Western Shores rhino poaching: Update

Archive photo: rhino poached for its horn

Sadly, confirmation has been received from iSimangaliso, the Wetland Park Authority, of the four rhinos recently poached in the Western Shores area of the wetland park.

A media release published by KZN Wildlife on the 21st of May revealed the discovery of 11 rhino carcasses in KZN reserves, thought to have been poached within the last 20 days. Of this total, eight (seven white rhino and one black rhino) were poached in St Lucia's Western and Eastern Shores reserves, with six in Western Shores and two in Eastern Shores. This means that the iSimangaliso Wetland Park has been hardest hit out of all KZN's protected areas. Nevertheless, KZN Wildlife CEO Dr Bandile Mkize is "determined to keep working on solutions and tightening up on security matters." Tony Conway, iSimangaliso Park Manager, confirmed that heavy calibre firearms are being used after a spent .458 cartridge was found. 

The Zululand Antipoaching Wing (ZAP-Wing) helicopter assisted in the search for poachers on the night of the 20th of May and during the early hours of the 21st of May, while KZN Wildlife has intensified its aerial patrols of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park and is "improving its underground information gathering efforts around the park". The loss of these rhinos comes on the eve of the Rhino Summit, to be held at University of Zululand from the 22nd - 23rd of May 2013.
Up until mid-last week, KZN Wildlife reserves had lost a total of 10 rhinos to poaching so far this year, a tiny fraction of the countrywide statistics.

Archive photo: Cheetah plane used by ZAP-Wing

Today, 22 May, KZN Wildlife sadly announced the poaching of an elephant, from Tembe Elephant Park. Tembe Elephant Park is not only a Big 5 game reserve but is an elephant sanctuary, originally set up in the 1980s to protect the elephant population fleeing Southern Mozambique, where they were being decimated due to the Mozambican Civil War.

St Lucia News would, once again, like to remind visitors and tour guides alike to take note of the 'crime hotline' contact numbers, to which ANY suspicious activity is to be directly reported so it can be investigated by the team of professionals. Those numbers are: 32211 (SMS) and 08600 10111 (telephone). SMS' charged at R1. Crimeline's website: https://www.crimeline.co.za . Everybody, from members of the public visiting our parks on a one-off basis to guides who frequent our reserves, please keep these numbers handy and keep your eyes peeled for suspicious activity and suspicious vehicles. 

Following the news of the two poaching incidents in Eastern Shores, is it time to start regulating vehicles entering and leaving St Lucia (gateway to the Eastern Shores reserve) via the estuary bridge?