Australia part of plan to save SA rhinos

DURBAN: Rhino conservation veteran Ian Player has thrown his weight behind a bold plan to move dozens of South African rhinos to Australia as part of a global “insurance policy” against their extinction.

The Australian Rhino Project, spearheaded by a former South African businessman now living in Australia, as well as the Taronga Zoo, could lead to the establishment of breeding populations in Australia.

The proposal reflects the increasing sense of anxiety and desperation among wildlife conservationists as rhinos continue to be slaughtered at the rate of three a day. It coincides with a separate plan by local safari operators to move 100 South African rhinos to Botswana next year.

South Africa has been the target of a ferocious assault by poachers and organised syndicates for five years. Poaching levels have soared since the start of the “rhino war” in 2008, when 80 rhinos were butchered for their horns, reaching record levels of more than 1 000 killings last year. The plan to move a limited number to Australia is based on the rationale that they would be less vulnerable to poaching and corruption, and possibly serve as a genetic seed bank.

“We are not naive enough to believe that poaching of rhinos is not a possibility in Australia, we simply believe that the risks are dramatically lower than anywhere in Africa,” says project founder Ray Dearlove.