Researchers in South Africa have taken a bold step in the fight against rhino poaching by injecting radioactive material into the horns of 20 rhinos.
This innovative research project aims to leverage existing radiation detectors at national borders to detect and intercept trafficked horns, aiding authorities in apprehending poachers and traffickers.
The project involves a team of veterinarians and nuclear experts who tranquilize the rhino before carefully drilling a hole in its horn to insert the nuclear material. This week, researchers at the University of the Witwatersrand‘s Radiation and Health Physics Unit injected isotopes into 20 live rhinos, with hopes of expanding the technique to protect other endangered species like elephants and pangolins from poaching.
“Over 11 000 radiation detection portal monitors are installed at airports, harbors and other ports of entry, including thousands of trained personnel equipped with radiation detectors, all of which can detect the smallest radioactive particles,” said the university in a statement.
The urgency of this project is underscored by alarming statistics from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which reports that the global rhino population has plummeted from around 500,000 at the beginning of the 20th century to approximately 27,000 today, driven by relentless black-market demand for rhino horns. South Africa, home to about 16,000 rhinos, has become a poaching hotspot, with over 500 rhinos killed annually.
Although rhino poaching saw a significant decline around 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, numbers have surged again as lockdown restrictions have eased. According to a report from the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the population of rhinos is slowly rising. The union, however, argues that this is only thanks to continuous efforts and that rhinos are far from safe from extinction.
“It is essential that the ongoing anti-poaching measures and intensive, proactive population management continue, with support from national and international actors,” said the IUCN in a report.
Despite the project’s promising potential, it has faced ethical scrutiny and criticism from some industry insiders. Pelham Jones, chairperson of the Private Rhino Owners Association, doubts the method’s effectiveness, arguing that poachers have already found alternative routes to smuggle rhino horns.
“(Poachers) have worked out other ways of moving rhino horn out of the country, out of the continent, or off the continent—not through traditional border crossings,” Jones said for The Associated Press. “They bypass the border crossings because they know that is the area of the highest risk of confiscation or interception.”
In defense of the project, Professor Nithaya Chetty, dean of the science faculty at Witwatersrand, emphasized that the dosage of radioactivity used is very low and has been extensively tested to ensure minimal negative impact on the animals.
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