Dehorning Rhinos Cuts Poaching by 78% – Saving Thousands of Animals' Lives

Taking the relatively simple step of trimming the horns of wild rhinoceroses is enough to dramatically reduce the rate at which the animals are killed by poachers.

Across 11 nature reserves in South Africa, scientists found that dehorning black ( Diceros bicornis ) and white rhino ( Ceratotherium simum ) populations saw a sudden, sharp reduction in poaching by an average of 78 percent. It was, by far, the most effective method of curtailing the illegal slaughter of these endangered animals, researchers found.

"Dehorning rhinos to reduce incentives for poaching – with 2,284 rhinos dehorned across eight reserves – was found to achieve a 78 percent reduction in poaching, using just 1.2 percent of the overall rhino protection budget," says conservation biologist Tim Kuiper of Nel