I thought amidst all of the negative posts, I would like to see a positive one.
Well, here it is. There have been no black rhinoceroses in Kenya in over 25
years (unless they were captive). The black rhino is known for its massive
horn, which makes it a valuable catch to a poacher. In 1970, there were an
estimated 20,000 black rhinos, now there are about 500. The good news is
that they are making a come back! This article was really interesting because
there was a BBC correspondant on hand to videotape the release process.
Is this a good sign for Kenya? Are there other African animals on the brink
of extinction?
"Black Rhinos Released in Africa"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7649043.stm
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3 comments:
I do believe this is a good sign for Kenya. It is a step to returning Kenya's wildlife to its state prior to colonization. According to the World Wildlife Fund, it was the arrival of European settlers that began the endangerment of the Black Rhino. I only hope that an increase in the Black Rhino population will not show a return of poaching and other methods that first endangered the species.
http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/species/about_species/species_factsheets/rhinoceros/african_rhinos/black_rhinoceros/index.cfm
Aw I am so happy to hear this! I hope Kenya has made laws against poaching these rhinos so that their near extinction does not happen again. Do you know how exactly the Black Rhinos came back from the near extinction? I could not pull up the article somehow to read it!
Also, I looked up any other near extinct African animals and among the many I found is the Gentle Gorillas. "The rare and endangered mountain gorilla is considered the gentle giant of the African jungle. " (http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/GlobalWarming/story?id=3452394&page=1)
Of course there are hundreds of already extinct animals in Africa, among them being the Dodo bird! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_extinct_animals_of_Africa)
Sometimes I don't even realize how many animals are in danger of becoming extinct! That is awesome that these rhinos are able to be back in the wild. I hope that being bred in a confined area will not affect their transition to the wild. And after looking at the list of extinct animals in Africa, it was really disappointing. Hopefully the awareness of global warming and other earth issues will prevent this list from growing.
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