With the end of 2014, Nepal was happy to announce that no animals were poached within the country's boarders the whole year. Nepal has made efforts to cut down on poaching since the 1960's, when the first rhinoceros protection sites were set up and the country joined the WWF.
The one-horned rhino population in Nepal grew to 524 in 2011 from 425 in 2008, and the country's tiger population in Nepal increased from 121 to 198 from 2009 to 2013. This is promising as both species are threatened globally.
An interesting video about drone technology
and anti-poaching efforts
Why Poaching Is A Problem
The greatest threat to biodiversity is unregulated hunting. This is evident in Africa, where the poaching of rhinos has had a huge impact on the balance of plant and animal species in grasslands. In Nepal, the poaching of elephants and rhinos posed a threat to tigers and other carnivores that look to larger mammals for food.
A poached elephant found missing its tusks
in Zimbawe
Over 100,000 elephants have been killed over the past three years in Africa because of the demand for ivory. South Africa reported 1,116 poached rhinos in 2014. In 2013, 39 illegal tiger skins were seized in India. Poachers use methods such as steel traps, poison, and electrocution to kill animals, which are very painful. Often times, poachers will only cut off the horns of animals, leaving them to either heal in pain or bleed out and die.
A rhino stripped of its horn
Why People Turn to Poaching
It's hard for me to imagine how anybody can turn to harming animals. But it is important to acknowledge that citizens of poor countries often feel forced into the practice of poaching. Ivory from elephant tusks are worth more than gold, and tiger skins are sold at extremely high prices. Animal coats and horns are smuggled across boarders every day because there is a global demand for animal products that are considered to be luxurious. Thousands of people worldwide have felt forced into poaching as the only way to support their families.
Nepal's Anti-Poaching Efforts
Nepal serves as a global model to end poaching because of the cooperation between national and international organizations, the Nepali police and army forces, and national parks. Jail sentences for poaching are very severe, and the country has a zero-tolerance policy for wildlife-related crimes. Wildlife organizations have addressed the fact that poaching is often done by people who were forced into poverty. To reduce the pressure to poach, organizations such as Chitwan National Park have adapted policies to devote large percentages of their income to community development. In addition to to all of these measures, there has been a huge effort to educate Nepal's citizens about its unique natural landscape. Programs funded by national parks put a lot of focus on having pride in the animals of the country.
Outlook for Poaching Worldwide
I feel like I should acknowledge the fact that Nepal is an extraordinary success story in the global poaching pandemic, but other countries have not seen such positive outcomes. Illegal animal slaughtering is still a huge problem across African and Asian countries. I can only hope that other countries are able to meet such success in addressing the needs of wildlife as well as the needs of people.
Sources
http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/30/world/africa/rhino-poaching-kruger-national-park/index.html
http://www.globalchange.umich.edu/globalchange2/current/lectures/biodiversity/biodiversity.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/03/140312-nepal-chitwan-national-park-wildlife-poaching-world/
http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_round_up/2305463/nepals_year_of_zero_poaching.html
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Tiger-poaching-in-India-highest-in-seven-years/articleshow/27554070.cms
http://wwf.panda.org/?207619/Elephant-crisis-what-poaching-does-to-animals-environments-and-people
https://www.worldwildlife.org/magazine/issues/winter-2014/articles/small-country-big-impact
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