Poachers Dehorn Rhino, Calf

Source: The Herald (Harare)

Date: 20 November 2007

Author: Anon

A Female black rhino and its calf were shot dead and dehorned by suspected foreign poachers at Sinamatela in the Hwange National Park at the weekend.

National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority public relations manager Retired Major Edward Mbewe confirmed the incident, which he said was the first this year in the area. The incident occurred on Saturday. He said there had been a lull in poaching following the launch of "Operation Stronghold" last year to prevent poachers from entering national parks.

"I can confirm that a female rhino and its calf were shot and dehorned in Sinamatela in Hwange National Park. At the moment we are frantically making investigations to find the perpetrators," he said. Rtd Maj Mbewe said they believed the poachers were foreigners but would not say from which country. "The poachers, we believe, were coming from outside the country because the spoor led towards Robins Camp, towards Botswana but they are bound to turn towards Zambia," he said. Changing directions is a ploy used by poachers to mislead trackers. Rtd Maj Mbewe said they had recovered the bases of the horns on the skulls, which they were going to examine to see if the female rhino had a tracer.

Tracers allow rangers to monitor the rhinos' movements around the clock. "The manhunt for the poachers was complemented by the presence of Shearwater Adventures helicopters which went in the air from about 7:30am to 1pm in search of the poachers," he said. Rtd Maj Mbewe said the authority was working on relocating some rhino from national parks to safe reserves because of a surge in their population.

"Besides relocating the rhino we want to embark on a dehorning exercise so that they become safe from poachers. We are also embarking on staff recruitment to boost the numbers of rangers in our parks and we have also purchased patrol vehicles. We have co-operation from State security agents who help to safeguard the rhinos," he said.

Zimbabwe has one of the largest rhino populations in the world after herds in other countries were wiped out by poachers. Poachers kill rhinos for the horns which are used as aphrodisiacs and sheaths for ceremonial daggers in some cultures.