The only animal in the African Bush of South Africa that our safari tracker, July, was afraid of. The Black Rhinoceros. Every time we drove past a black rhino, July would pull out his sharp stick, sharpened by his very own machete, to protect himself. Black rhinos are very large animals, ranging from 1,800- 3,100 pounds, and are extremely aggressive. This species has two horns, sometimes three, that are made of strong keratin. These horns are used for intimidation, defense, and digging up roots and breaking branches while feeding. However, in recent years rhinoceros' have been targeted and killed for their horns.
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| A photo I took of two black rhinos while I was in South Africa |
Only a decade ago, there was about a dozen rhinos that were poached each year. Last year, poachers killed more than 400 rhinos, a drastic change (
Rock Center). Rhinoceros horns are targeted for the use of medicine in some Asian countries. Traditional Chinese Medicine has long advocated that rhinoceros horns reduce fevers, nosebleeds, and similar ailments. Even recently, a Vietnamese politician claimed that eating rhino horns can cured his cancer. Because of this, rhinoceros horns are prized possessions in countries throughout Asia, including China, Vietnam, and surrounding countries.
According to a report by NBC's Rock Center, an average-sized rhino horn in Vietnam can sell for as much as a quarter of a million dollars, which makes rhino horn gram for gram more valuable than gold or cocaine. However, World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) states that ,"there in no scientific proof of its medical value
". (
WWF).
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| A campaign photo from WWF |
The animal poaching problem needs to be addressed by the United States and other countries around the world. Rhinoceros's are critically endangered and need help. Although the United States has done some things to help rhinos, including banning Traditional Chinese Medicine and banning rhinoceros horn trade in the United States, there has not been enough effort put into helping rhinoceros' as well as other animals who are hunted by poachers. There are many strategies and projects that the World Wildlife Foundation is working on to to help the animals, including spreading the word. Do you think more media outlets in the United States should address endangered animals? Why or why not? In what other ways can the United States help animals like the rhinoceros?
In my opinion, it's not media in the US that's the problem, it's the media in countries like Vietnam. If they refused to publish stories like the politician above, then they would not be contributing to the problem.
ReplyDeleteThe other thing to realize is that some "folk medicine" actually does work. Many herbal remedies from South America, for instance, have been approved by their government boards as actually alleviating symptoms of disease. While this is great for South America, it also means that people around the world have a tendency to think that their local medicine automatically works; the only cure is to clinically disprove "remedies" such as rhino horn, and then loudly proclaim your findings complete with evidence.
This is a very interesting post Tally. Although I don't agree with Derek about the media, I also don't disagree. I believe that the media will be insignificant with an issue such as this. Nothing that the media says with have a large enough affect on the public to cause people to invest themselves to make a difference. This issue is too large for a group of people to tackle. Therefore, I believe the only way change will occur is if the U.S government would address this issue and step in. This seems very unlikely given the issues our country is currently facing.
ReplyDeleteBecause the root of the problem is far away from the US, it's tricky to find ways that we could really help out. I do feel that having the US media address endangered animals would be one helpful way to spread the word and gain support on a larger scale. As Derek mentioned, because the issue seems most prevalent in Asia, it would also take the media in many other countries (especially those in and around Asia) to make a big difference.
ReplyDeleteAs Tom noted, it is hard to imagine that there will be an increase of effort surrounding this issue due to focus on many burning issues that our country is up against.