Researchers Use Radioactive Material to Stop Poaching
Researchers in South Africa have injected radioactive material into the horns of 20 rhinos as part of a research project aimed at reducing poaching.
The idea is that radiation detectors already in place at national borders will be able to detect the horns and help authorities arrest poachers and traffickers.
The research has included the participation of veterinarians and nuclear experts. The process begins with the animal being tranquilized. Then, a hole is made in its horn and the nuclear material is carefully inserted.
At the end of June, researchers at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa injected 20 live rhinos with the material.
They hope the process can be used to save other wild species — like elephants and pangolins — from poaching.
"We are doing this because it makes it significantly easier to intercept these horns as they are being trafficked over international borders, because there is a global network of radiation monitors that have been designed to prevent nuclear terrorism," said Professor James Larkin, who heads the project.
According to figures from the International Union for Conservation of Nature, an international conservation body, the global rhino population stood at around 500,000 at the beginning of the 20th century. It now stands at around 27,000 due to continued demand for rhino horns on the black market.
South Africa has the largest population of rhinos with an estimated 16,000. More than 500 rhinos are killed there every year.
"We've got to do something new and something different to reduce poaching," said Larkin.
While the idea has received support from some in the industry, critics have pointed to the ethical issues with injecting radioactive material into an animal.
The research team said the dosage is very low and its potential negative impact on the animal was tested extensively.
Pelham Jones, from the Private Rhino Owners Association, is among the critics of the proposed method and doubts that it will effectively deter poachers and traffickers. He said that poachers avoid border crossings because they know these are the areas with the highest risk of being caught.
