Abstract:
Black and white rhinoceros (Diceros
bicornis and Ceratotherium simum)
are iconic African species that are
classified by the International Union
for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
as Critically Endangered and Near
Threatened (http://www.iucnredlist.
org/), respectively. At the end
of the 19th century, Southern white
rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum
simum) numbers had declined
to fewer than 50 animals in the
Hluhluwe-iMfolozi region of the
KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province
of South Africa, mainly due to
uncontrolled hunting. Efforts
by the Natal Parks Board facilitated
an increase in population to over
20,000 in 2015 through aggressive
conservation management.
Black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis)
populations declined from several
hundred thousand in the early
19th century to ~65,000 in 1970
and to ~2,400 by 1995 with
subsequent genetic reduction, also
due to hunting, land clearances and
later poaching. In South Africa,
rhinoceros poaching incidents have
increased from 13 in 2007 to 1,215 in
2014. This has occurred despite strict trade bans on rhinoceros
products and strict enforcement in
recent years.
