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Triumph or Tragedy
By Joshua Jones
Since the beginning of the 1900’s hunters have
been the driving force behind wildlife conservation.
Here in Oklahoma there is no better example of this
movement than our now over abundant population of
whitetail deer. Much of this success can be attributed to
revenues generated through fees and taxes related to
hunting which are then put back into further
conservation efforts. On a global scale this principle is
embodied by the incredible recovery of rhinos. Once on
the brink of extinction these massive mammals have
been essentially brought back from the grave.
By the late 80’s estimated rhino populations
worldwide were barely over 10,000, this includes both
species from Africa and the three Asian species. To
emphasize how bleak the outlook was for rhinos the
black rhino of Africa had fallen from roughly 60,000
individuals in 1970 to only 3,500 by 1988 and the Javan
rhino of Asia only numbered around 50. These
tragically low numbers of both African and Asian
rhinos were the byproduct of poaching, the insatiable
Asian market for rhino horn (which is used in
traditional medicines), very few efforts to protect them,
and for the Asian rhinos habitat loss was a major factor
as well.
For two of the Asian species the future is still
very dark. As of January 1, 2011 the Javan rhino was
still holding around 50 individuals scattered throughout
the small region known as Java although it was once
widespread throughout India, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Although the Javan rhino is not increasing in number
conservationists can at least say it has not decreased
any further. However this does not hold true for the
Sumatran rhino. In 1988 these rhinos numbered around
900, but today the estimated population have fallen to
only 200 in the wild.
There is a bright side however instead of all this
doom and gloom. Thanks to intensive management
programs both the black and white rhinos of Africa and
the Indian rhino are recovering. Habitat preservation
and increased protection have allowed the Indian rhino
to double in numbers from 1,200 in 1988 to 2,500 as of
January 1
st
of 2011. But even this drastic improvement
cannot compare to the improvement seen in African
rhinos.
Since the implementation of a management
program in 1968 which includes the use of hunting as a
management tool white rhino populations have sky-
rocketed. At the beginning of this new strategy
estimated numbers for wild white rhino were only
1,800. Now in 2011 there are over 20,000 individuals in
the wild.
(Taken by SCI Member in South Africa, 2009)