Moving surplus rhinos to set up new populations, and hunting small numbers of males encourages population growth and range expansion.
Michael 't Sas-Rolfes
Legal hunting helps rhino conservation for biological and socio-economic reasons.
Malaysia’s wildlife department seized 50 African rhino horns destined for Vietnam last year.
EPA-EFE/FAZRY ISMAIL
Our findings suggest that the demand for rhino horn is unlikely to fall because people’s beliefs are firmly entrenched.
Australia could sustain wild rhinos, but should it try?
Renaud Fulconis/International Rhino Foundation
Would you pay to see rhinos in Australia’s savannas or forests? It’s not as crazy as it sounds – and could help save collapsing rhino populations.
Legalising the trade of rhino horns has long been thought of as the solution to the poaching problem.
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Policymakers need to proceed with caution when it comes to legalising rhino horn as it could be a high risk strategy.
Local communities across Africa need to be drawn into conservation decisions to fight wildlife crime.
Siegfried Modola/Reuters
Local and indigenous communities remain mostly excluded from real benefits, and conservation often comes at a huge cost to them.
Rhino horn will still be available for private sales in South Africa as long as permits are available.
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The first online rhino auction in South Africa wasn’t a success. This has done very little to help rhinos. It may, in fact, encourage more poaching as demand has not slowed down.
South Africa lost over 1000 rhinos to poaching last year.
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The rhino horn auction in South Africa is a serious setback in the fight against poaching and the survival of wild rhinos. The chances of the horns remaining in the country are next to zero.
A southern white rhino in South Africa.
The $4m cost is almost double the anti-poaching budget for South African National Parks.
Swaziland is home to 73 white rhino.
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Swaziland hoped to be allowed to legally trade rhino horns but the idea was rejected by vote at the CITES conference.
Markets and militarisation as responses to wildlife threats are dangerous because they often fail.
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Military responses to combat poaching are a problem. They marginalise communities where poachers come from and can have longer term implications.