Happy World Rhino Day!
Today, September 22, we are celebrating all five Rhinoceros species and creating awareness about the use of rhino horn to help save these magnificent animals. The Houston Zoo is home to three White Rhinoceroses; two females and one male. Our trio of rhinos have called Houston home since October 2010. Previously they lived in Kruger National Park, which has a carrying capacity of 12,000 rhinos. When Kruger has more rhinos that they can sustain, they send younger rhinos off to institutions such as the Houston Zoo. This way we can build up a diversity of genes in captivity and also insure the safety of these animals. Several months prior to our rhinos coming to Houston, they were brought to a smaller game reserve about an hour outside of Kruger National Park. There, our rhinos had guards watching over them 24/7 in order to protect them against any possible poachers. During that time they were also trained to comfortably go into a crate that was specially designed to hold each individual rhino on their 54 hour trip from South Africa to Houston.
Our rhinos settled into their new home here at the Houston Zoo quickly, which has allowed the keepers to build strong relationships with the rhinos. Having a good relationship with your animals greatly benefits any training program. The animals will respond better to the trainer and quickly learn the behaviors asked of them. Our work with our rhinos have demonstrated their docile and playful manner, which contradicts shows and movies that have them portrayed as scary monsters that will charge at anything that moves. Since rhinos are so large and tough, they have no natural predators in the wild and will only charge when threatened. Though they have no natural predators, rhinos are facing a dilemma due to dwindling numbers caused by poaching for their horn.
The White Rhinoceros has been the only rhino success story. Their population was as low as fifty to two hundred individuals at the beginning of the 20th century. They were saved from extinction due to the help of conservation work. Their population is now between seventeen thousand and eighteen thousand individuals. The White Rhinos individual population is greater than all other four rhino species combined. However, with a growing demand for rhino horn, poaching has increased to a rate of about one rhino being poached every day.
Rhinoceros are poached only for their horns. Their horns are made of keratin; compressed hair, which is the exact same material as our own finger nails. However, many Asian cultures use rhino horn as a traditional form of medicine, even though it has been scientifically proven that there are no medicinal properties in rhino horn. It would be the equivalent to chewing on your own finger nails. Additionally, some Middle Eastern countries use rhino horn for ornamental use such as a dagger handle which is a status symbol in their countries.
Unfortunately, poachers are using very high tech equipment and also poaching at night, making it more difficult for parks and reserves to protect the rhinoceros. A large majority of the poaching occurs in South Africa, which alone is home to about ninety-three percent of the White Rhinoceros population. The poaching is now been determined to not be a crime of poverty. Criminal syndicates control the poaching of rhinos, which also makes it more difficult to fend against as they are highly organized and intelligent gangs. Recently, studies have a correlation between the increased number of Asian businesses in Africa and poaching being at a sixteen year high. The Houston Zoo’s trio of rhinos are animal ambassadors for their counter parts in the wild. They not only represent White Rhinoceros, but all five species of rhinos as a whole. With our help, we can save these animals and pull them back from the brink of extinction. Every individual makes a difference. Conservation cannot be effective if done alone. The sharing of knowledge, raising awareness and the spread of compassion for these spectacular creatures is what will make the difference. Rhinos have existed for over fifty million years. It would be a shame to loss such a big part of the ecosystem due to the selfish measures of several groups of people. The Houston Zoo assists and supports an organization that fights you to save rhinos in the wild called the Iternational Rhino Foundation. To Find out what we are doing and how you can help click HERE.
Written by Ashley Roth, Houston Zoo Hoofstock keeper
