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Darth-Marlan In reply to DanielWolff-Gallery [2017-02-05 06:58:22 +0000 UTC]

Thanks

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Darth-Marlan In reply to EdensGarbage [2017-02-04 13:43:45 +0000 UTC]

We were soooo lucky with this little one. We first saw it when we were leaving a private game reserve outside of Kruger National park, as the sun was going down. It was off the road a little with its mother, walking in with a herd of buffalo for safety. Then the next day we saw them again, but this time they were walking along the road, before I snapped this shot and a few more, where they crossed over and then wandered alongside the road a little more. It's not very common to see them like this, so it was very special

Thanks

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EdensGarbage In reply to Darth-Marlan [2017-02-04 13:46:37 +0000 UTC]

it's not common? do they keep the babies in hiding until they're a bit older, or something?

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Darth-Marlan In reply to EdensGarbage [2017-02-04 13:52:05 +0000 UTC]

They are rather rare, due to problems with poaching. With these particular ones, when we spotted them, our guide and driver did radio in to the National Park service to advise we had seen them, but did not give the location in case there were other people listening that may have wanted to hurt them. In some of the other areas where we had been lucky enough to see rhinos, they had armed guards that stayed with them 24hrs a day to protect them. There have been quite a few incidents where poachers have been found and shot by the Rangers and guards, to prevent them from killing the Rhinos for their horns. Sadly there is still a very big market for Rhino horn in China and other parts of Asia, as they believe the horns have some kind of magical medicinal properties, when it is made of Keratin, the same substance that even our hair and fingernails are made of, with absolutely no medicinal or other benefit.

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EdensGarbage In reply to Darth-Marlan [2017-02-04 14:01:31 +0000 UTC]

Ah, yeah, I'm quite aware of the poaching issue but somehow I think the thought of "nah they're rare because people are mercilessly murdering them for their horns" was too grim

Is there any reason that they aren't kept as livestock, de-horning them properly and letting their horns just grow back again for harvest? Did anyone explain that to you? I know that the poachers are.. funded by shitty rich cunts, right? Is there a reason they give them equipment to kill the rhinos, but not to tranq them and dehorn them without causing major bodily harm?

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Darth-Marlan In reply to EdensGarbage [2017-02-04 14:09:11 +0000 UTC]

It's a touchy situation and there have been a few different attempts at minimising the problems associated with it, but at least the ones that are guarded are pretty well protected. In the areas we saw them in South Africa, the poaching issues are not too bad, so they are recovering quite well. There has been talk of 3d printing the horns and using that to supply Asian needs, but I am not too sure how far that idea has progressed at this time. Unfortunately there are also some issues with people that live on the edges of the game park areas, that due to how townships have spread, they are also having problems with the larger animals, Elephants and also Lions, coming close to the villages and they have been known to lay out poisoned baits that are sometimes killing animals as well. There is also a bit of a problem with local people killing animals for meat, so there are occasions when monkeys / buffalos and sometimes elephants are killed for that reason too, but the officials are trying to work with education for that problem as well as the other reasons.

What is needed is to educate the people that are ordering the poachers to go out in regards to this as well, there is some progress being made with that too, but sadly it isn't something that can be fixed in a short amount of time...

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