Protecting animals with a chainsaw Rangers trim rhinos' horns - to protect them from poachers
Poaching for their horns poses a major threat to the five rhino species in Africa and Asia. To make the endangered animals less attractive, rangers simply cut off their horns.
05.06.2025, 22:25
SDA
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- In order to protect the endangered rhinos from poachers, rangers are cutting off their horns - a comparatively inexpensive measure.
- Strategies that focus on reducing the proceeds of poaching are more effective than prosecuting the perpetrators, who are often released quickly due to lax laws.
- One of the disadvantages of the method is that the horn grows back, making the animals attractive to poachers again.
According to an analysis, the removal of rhino horns can lead to a drastic reduction in poaching of endangered animals. At the same time, it is a comparatively inexpensive measure, explains a research team in the journal "Science".
When dehorning for conservation purposes, the animals are sedated and the horn is then removed with a chainsaw. However, the procedure has to be repeated regularly, as the horns grow back several centimetres each year. Another disadvantage is that poachers may move to areas where the horns are not sawed off as a precaution.
Scientists led by Tim Kuiper from Nelson Mandela University in George analyzed data from eleven reserves in the region of the famous Kruger National Park, which was collected between 2017 and 2023. The area is home to many of the estimated 24,000 African rhinos. Locations with and without dehorning were compared.
Poachers killed noticeably fewer animals
According to the study, a total of 1985 black rhinos (Diceros bicornis) and white rhinos (Ceratotherium simum) were killed, which is just under seven percent of the rhino population in the area in question each year. On average, sawing off the horns of all rhinos in a reserve reduced poaching by around three quarters compared to the level before removal. "Using data from all reserves and years, we estimated the poaching risk for a single horned rhino in a given year to be 13 percent, compared to a poaching risk for a dehorned rhino of 0.6 percent," the researchers state in the study results.
Only 1.2 percent of the total budget was spent on removing the horns from 2284 animals. In total, the eleven reserves spent 74 million dollars (65 million euros, 2017-2021) over five years to combat poaching - mainly on gamekeepers, sniffer dogs, helicopters, access controls and cameras. "This equates to an estimated 3120 US dollars spent per resident rhino per year."
Poachers also turn horn stumps into money
However, more recent findings following the completion of the study indicate that poaching continues due to the - medically necessary - remaining horn stumps and the regrowing horn, the researchers qualify the result. In addition, the focus of poachers could shift to horned populations elsewhere. The effects of horn removal on the rhinos' biology have also not yet been sufficiently clarified.
"The fact that poaching of dehorned rhinos in Kruger National Park continues at a relatively high rate suggests that horn stumps and regrowing horns remain attractive to criminal syndicates," the team explains. More than 700 poachers were arrested in the period under consideration.
The statistics do not indicate that these arrests have led to a noticeable reduction in poaching. The team believes that one reason for this is that ineffective criminal justice systems mean that offenders often escape punishment. "Although the detection and apprehension of poachers is essential, strategies that focus on reducing opportunities and returns from poaching could be more effective," the researchers assume.
Smuggling to Asia continues to flourish
Africa's rhinos are highly endangered by illegal poaching. According to government figures, 420 white and black rhinos were illegally killed in South Africa alone last year. Although the international trade in rhino horns is banned, smuggling to Asia, especially Vietnam and China, continues.
The horn is in demand in Southeast Asia for cultural and supposed medical reasons, and can be worth tens of thousands of US dollars per kilogram. In order to prevent rhinos from being killed for their horns, many South African game reserves have begun trimming the horns as a precautionary measure.
There has been a lively debate about this among animal rights activists for years. Among the counter-arguments are fears that the rhinos will exhibit altered territorial behavior, with long-term effects on their reproduction as a result. There are also fears that the camps for the sawed-off horns will attract criminals.
