However, despite the decreases, there were still 2,014 incursions and poaching-related activities recorded in South Africa’s Kruger National Park in 2019, leading to 327 rhinos being lost, according to an official press release from the South African government in February of 2020. The decline could owe to governments taking stronger measures against the organized crime gangs behind poaching. At the peak in 2015, an average of 3.7 rhinos were killed every day. Poaching levels appear to have declined again in the last few years, with 594 rhino poached in 2019, down from the 769 rhino killed for their horns in 2018. White rhinos’ larger horns make them more attractive to poachers than their black counterparts.They’re also easier to find, as they prefer more open habitats. White rhinos populations in South Africa, for example, has declined in recent years, driven by high levels of poaching in Kruger National Park. It is essential that the ongoing anti-poaching measures and intensive, proactive population management continue, with support from national and international actors,” she said. “ there is no room for complacency as poaching and illegal trade remain acute threats. Though the continued slow recovery serves as a powerful reminder that conservation works, Grethel Aguilar, acting director general of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, was careful to point out the continued need for diligence. Numbers of all of the three subspecies of black rhino are now improving. Other industrious conservation measures included increasing the species’ range and ensuring viable breeding populations, as well as protecting them through stronger law enforcement efforts. The painstaking attempts to save the black rhino have included moving some individuals from established groups to new locations, such as those that historically held rhinos but no longer do - a risky measure due to the number of animals and the long distances involved. Conservationists see the small climb as a symbol of hope that efforts put into saving the species are paying off. Black rhinos still face the grave threat of poaching, but the population has increased from 4,845 in 2012 to an estimated 5,630 in 2018 - an annual growth rate of 2.5% over six years.
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