There are very few places in the world where rhino is today present : the Javan and the Sumatran in Asia which, as the WWF says, are "Critically Endangered" (a subspecies of the Javan rhino was declared extinct in Vietnam in 2011) and the Indian rhino, whose status was changed from "Endangered" to "Vulnerable", but it's still poached for its horn. In Africa there are twho rhino species : the White one and the Black one. The Southern white rhinos are classified as "Near Threatened" while the Northern white rhino is believed to be extinct in the wild and few of them live in a sanctuary in Kenya; black rhinos have doubled during the past two decades but their number (2,480) is very low compared to the 100,000 that existed in the early 20th century.
Rhinos are threatened for many reasons :
- Poaching : in 2013, more than 1000 rhinos were killed only in South Africa and considering their already low number, this is a huge amount. It's hard to stop the action of the poachers as they serve the interests of an enormous illegal trade and the people who lead it simply substitute a poacher when another one is caught, they have no scruples. There are anti poaching programs, whose participants are trained hard to fight against this pressing issue, but unfortunately this is not enough.
- Habitat loss : the territories where the rhinos live are often "invaded" by multinationals to convert the areas in plantations or by populations who have nowhere else to go and settle in the rhinos habitats.
- Reduced genetic diversity : this is the case of the Javan rhino, whose very small population may make it hard for the species to remain viable.
- Natural disasters : the area where the Javan rhinos live is subject to a danger of tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.
- Disease : in recent years, four Javan rhinos have died from disease.
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This is a handmade sculpture, created in Zimbabwe.
It's part of a kind of handicraft that involves local populations of Africa (and other depressed areas of the planet) and, instead of classic materials, uses recycling materials like industrial waste products, auto parts, oil barrels.
The artisans receive a fair remuneration that allows them to build a life plan.
These products are sold in a "fair trade market", whose proceeds help the development of these populations.
Melissa Bachman is a TV presenter who conducts a show called "Winchester deadly passion", in which she is the protagonist of a long chain of hunting parties for any kind of animal, from the lion to the squirrel.
After every killing she posts on Facebook and Twitter photos (like the one you can see below) with a radiant smile and sentences like "beautiful day in Africa".
In the US her social contacts have been rapidly swamped by an avalanche of insults and threats and in South Africa a petition has started (which has already reached 12 thousand signatures) to prevent Bachman from entering the African country.
"She is in total contradiction with the South African conservation culture, of which this country is proud", explains Elan Burman, who promoted the petition.
(Thanks to Lorenzo S. for helping me writing this post)
