South Africa’s rhino death toll has climbed to a staggering 82 rhinos killed during the first 37 days of 2013.
A South Africa National Parks (SANParks) media release states that 61 of the rhinos were massacred in Kruger National Park. KwaZulu-Natal, North West, Mpumalanga, and Limpopo provinces lost eight, six, four, and three rhinos. 21 people have been arrested this year in South Africa for rhino crimes.
Rhino horn trade speculators are part of the problem, according to an economic study published in the Spring 2012 issue of the Oxford Review of Economic Policy. The authors write that “current ex situ stockpiles are sufficiently large that profit-maximizing individuals may have an incentive to subsidize the slaughter of rhinos until the wild stock collapses”.
As species become rarer, supplies from the wilds will dwindle and prices go up, which can invite additional pressure on extant populations. In other words, extinction may be an incentive-driven process, via the price mechanism. These forces are exacerbated when a significant market player holds significant stockpiles of wildlife commodities.
Legalizing rhino horn trade for one species, the authors argue, could create opportunities for laundering horns from other rhino species, noting that the extinction strategy is “particularly worrisome in cases where the extinct species is similar to surviving species”.
In 2012, 80 rhinos were killed during the first 59 days of the year, and 83 rhinos were killed during the first 95 days of 2011.
Rhishja Cota
I am the founder of Annamiticus and I have been researching and writing about wildlife trafficking issues since 2009. I also founded World Pangolin Day in 2012. I am the author of USAID Wildlife Asia's Pangolin Species Identification Guide: A Rapid Assessment Tool for Field and Desk. I co-facilitated and was a presenter at the USAID Wildlife Asia Pangolin Care Workshop. At the 4th Regional Dialogue on Combating Trafficking of Wild Fauna and Flora, I facilitated the species roundtables on pangolins. I have trekked with forest rangers in Cambodia, journeyed to the streets of Hanoi to research the illegal wildlife trade, and to the rainforests of Sumatra and Java to document the world’s rarest rhinos. At CITES meetings, I collaborate with colleagues from around the world to lobby in favor of protecting endangered species. I hosted the Behind the Schemes podcast and am the author of the book Murder, Myths & Medicine. I enjoy music, desert gardening, herping, reading, creating, and walking with my dogs. Check out my t-shirts and stickers at snoots + teefers.