Dehorning Of Rhinos Can Help Save Them From Poachers, Suggests Study

A new study suggested that the dehorning of rhinoceroses can help save them as their populations continue to decline due to huge demand in markets, mostly illegal, for their horns. The study, published in the journal Science, noted that cutting the horns off rhinos leads to a significant reduction in poaching as it removes the incentive for the hunters.

Rhino poaching for horns is a serious issue. The horns of rhinos are said to have medicinal properties in some countries, although there's no scientific evidence. Poaching has led to a significant decline in rhino populations, and conservation efforts are underway to protect them.

The conservationist said in the study that they documented the poaching of 1985 rhinos between 2017-2023 across 11 southern African reserves despite around $74 million spent on antipoaching techniques, including focusing on law enforcement, tracking dogs, access controls and detection cameras.

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The study noted that black and white rhino populations in the Greater Kruger (Kruger National Park and surrounding reserves) in South Africa declined from over 10,000 rhinos in 2010 to around 2,600 in 2023.

Meanwhile, the dehorning of 2284 rhinos across eight reserves led to around 78% reductions in poaching using 1.2% of the budget.

"Dehorning rhinos to reduce incentives for poaching was found to achieve a 78% reduction in poaching using just 1.2% of the overall rhino protection budget," said Dr Tim Kuiper of Nelson Mandela University, a lead author of the study.

"We might need to rethink our goals. Do we just want to arrest poachers? It doesn't appear to be making a massive difference to reducing rhino poaching," Dr Kuiper added.

Does dehorning affect rhinos?

The workers sedate the rhinos to cut off their horns using a power saw. They also apply a blindfold and earplugs to limit sensory overload. Dehorning does not hurt the animals and poses a very low risk. The horn gradually regrows.

"The headline result is that dehorning stood out for its effectiveness. We are cautious to say that the other interventions are not working. They worked when measured by whether they were detecting poachers. But detecting and arresting a load of poachers doesn't necessarily bend the curve on rhino poaching," Kuiper said.