The main threat to the population is illegal hunting (poaching) to supply the illegal international rhino horn trade. It is estimated that currently around 95% of rhino horn sourced in Africa for end user illegal markets in SE Asia are from this source (Emslie et al. 2019). Rhino horn has traditionally had two main uses: use in Chinese medicine, and ornamental use.
Name
Emma Hemmerlé
Scientific Name
Ceratotherium simum
Common Name(s)
White Rhino
Type of Use
Extractive (i.e., the entire organism or parts of the organism are removed from its environment)
If extractive, for the target species, is this use
The hunting of small numbers of specific individual “surplus” male Black Rhino is approved in South Africa only if specific criteria set out in the country’s approved black rhino biodiversity management plan are met.
It is suspected that some pseudo-hunting has continued, but IUCN and TRAFFIC have estimated over the period October 2012 – December 2015 this was the origin of only around 2.3%
of African rhino horns sourced for illegal trade
Is the use part of a strategy to generate conservation incentives, to finance conservation, or to improve tolerance/stewardship?
Unknown/not recorded
Is there evidence that the use is affecting the conservation status of the species? HIDE
Yes – use is improving the status (e.g., population is increasing or stabilising, extraction effort OR catch per unit effort is decreasing or stable)
Is there evidence that the use is affecting natural selection?
Unknown/not recorded
Is there evidence that the use is affecting poaching of illegal wildlife trade?
Unknown/not reported
Since trophy hunting programmes were introduced for White Rhino in South Africa, numbers have increased from around
1,800 in 1968 to just over 18,400;
Is there any evidence that this use of the species is having a knock-on effect on the status of non-target species
Unknown/not recorded
Unknown/not recorded
Details of assessment carried out
Not only has rhino hunting clearly been sustainable, it has played an integral
part in the recovery of the White Rhino through providing incentives for private and communal landowners to maintain the species on their land; generating income for conservation and protection; and/or helping manage and promote the recovery of populations.
Has a valuation of financial flows from this use at the site/national/international level been recorded
However, increasing security costs and risks due
to escalating poaching and declining economic incentives have resulted in a worrying trend of some private rhino owners and managers divesting their rhino, that if it were to continue and escalate could threaten future expansion of range and numbers in future. Import restrictions that threaten the viability of hunting would likely further reduce incentives and exacerbate this trend.
Has the use of the species been recorded as resulting in changes to human health in this record?
Unknown/not recorded
Has the species in use been noted as being of particular disease risk to humans?
Unknown/not recorded
Has the use of the species resulted in changes to animal welfare in this record?
Unknown/not recorded
Are there particular practices which have increased the risk to human or animal health or welfare in the use of this species?
Unknown/not recorded
Does the use of this species increase susceptibility to pathogen spread?
Unknown/not recorded
Unknown/not recorded
Supportive policy and legislative framework
Present
High financial returns from use
Present
Biological characteristics of target species
Absent
Establishment and implementation of species and/or area management plan
Roe, D., Cremona, P. (2016) Informing decisions on trophy hunting: A Briefing Paper regarding issues to be taken into account when considering restriction of imports of hunting trophies.