Phila , a five year old critically endangered Black Rhino, after being released at the Johannesburg Zoo, Monday Oct. 25. 2010. Phila has been moved to the zoo where she will be kept in safety, away from poachers, before being returned to her original herd. Although she had been dehorned she has been the target of poachers who have shot her twice in the wild and seven times in captivity. (AP Photo/Tawanda Mudimu).
JOHANNESBURG — A critically endangered black rhino shot nine times by poachers in South Africa has been moved to a zoo in Johannesburg.
Faan Coetzee of the Endangered Wildlife Trust said Monday that 5-year-old Phila will stay at the zoo until she recovers from her wounds, which may take six months.
Although she had been dehorned so she’d be less attractive to poachers, Phila was shot twice in the wild and seven times in captivity at a game farm.
Conservationists say rhino poaching has increased dramatically because of high demand for rhino horn in Asia, where it is used for medicinal purposes.
South Africa, which hosts more than 90 per cent of the world’s rhino population, has been losing some 20 rhinos per month.
Copyright © 2010 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder