We Take This Personally
 | Photo courtesy Steve & Ann Toon |
And, we are committed to ensuring that security will be improved and the newly-established population eventually becomes viable one. Please see our update on the ambitious Indian Rhino Vision 2020 program on our website.
Click here to view a terrific 20-minute video, From Pobitora to Manas, which follows the journey of the rhinos translocated between April 2008 and January 2013, including the incredible collaborative efforts made to establish this new population. Our thanks to WWF-India who produced the film as part of our partnership.
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Poachers Don't Always Win
Two days ago, a poacher in Orang National Park, which IRF also supports as part of Indian Rhino Vision 2020, in partnership with Zoo Basel, was killed in an exchange with the park's forest patrol team. Late at night, a group of armed poachers moving within the park with the aid of flashlights was discovered. Park guards asked the group to surrender but were fired on immediately. A gun battle ensued and one poacher was killed; other members of the gang escaped. A hand-made gun and live ammunition were recovered from the crime scene. This is the second encounter with armed poachers in Orang; on 7 January, a heavily-armed poacher, part of a larger group, was injured in another fierce gun battle.
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Monsoons Make Rhinos Vulnerable
 | Photo courtesy Steve & Ann Toon |
In addition to poaching, greater one-horned rhinos are under threat annually during alternating seasons of torrential rains and prolonged droughts. The fate of some 3,000 rhinos in northeastern India and Nepal is tied to climate. The monsoons bring devastating floods that force rhinos to seek higher ground. Many of those stranded in the lowlands are doomed. If they don't drown, they become easy prey for poachers. According to Indian authorities, nearly 50 greater one-horned rhinos died during the 2012 monsoon season; 28 drowned and another 18 were killed by poachers for their valuable horns.
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We Still Are Optimistic
 | Photo courtesy Jorg Hess |
Despite this tragic news, and because of bold initiatives like Indian Rhino Vision 2020, the species continues to make a strong comeback. From a population that apparently had dipped to the low hundreds near the turn of the 20th century, rhinos in India and Nepal have increased by an order of magnitude and today top 3,000 across both countries. Indian Rhino Vision 2020 has set a population of 3,000 rhinos as its own goal by the year 2020, and even with the recent deaths due to floods and poaching, we are optimistic that the goal will be reached.
We will achieve this by translocating rhinos from areas of high concentration to areas where they previously occurred, were hunted out, but can once again be protected. Thus far, all translocations to Manas National Park have all been conducted without the loss of any animals, either during the translocation process. Continuous monitoring of the reintroduced rhinos also confirms that they are adapting well to their new homes. In fact, one of the females released in Manas in early 2012 gave birth to a male calf later last year, which, despite this recent setback, bodes well for the ultimate success of this initiative.
You have made it possible for us to make huge strides for this species. We still need your help to make Indian Rhino Vision 2020 a success. Please consider a gift to help secure the future for Indian rhinos.
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