern and Western Shores sections as the landscape was rehabilitated from forestry back to natural grasslands and savannah.
The first of these translocations took place in 2004, during what was then the second most severe drought in a century, with 23 rhino moved to the Eastern Shores. A further mass translocation from uMkhuze took place in 2016 under even more extreme drought conditions, adding to the existing populations on both sides of Lake St Lucia.
With the growing and relentless pressure of illegal hunting on all protected rhino reserves, including a number of poaching incidents in the park, the iSimangaliso authorities took the decision in 2015 to implement a dehorning programme on the Western Shores population. This process was repeated last year to remove the horn regrowth.
In the latest round of dehorning, management decided to include the Eastern Shores population as well.
iSimangaliso chief executive Sibusiso Bukhosini said the strong anti-poaching team had encountered and interrupted numerous incursions in recent months by people seeking to harm wildlife.
“A number of smaller reserves in the region have implemented dehorning measures, resulting in our population becoming more vulnerable to this pressure.
“A consensus was therefore reached between ourselves and our conservation management partner, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, to strengthen our protection of rhino by adding the deterrent of horn removal on the Eastern Shores.
“We understand that dehorning is not a guarantee of safety, and in no way replaces the need to remain extremely vigilant, but it is seen as one of many interventions that improve the protection of our wildlife.”
Bukhosini reiterated iSimangaliso’s commitment to protecting the World Heritage Site and its assets from harm for the benefit of all of its land owners, stakeholders, visitors and future generations.
According to statistics released by the Department of Environmental Affairs in August, a total of 7 638 rhino had been poached in South Africa in the last decade.
Statistical estimates of rhino numbers in South Africa suggest that fewer than 20 000 white rhino and about 2000 black rhino remain in the country, which accounts for almost three quarters of the world’s population.
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