African Rhinos to Be Airlifted to Save Them From
Extinction
by Kari Paul
The future of rhinos might be up
in the air.
Starting in January 2015, a
conservation group will fly as many as 100 rhinos from South Africa to Botswana
in an attempt to save the animal from extinction.
The relocation project comes
after one of the deadliest years for rhinos on record, with more than 1,000
killed in South Africa alone, according to the South Africa Department of
Environmental Affairs.
The project called Rhinos Without
Borders was launched by filmmakers Dereck and Beverly Joubert in July as a
joint effort between the conservation tourism companies &Beyond and Great
Plains Conservation.
Rhinos are regularly poached for
their horns, which are ground up and consumed for their purported healing
powers. The rhino horns sell on the black market for more than $30,000 per
pound.
Almost 14 rhinos are shot every
week, according to Save the Rhino International, and by some estimates, rhinos
could become completely extinct in five to ten years. "It has really
escalated to almost epidemic proportions," Dereck Joubert said.
Of the 25,000 remaining rhinos in
Africa, 20,000 live in South Africa. Rhinos Without Borders wants to relocate
up to 100 rhinos to a less densely populated region in Botswana, where strict
laws against poaching have created a safe haven for the animals.
To relocate the rhinos, the group
had to first obtain permission from the South African and Botswana governments.
They also were required to obtain further permits to release the rhinos into
the wild. The South Africa Department of Environmental Affairs told Mashable in
a statement that the government is working with the Department of Wildlife and
National Parks to help execute the project.
"The Department considers
the translocation of rhinos as an integral part of range expansion as a
biological management tool, which is acceptable if it is undertaken in
compliance with the legislative framework/requirements," the statement
said.
Rhinos Without Borders is seeking
funds to start the move.
"It's as much a story of
moving a hundred rhinos as it is about spreading the risk," Joubert told
National Geographic. "One of the worst things we can do is continue to
keep the entire pool of [rhinos] in one place. This relocation project will be
making it harder for poachers to come in and hit a hundred rhinos."
In addition to removing the
animals from danger, the relocation will create a new breeding ground in
Botswana to encourage rhino population growth.
"What will be interesting
about the project is that we are going to be doubling the [rhino] population in
Botswana, and that is going to be fantastic for the breeding," Joubert
said.
Rhinos can weigh more than three
tons, and cost and logistics are some of the biggest challenges to the
relocation Joubert said. The move will cost $45,000 per rhino, according to
Rhinos Without Borders, and the organization is seeking to raise $500,000 for
the project via the crowdfunding site Trevolta.
"Translocations are
fundamental to secure the ongoing survival of endangered species and this
groundbreaking project aims to protect the species for future generations to
enjoy," Joss Kent, chief executive of &Beyond told The Guardian.
"A project this size requires a strong partnership and a huge resource
pool to pull it off."
This is not the first time a
relocation project like this has been attempted. In 2013, &Beyond helped to
relocate six rhino to Botswana from a reserve in South Africa, The Guardian
reported.
Joubert said if the initial
project is a success, they hope to extend the airlifting efforts to other animals
throughout Africa. The organization said ideally it would like to relocate 400
rhinos by 2016.
