HAPPY WORLD RHINO DAY!!!

WORLD RHINO DAY BRINGS ATTENTION TO CRITICALLY ENDANGERED SPECIES

World Rhino Day is celebrated to both admire the beautiful animal and to build awareness about the conservation struggle they face. They are being poached at an alarming rate and are getting closer and closer to extinction.

Rhinos are being targeted because of the high demand for their horns. Many people believe that their horns posses healing properties but are actually the same material as your fingernails are made, keratin. Of the five types of rhinos, three are critically endangered, one is vulnerable to extinction, and the White Rhino is near threatened. The White Rhino is so close to extinction that one in Kenya is being protected 24 hrs around the clock.

According to Save the Rhino, there has been a 96% decline of rhino population between 1970 and 1993. It isn’t difficulty to understand that something needs to be done, and fast. So celebrate World Rhino Day with your friends and spread awareness about the cause!

Read Full Article: http://wtnh.com/2015/09/22/world-rhino-day-brings-attention-to-critically-endangered-species/

Pretty In Pink

PINK POISON, THE SURPRISING NEW TREND THAT IS SAVING RHINOS

Rhino’s are being introduced to a new fashion trend that could very possibly save their lives. Rhino experts have begun injecting a pink substance into Rhinos’ horns. The injection causes the horn to turn pink,  which then makes it much easier to deter poachers as well as being easy for security to spot. The substance also contains a poison that will hopefully warn off poachers.

Who knew that the color pink could be so dangerous!

Read Full Article: http://www.takepart.com/article/2013/04/10/pink-poison-rhino-horn-stop-ivory-trade

Things You Need to Know About Poaching

Animals all over the world are being poached for their skin, fur, and meat. Poachers kill the animal and make a heavy profit from its remains.

One of the most troubling aspects of animal poaching is how they kill the animals. Some poachers choose to set up nets and chase the animals into them. After they’re caught, they wuse dogs to attack or spear them until they are killed. Another method is the use of a pitfall. The poachers will dig a deep whole that is in the path of the animal. When the animal falls into the pit, they attack it.

It’s hard to think that it could get any more inhumane…but it does. Poachers are now using helicopters to spot the animals while poachers on the ground use machetes, Ak47s, and even watermelons or other forms of food that are covered with cyanide. Some poachers have also been known to contaminate waterholes with poison. Not only are the poached animals killed, but so are all the other animals who drink from it. This is not only sad, but it completely ruins the surrounding ecosystems. Seeing images of poached animals are horrific. The bodies are mangled and torn apart in the most horrific way. These are innocent animals that don’t deserve to be treated like this. They don’t deserve to die for the greed of humans, no living thing does. This is why I believe it is so important to spread the word about animal poaching.

---

The following article, 10 Things You Need to Know About Elephant Poaching, goes more in detail about elephant poaching. They are hard facts to swallow, but we can’t ignore the truth to what is happening.

Article: http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/iv-drip/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-elephant-poaching-8983276.html

Numbers

Animal poaching has greatly affected the population of certain species. The statistics are shocking and show how quickly these animals are moving towards extinction.

Extinction of Species:

• Every 20 minutes, the world adds another 3,500 human lives but loses one or more entire species of animal or plant life – at least 27,000 species per year. (Source: PBS)
• At the present rates of extinction, as many as 20% of the world’s 7-15 million species could be gone in the next 30 years. This rate of extinction has been unprecedented since the disappearance of dinosaurs 65 million years ago. (Source: WWF)