The black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) is a unique desert-dwelling species, well adapted to the arid climate of northwest Namibia. This Critically Endangered species can commonly go without water for three or four days but, like most living things, it ultimately depends on permanent sources of water to survive. As a result of the limited food and water sources in their habitat, these herbivores typically forage across some 2,500 kilometers for the plants, branches and shoots that compose their diet.
The 20th century saw dramatic declines in black rhinos across their ranges in sub-Saharan Africa; gun-toting hunters seeking sport and profit were—and continue to be—the single greatest threat to this species. The black rhino population, which once numbered in the hundreds of thousands, reached its lowest population count in the early 1990s; approximately 2,300 are now present in the wild. Nearly 98 percent of the black rhino population now lives in only four countries (Namibia, South Africa, Kenya and Zimbabwe)—a significant reduction in their distribution across the region. Poaching continues to represent a major threat to these creatures, with a high demand for their horns driving illegal trade in China, Yemen, South Korea and other countries. Anti-poaching and conservation efforts remain critical to their protection.
The Strengthening the Protected Area Network (SPAN) project area houses 95 percent of the subspecies Diceros bicornis, one of the three subspecies listed as Critically Endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List (the fourth and last subspecies, D. b. longipes, is listed as Extinct in the Wild). To reduce the threat to the black rhinos and other species, this UNDP-GEF project has provided training and equipment to rangers responsible for enforcement; however, it is too early to gauge the effectiveness of this investment in deterring poaching. The project has also initiated species monitoring at two protected areas, and has been involved in maintaining traditional wildlife migration corridors in Etosha Park and Skeleton Coast Park, which include critical black rhino habitat. Improved management of these and other national parks in Namibia will help to secure the habitat for the black rhino.
Another project of the GEF to prevent extinction of animals and plants is SOS - Save Our Species - a global coalition initiated by the 3 founding partners IUCN, GEF and World Bank to build the biggest species conservation fund, supporting on-the-ground field conservation projects all over the world. SOS combines resources and funding experience from the World Bank and GEF, the authoritative science of IUCN and the resources and ingenuity of the private sector to create a mechanism that ensures sufficient funding goes to species conservation projects where and when it will have the most impact.
Save Our Species is managed through a secretariat housed within the IUCN for the allocation of funds. Grants are allocated according to strategic directions identified in consultation with IUCN`s Species Program and Species Survival Commission.
DONATE HERE: www.sospecies.org "Urgent is our Message. Action is our Solution."