Double victory for KZN wildlife: Rhino poaching drops as rare crane recovers

KwaZulu-Natal’s conservation efforts have been illustrated in the province’s rhino poaching decline and the wattled crane’s downlisting from critically endangered to endangered. 

KZN rhino poaching decline

Last week, Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Minister Dr Dion George revealed that in 2024, 420 rhinos were poached in South Africa, a 79 decrease from 2023.

“The hardest-hit province continues to be KwaZulu-Natal, which lost 232 rhinos; however, this is a notable decline from the 325 that were lost in 2023,” George said. 

He said Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife’s dehorning programme in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park (HiP), funded by the World Wide Fund for Nature, significantly reduced monthly poaching numbers from 35 in April to fewer than 10 between May and September 2024.

Poaching syndicates shifted their focus to dehorned rhinos in October, causing a spike in poaching incidents and a loss of 27 rhinos in HiP that month.

“The considerable efforts resulted in the province ultimately achieving a 67% decline in rhino poaching over the eight months,” George said.

Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife CEO Sihle Mkhize said the dehorning programme, which began on April 8, 2024, had a remarkable impact on rhino poaching numbers, which in the first four months of 2024 amounted to 124 poaching mortalities. 

He noted that KZN experienced a considerable decline in rhino poaching compared to 2023 figures, particularly in HiP, which saw a 67% reduction in poaching incidents since the dehorning programme was implemented.

Mkhize also said the successful implementation of the Ezemvelo Rhino Guardianship Strategy, launched in August 2024 led to a series of positive steps in rhino protection.

Mkhize expressed his gratitude for the continued support from Minister George and other NGOs and stakeholders. 

“The reduction in poaching numbers reflects the collective efforts and strategic interventions we have put in place to safeguard our rhino population. Ezemvelo is dedicated to ensuring that these efforts continue, and we are optimistic about making even greater strides in the future,” Mkhize said.

Wattled crane downlisting

The wattled crane (Bugeranus carunculatus) has been downlisted from critically endangered to endangered thanks to concerted and targeted conservation efforts by the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT)/International Crane Foundation partnership, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, other NGOs and farmers and landowners across the Drakensberg. 

The EWT said the regional downlisting is a remarkable conservation success and will be published in the latest edition of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species at the end of May. 

Wattled cranes were listed as regionally critically endangered in 2015 with only 267 recorded in that year’s KZN aerial survey. The survey has been conducted for 32 years in partnership with Eskom and Ezemvelo as KZN is the stronghold for the species in South Africa. 

A regional downlisting means that in South Africa, the wattled crane is no longer declining, but the population remains small and vulnerable to threats with an estimated population of only 304 being counted in 2024.

While the KZN population increased, the global population, including other South African areas, continues to decline, requiring urgent conservation efforts.

“The downlisting reflects the effort that has been placed on the species over the last 30 years, and highlights the importance of collaborating when protecting a species, and their grasslands and wetlands habitats that we all depend on,” said Dr Damian Walters, the South African regional manager for the African Crane Conservation Programme.

The EWT’s conservation efforts for Africa’s crane species since 1994 include monitoring, research, power line mitigation, breeding site protection, sustainable land management, community education, and Biodiversity Stewardship inclusion.

The EWT uses transmitter technology to track and research the movement patterns of non-breeding wattled cranes.

Drone mapping is also used to improve understanding of hydrogeomorphological features of wetlands inhabited by wattled cranes. 

The EWT expressed appreciation to its funders and donors, especially the Dohmen Family Fund, Rand Merchant Bank and Eskom who have been significant contributors over the last 30 years. 

thobeka.ngema@inl.co.za