Half a thousand rhinos killed in South Africa due to poaching

Poachers killed nearly 500 last year rhinos in South Africa11% more than in 2022, despite the government’s efforts to protect a species threatened by the supposed therapeutic or aphrodisiac properties of its horns.

South Africa is home to a 80% of the world’s rhino population, but there are many poachers who seek to get rich by selling their horns, coveted especially in Asia.

According to the South African Ministry of Environment, despite the government’s efforts to combat illicit trade, 499 of these thick-skinned megaherbivores were killed in 2023, most in state parks. This represents an increase in eleven% compared to the 2022 figure.

These figures draw “a worrying panorama”according to the group Save the Rhino International, which is calling for more resources to be urgently deployed against poaching networks.

“There is no overnight solution, but with a rhino poached every 17 hours in South Africa, we cannot afford to waste any more time.”said Jo Shaw, group managing director.

The majority of rhinos were hunted in the eastern province of KwaZulu-Natal, where the Hluhluwe-Imfolozi park is located, the oldest reserve in Africa, which lost 307 individuals.

“This is the largest loss due to poaching in this province”said the Minister of the Environment, Barbara Creecy.

“Multidisciplinary teams continue to work tirelessly to stop” this trend, he added.

Regional and private reserves

Authorities have tightened security in recent years, especially around Kruger National Park, an important tourist center on the border with Mozambique, whose rhino population has fallen drastically in the last 15 years.

This translated into a decrease in losses: 78 rhinos died in 2023, 37% less than in 2022. But it has also pushed poachers towards regional and private reserves such as Hluhluwe-Imfolozi.

Police arrested 49 suspected poachers in KwaZulu-Natal last year, according to Creecy. Across the country, 45 poachers and antler traffickers were convicted in court, he added.

Rhino horns are highly coveted on black markets, where the price per peso rivals that of gold and cocaine.

However, in September the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) reported that, thanks to conservation efforts, rhino numbers had increased throughout Africa.

Nearly 23,300 specimens roamed the continent at the end of 2022, 5.2% more than the previous year, indicated the IUCN. About 15,000 of them live in South Africa, according to estimates by the International Rhino Foundation.

“These updated IUCN figures are encouraging, but progress will remain small as long as the poaching crisis continues.”said Jeff Cooke of the World Wildlife Fund.