‘Lost' species rediscovered after more than three decades
A "lost" lizard species, the Blyde Rondavel flat gecko, has been rediscovered in South Africa 's Blyde River Canyon after 34 years.
It was first identified in 1991, but not seen again. That led to it being thought extinct, as well as its existence as a distinct species being questioned, as some believed it to be a juvenile of another species.
Researchers from the Endangered Wildlife Trust located and photographed several specimens in April 2025, confirming its distinct species status.
The development follows other recent rediscoveries by the EWT, including a mole, butterfly, lizard, and frog.
The collected data, including tissue samples, will help confirm the gecko's unique classification and contribute to its conservation.
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The Independent
39 minutes ago
- The Independent
Cutting off rhinos' horns is a contentious last resort to stop poaching. A new study found it works
Cutting off the horns of sedated rhinos with a chainsaw has been viewed by wildlife conservationists in Africa for more than 30 years as a necessary evil to save the iconic endangered species from poaching. They hoped the drastic action was working, but evidence was scarce. Now, a study published Thursday in the academic journal Science has found that dehorning rhinos has led to a large reduction in poaching in game reserves in and around the Kruger National Park in northern South Africa — an area that's home to 25% of the world's rhinos and is especially vulnerable to poaching. The results of the seven-year study that ended in 2023 are seen as long-awaited evidence that removing rhinos' horns — which needs to be done every one to two years because they grow back — helps them survive, even if the animals lose part of their makeup. Consistently reduced poaching The conclusions seem obvious. Lucrative illegal markets in parts of southeast Asia and China crave rhino horns for use in traditional medicines, and removing the rhinos' horns take away what poachers are after. But Tim Kuiper, a biodiversity scientist at South Africa's Nelson Mandela University and the lead author of the study, said it was new to have long-term data from multiple sites on dehorning rhinos. He said the study, conducted between January 2017 and December 2023, focused on 11 reserves in the Kruger area and compared data from eight that dehorned their rhinos against the three that didn't. It also analyzed data from the reserves before and after they dehorned their rhinos. The study showed that dehorning consistently reduced poaching, Kuiper said. It found that the dehorning of more than 2,000 rhinos resulted in a 78% reduction in poaching in those eight reserves, providing some confirmation that such an invasive intervention was worth it. 'It is a big part of what a rhino is, having a horn,' Kuiper said. 'So having to remove it is kind of a necessary evil, if I can put it that way. But it's very effective. There's no doubt it saved hundreds of rhinos' lives.' South Africa has the largest numbers of black and white rhinos. Namibia, Zimbabwe and Kenya also have significant populations. There are around 17,500 white rhinos and 6,500 black rhinos left in the world, with black rhino numbers reduced from 70,000 in 1970 to less than 2,500 by the time poaching reached a crisis point in the mid-1990s, according to the Save the Rhino organization. Dehorning was not always accepted Dehorning rhinos started in southern Africa as early as 1989. It has not been accepted without question. There has been opposition from animal rights activists but also questions from conservationists over what impact it has on a rhino's wellbeing, and what a future might look like with more hornless rhinos. Vanessa Duthe, a rhino researcher in South Africa not involved in the study, said rhinos use their horns to defend themselves against predators, to compete for territory and, in the case of black rhinos, to look for food. There is also evidence that dehorned rhinos adjust their movements to live in smaller ranges, she said. She said conservationists don't know the full impacts of dehorning, but research had found it had no adverse effect on rhinos' breeding rates or mortality rates. 'What we do know is that the benefits of dehorning by far outweigh any ecological cost that we're aware of today,' Duthe said. She said dehorning a rhino now takes around 10 minutes and the process causes minimum distress. Blindfolds and earmuffs are put on sedated rhinos during dehorning, which also provides an opportunity to microchip rhinos and collect samples that aid research. Only one part of the battle Conservationists agree that dehorning alone will not end rhino poaching and Kuiper said he saw it as a short-to-mid-term solution. Other efforts like more effective law enforcement and better support for game rangers on the frontline are key. While South Africa has helped pull rhinos back from the threat of extinction, more than 400 rhinos a year are still killed by poachers in the country. The dehorning study was a collaboration between scientists from three South African universities, Oxford University in England and game reserve managers and rangers. It also involved the South African National Parks department, the World Wildlife Fund and the Rhino Recovery Fund. ___
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Dehorning rhinos reduces poaching by 80%, study finds
Cutting the horns off rhinos causes a large reduction in poaching, according to a new study, which raises questions about the effectiveness of expensive anti-poaching techniques used to protect the African mammals. Poaching for horn is a significant threat to the world's five rhino species. The substance, which is similar to human fingernails, is commonly used for traditional medicine in China, Vietnam and other Asian countries. Dealers in the hidden market will pay tens of thousands of dollars for the horns, which are falsely believed to be effective at treating fevers, pain and a low sex drive in traditional medicine. But new research in the journal Science has highlighted ways to better protect the animals from illegal hunters. An assessment of rhino protection methods in the Greater Kruger region of South Africa – home to a quarter of the continent's rhinos – found that removing horns reduced poaching by nearly 80% between 2017 and 2023. In a collaboration between scientists, conservationists and government officials, the research found no statistical evidence that traditional anti-poaching interventions – such as rangers, detection cameras, dog tracking and helicopters – caused significant reductions in rhino poaching, despite their multimillion-dollar cost, even though they were successful at detecting hundreds of poachers. 'Dehorning rhinos to reduce incentives for poaching was found to achieve a 78% reduction in poaching using just 1.2% of the overall rhino protection budget,' said Dr Tim Kuiper of Nelson Mandela University, a lead author of the study. 'We might need to rethink our goals. Do we just want to arrest poachers? It doesn't appear to be making a massive difference to reducing rhino poaching.' To dehorn a rhino, workers sedate the animal, apply a blindfold and earplugs, and cut off the horn with a power saw. The horn will gradually regrow – an average rhino needs to be dehorned every 1.5 to two years. The process poses a very low risk to the animal and does not hurt it. 'The headline result is that dehorning stood out for its effectiveness. We are cautious to say that the other interventions are not working. They worked when measured by whether they were detecting poachers. But detecting and arresting a load of poachers doesn't necessarily bend the curve on rhino poaching,' Kuiper said. In South Africa, rhino poaching remains high, with 103 killed in the first three months of 2025. Last year, 420 were lost. In recent decades, rhino populations have collapsed in Asia and Africa due to poaching and habitat loss, continuing falls driven by European colonial hunters. But the researchers behind the project, representing the University of Cape Town, Nelson Mandela University, University of Stellenbosch and the University of Oxford and other conservation institutions, cautioned that dehorning rhinos was not a magic bullet. A significant stump of horn mass remains on the rhino after dehorning, and some poachers were still prepared to kill rhinos for this section. Sharon Haussmann, a pioneer in rhino conservation in South Africa and co-author on the paper, played a leading role in coordinating conservation efforts in the study area. She died unexpectedly at the weekend and Kuiper wanted to highlight the collaboration between different sectors that are often mistrustful of each other in her memory. 'Is a rhino still a rhino without its horn? That's a bigger question,' said Kuiper. One study of black rhinos indicated that while poaching rates decreased, dehorned animals became more timid and covered much smaller ranges. Researchers believe that horn is used to establish territories and dehorned rhinos were unable to do this after the procedure. 'We wouldn't like to keep dehorning them for the next 100 years,' Kuiper said. 'Ideally we would like to address the drivers of poaching. But it is better than the impacts of poaching' Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow the biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield in the Guardian app for more nature coverage
The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
Fighting the climate crisis is vital for national security
Former military leaders rightly point out that climate change is a matter of national security (UK must consider food and climate part of national security, say top ex-military figures, 29 May). What is required in response is a thoughtful, strategic approach that focuses in on actions that are practical and effective in these difficult times and will help build the UK government's 'strong foundations' of national security and secure borders. For example, arguably the biggest near-term threat to UK security is the 'mass population displacement' that Lt Gen Richard Nugee refers to. About 3.5 billion people live in an arc around Europe, across Africa, the Middle East and Asian countries such as Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. People in these regions are already confronting floods and heatwaves of up to 50C that are making large areas uninhabitable. Rural communities are being forced into conflict and migration, while food production and supplies to cities are being affected. Russia has already identified this as a strategic way to undermine European democracies. It stokes conflict and weaponises people – for example, pushing a wave of 4 million Syrian war refugees into Europe and Turkey. The payoff has been the rise of pro-Russian rightwing parties across Europe. With temperatures rising much faster than expected, this problem will accelerate during the present parliament. It requires immediate action as there's no way to contain it. What can we do? The UK has a strong track record of using international aid to promote farming in these vulnerable communities. The best approach is regenerative farming, which produces food, builds resilience to extreme weather and draws carbon out of the atmosphere as it rebuilds soil health. It is a strategy for mitigating, and adapting to, climate change. We must salvage and expand this programme within the remaining aid and climate finance budget. It is essential to our national security that we fight climate change at home, through decarbonisation, and that we promote regenerative agriculture at home and in frontline countries around Adam ParrHertford College, University of Oxford Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
