Counter Poaching Efforts

[Lisbeth]

Anti-poaching dog makes unbelievable recovery after lion attack in Kruger National Park

Akita was attacked by a lion while out on duty in the Letaba section of the Kruger National Park and is currently recovering from surgery.

Erene Oberholzer 2018-11-22 12:52



An anti-poaching dog has made a remarkable recovery after being attacked by a lion earlier this year.

The Telegraph reports that the dog, Akita was ripped apart by a lion while out chasing down Rhinoceros poachers in the Letaba section of the Kruger National Park in October and is now recovering from massive surgery. She was airlifted form the park for emergency surgery after the attack. It was the second time the female Malinois – who has been with the SANParks’ anti-poaching dog unit since 2012 – was seriously wounded on duty. She was also skewered by a kudu bull about 18 months ago.

According to the Lowvelder, Johan de Beer, kennel master at the Kruger National Park’s canine unit posted photos of Akita on Facebook, saying she is “back up and running already” which was “quite hard to believe”.

It is also reported that the eight-year-old Akita might retire after the ordeal.

Theresa Sowry, chief executive officer for Southern African Wildlife College, which supplies dogs to South African National Parks told the Telegraph that Akita is the sweetest thing:

“These dogs are just amazing…and contribute to many of the anti-poaching successes in the last few years. We could not do without them.”


Akita's many bandages. Johan de Beer/Facebook

Anti-poaching dogs:

In 2012 anti-poaching dogs or ‘tracking dogs’ were ‘deployed’ to help rangers in the Kruger National Park stop rhino poaching.

The dogs were placed under the guidance of Field Rangers who were trained as dog handlers.

Head of Public Relations and Communication at SANParks, William Mabasa emphasized the importance of collective efforts in the fight against rhino poaching back then:

”We are doing everything in our ability as SANParks to stop this pandemic that we are currently facing as a country. The introduction of these dogs to our anti-rhino poaching unit is one of efforts that we are putting in place. We hope that our rangers will put them (the dogs) to good use”

“To end this fight, it will take everybody in the country to stand up against rhino poaching. Let us all do something to assist the rangers.”

In 2018, there has been a slight decline in numbers of Rhinoceros poached in South Africa with 508 killed compared to 691 a year ago.

[RogerFraser]

Twitter Kruger National Park
@SANParksKNP

https://twitter.com/SANParksKNP/status/ ... 3418216449

SANParks would like to thank the family (Jacoline Breedt) that notified Rangers of a rhino that had been shot. The Vets went out this morning and located the animal - "found the injured black rhino bull. Bullet wounds both sides of chest - /...
.../ bullet passed through right shoulder blade through the chest below the spine and out just in front of left shoulder blade. Rhino lame on right front otherwise doing well. Treated with antibiotics and anti-inflammatories. /...
Put telemetry collar around right front foot to monitor and retreat if required. Prognosis for full recovery is good at this stage. Rhino was also dehorned."

[Lisbeth]

If they manage to save him, they are very, very clever.

For the rest

[Richprins]

[Klipspringer]

http://www.mmegi.bw/index.php?aid=84346 ... ebruary/07

Gov't buys more body bags as war against rhino poachers intensifies
MBONGENI MGUNI Friday, February 07, 2020
1.6m

Government has purchased more body bags and more military personnel are due to be deployed to rhino poaching hotspots as the State mounts a ‘war’ to save rhinos whose population is reportedly on the brink of extinction in the country.
Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism permanent secretary, Oduetse Koboto told Mmegi that strategic interventions on the rhino crisis are being finalised, but in the meantime more body bags had been already ordered to cater for the expected higher fatalities amongst poachers.

Cabinet is due to soon consider a raft of interventions proposed by the ministry and other experts to stem the poaching crisis in which 35 or so rhinos have been slaughtered in the past nine months, leaving the overall population at dangerously low levels. Since April last year, the country has been losing up to two rhinos per week, prompting government to issue a rare admission last October that the frequency would wipe out the beasts in “one or two years”.

Government officials, from the ministry up to President Mokgweetsi Masisi are playing their cards close to their chests on what the planned interventions are, saying any revelations would forearm poachers.

However, Koboto said ahead of the decision on which interventions to adopt, the “shoot-to-kill” policy had been fortified.

“The issue of the number of bodybags does not have to wait for the strategic interventions; that one we have already done it,” he told Mmegi.

“If anything happens, we will not shy away from taking these people out when they put our people at risk. “Anyone who puts our people in danger, we expect that they will be brought in alive or dead. The bags are to collect them.”

It is understood the Department of Wildlife and National Parks has stepped up its intelligence gathering efforts to root out the drivers of the onslaught on rhinos and the strategic interventions to be considered will speak to the data gathered.

“Poaching is not a straightforward activity when it is being done by professionals,” Koboto said. “Sometimes, these people even go beyond what we would

anticipate, in terms of their planning. They invest in these plans because the activity is high risk and they come up with strategies to beat ours.
“In some cases they may even infiltrate our operations to try and get information about what we are planning.”

He added: “We are working to establish networks and we have an idea of what is going on. Our strategic actions will look at that.

“These incidents previously were not happening and we have to invest in this area of knowledge. “We want to know how they are operating and the information they have.”

Koboto said strategic decisions were due to be taken urgently as the crisis was continuing.

“We may announce the nitty gritty of what we will do because they will try and counter that. However, we will be clear on the objective.

“There are trials of some actions also taking place on the ground because this is an ongoing concern.

“As we sit here, the problem is going on.”

The latest rhino crisis is not without precedent, as in 1992, poachers ran black rhino numbers to zero and white rhinos to just 27. Aggressive interventions by the Botswana Defence Force, government policy to move the beasts into sanctuaries saw numbers gradually rise.

Relocation exercises from South Africa also helped shore up the numbers, before the crisis which came to light last year.

“People may think we are not doing anything about this problem, but it does take time.

“We are also working with our partners in the private sector on this.

“This type of situation is not like buying bread from a tuckshop; it’s a difficult matter and we are also asking the media not to sensationalise it.

“We don’t want to lose our men on the ground and in fact, the security of our people is the priority here,” Koboto said.

[Alf]

Maybe they should have employed this mind set 10 years ago

Maybe then our pour rhinos would be more in numbers

[Lisbeth]

Sorry, but it makes me laugh to see the title talking about "body bags". It took me a moment to undertsand what it was about.

It does seem that some people have finally opened up their eyes and minds to the problem.....a bit late, but better late than never

[Lisbeth]

South Africa dehorns dozens of rhinos to prevent lockdown poaching surge

By Reuters• 5 June 2020

PILANESBURG, South Africa, June 5 (Reuters) - South Africa has dehorned dozens of rhinos in three popular game parks, aiming to prevent armed poachers taking advantage of the post-COVID-19 crash in tourism to kill them for their horns.

* Absence of tourists may be encouraging rhino poachers

* On World Environment Day, species extinction a hot issue

* Dehorning makes rhinos less attractive to poachers

By Siyabonga Sishi and Tim Cocks

The exercise in Pilanesburg National Park and the Mafikeng and Botsalano game reserves — all northwest of Johannesburg — leaves the rhinos with horn rumps too small for poachers to bother with, Nico Jacobs, helicopter pilot and founding member of non-profit Rhino 911 told Reuters.

As Jacobs flew a helicopter over Pilanesburg last month with Reuters journalists, they spotted a lioness eating the carcass of a rhino that had been poached days earlier. Experts fear the absence of tourists may already have spurred a poaching spike.

They proceeded to a spot where they tranquilised a female rhino before removing her horn with an electric saw. One of her calves had to be restrained.

Working with authorities, they began dehorning three years ago. Jacobs said they had since seen a drop in poaching. The numbers of rhinos in the parks, and how many have been poached, are kept secret to protect them.

“I’ve seen so many slaughtered, butchered rhinos. What is the solution?” he said. “For them (poachers) to come when there’s lions, elephants … It’s too much risk for that little piece,” he said.

As the world marks World Environment Day on Friday, the threat from humans to other species’ survival — and ultimately our own — is a growing concern to conservationists.

On Monday, scientists published a study showing that humans are causing mass extinction on a scale unseen since a meteor wiped out the land dinosaurs 65 million years ago, the sixth large-scale extinction in Earth’s history.

Rhinos have been around for 30 million years, but decades of hunting and habitat loss have reduced their numbers to about 27,000 today, according to the International Rhino Foundation. A poaching surge has wiped out thousands in the past three years. “In order to … give the population a chance to grow again, we need to relieve the pressure on them … (by) dehorning,” Pieter Nel, acting head of conservation of the North West Parks board, said.

Rhino horn sells for $60,000 a kilogram, more than cocaine or gold. In East Asia, it is used in medicinal potions, despite containing the same key component as human fingernails.

Dehorning is controversial, especially as it makes male rhinos vulnerable in fights. But they are not essential for survival, and, like fingernails, they grow back. (Editing by Mike Collett-White)

[Klipspringer]

https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south- ... rhino-day/

KZN's 'birthplace of rhino' to get poacher-detecting fence as SA marks World Rhino Day
Nomahlubi Jordaan
Reporter

22 September 2020 - 06:00



Wildlife ACT, a non-profit organisation, has partnered with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife to construct a fence that detects any poacher incursions or interference at the park as part of a bid to protect rhino populations.

This comes as the animals are under threat again from poaching, and with Tuesday marking World Rhino Day.

“As rhino poaching pressure has escalated over the years, the poaching levels in HiP are currently unsustainable,” said Wildlife ACT in a statement.

The organisation said it had implemented “intensive” protection zones within the network of parks to more “efficiently” patrol critical hotspots and protect core rhino populations within the expansive public conservation space that Ezemvelo was responsible for.

“HiP is unique in that it has a large wilderness area which is extremely remote, with no management tracks, making patrols difficult,” said Wildlife ACT.

“One element of Ezemvelo’s strategy is to increase the use of technology to enable early detection and response, placing Ezemvelo field staff one step ahead of poachers, ensuring effective and rapid mobilisation of anti-poaching teams as well as keeping field staff safer.

“It is under this strategy that Ezemvelo has identified the establishment of a ‘Smart Park’ as a key programme to combat poaching in HiP.”

The detection fence, according to the organisation, ensures that any attempt made by poachers to enter the park triggers an alert which is automatically sent to Ezemvelo’s control centre.

One element of Ezemvelo’s strategy is to increase the use of technology to enable early detection and response, placing Ezemvelo field staff one step ahead of poachers.
“A rapid response team can therefore mobilise without delay, responding to poaching groups before a rhino is killed. This allows efficient use of resources, placing Ezemvelo’s anti-poaching staff one step ahead of rhino poachers, while helping to protect the human capital at the frontlines of the battle against rhino poaching,” said Dennis Kelly, a section ranger in the park.

“The fence has electrics both inside and outside its length. Any tampering or cutting of the fence sends us an immediate message, pinpointing the location of the tamper. Two sections of fence have been upgraded to date and we have already seen a shift in rhino poaching activity away from both areas to sites where there is no detection fence.”


Mark Gerrard, the managing director at Wildlife ACT, said: “With shrinking budgets for conservation efforts, and already limited resources being shifted to address other needs during the Covid-19 pandemic, it is extremely valuable to use technology to make existing operations more efficient.

“Wildlife ACT is proud to be working with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife on this ground-breaking initiative in the province, helping to proactively protect not only these key rhino populations but also support the field teams in their work”.

MEC for economic development, tourism and environmental affairs Nomusa Dube-Ncube commended the two organisations for their initiative aimed at preventing rhino poaching.

“As we observe World Rhino Day, we pause and pay tribute to law enforcement agencies, nature lovers, conservationists who are working with our entity Ezemvelo Wildlife to fight wildlife crime,” she said.

“We wish to single out Wildlife ACT ... for their sterling efforts in using the state-of-the-art technology to fight rhino poaching.”

Meanwhile, the Black Rhino Range Expansion Project is celebrating the birth of at least 13 calves in 2020 on project sites across South Africa and in Malawi.

“We decided to increase the range of black rhino in order to increase growth rate and numbers of the critically endangered species. It started slowly and has taken a lot of hard work and commitment from a lot of partners. Now we are starting to see the results that we hoped for,” said WWF project leader Dr Jacques Flamand.

In August, environment minister Barbara Creecy announced that the number of rhinos killed by poachers in SA had fallen by half in the first six months of the year. However, 166 were slaughtered.

TimesLIVE

[Richprins]