Black Rhino
By: Tre Tate
Background Information
Scientific Name: Diceros bicornis
Height: 5.2 feet
Weight: 1,760- 3,080 pounds
Location: Namibia, Coastal East Africa
Habitats: Desert, Grasslands
How does it interact with other organisms in its ecosystem(what is its specific niche)??
Food Web and Trophic Level Diagram
Why is the Black Rhino Endangered?
Today, black rhinos remain Critically Endangered because of rising demand for rhino horn, which has driven poaching to record levels. A recent increase in poaching in South Africa threatens to erase our conservation success. The increase is driven by a growing demand from some Asian consumers, particularly in Vietnam, for folk remedies containing rhino horn. A total of 333 rhinos were killed in South Africa in 2010 – almost one a day.
How did it become Endangered ? How did the carrying capacity of its environment change? How many are there compared to previous numbers? Habitat Fragmentation? Pollution? (Graphs please)
What is the future prognosis?
How can humans help?
AWF launched a campaign with WildAid in 2012 featuring former NBA star Yao Ming and targeting Chinese audiences to bring attention to the atrocities of rhino poaching and dispel myths about rhino horn. You can also help spread the word.
AWF constructed Nguila Rhino Sanctuary in Tsavo East National Park in Kenya. AWF provided the sanctuary with camera traps, which once caught potential poachers on camera, to monitor rhinos. At Nguila, rhinos have a protected, fenced-in space to live in.
AWF recruits, trains, and equips wildlife scouts who protect the rhino from poachers. Wildlife scouts are familiar with landscapes, wildlife, and community members.
AWF hosted a Rhino Summit—an emergency response to the rhino-poaching crisis—to create a comprehensive plan to protect rhinos. The plan called for increasing surveillance on the ground, strengthening law enforcement, curbing demand and trade, and reaching out to influence policy makers and legal entities.