Thanks to national parks in Africa, rhinos on the rise, but Northern white nears extinction
 

June 28, 2008.  African rhinos have reached record numbers for the first time in decades, but the Northern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) is on the brink of extinction.

The figures, complied by the IUCN Species Survival Commission African Rhino Specialist Group, show there are now more than 21,000 African rhinos. 

According to the results, the white rhino (Ceratotherium simum) has increased from 14,540 in 2005 to 17,480 in 2007. It is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, but one of its two subspecies, the Northern white rhino, is listed as Critically Endangered and is on the brink of extinction.

It is restricted in the wild to Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the only remaining population was reduced by poaching from 30 in April 2003 to only four confirmed animals by August 2006.

“Worryingly, recent fieldwork has so far failed to find any presence of these four remaining rhinos,” says Dr Martin Brooks, Chair of the IUCN SSC African Rhino Specialist Group. “Unless animals are found during the intensive surveys that are planned under the direction of the African Parks Foundation, the subspecies may be doomed to extinction.”


Northern white rhino at Garamba National Park

In contrast, the other subspecies, the Southern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum simum), is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List and continues to increase in numbers and range.

Similarly, the population of African black rhino (Diceros bicornis), has increased from 3,730 in 2005 to 4,180 in 2007, although it still remains Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. In the last two years alone, numbers have risen by about 450 animals, with several new populations being founded or enhanced through translocation, such as in North Luangwa National Park, Zambia.

“This is fantastic news for the African black rhino,” says Dr Richard Emslie, Scientific Officer of the IUCN SSC African Rhino Specialist Group. “However, these magnificent creatures are not out of the woods yet. They are still classed as Critically Endangered and face increasing threats of poaching and civil unrest. There is no room for complacency.”

The majority of African black rhino living in national parks and other protected areas can be found in just four countries – Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia and Kenya but with increasing numbers in a number of other range states. All countries with breeding populations have recorded increases, except Zimbabwe, whose numbers are slightly down.

Poaching for rhino horn remains the rhino’s Achilles heel, and while under control in many countries it has been responsible for significant losses in both the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe.

“Even though protection from poaching is critical, effective rhino conservation must also include intensive monitoring and biological management to ensure annual growth rates of at least 5 % per year so that surplus rhinos are made available to create new populations,” says Dr Martin Brooks.

Learn more: International Rhino Foundation

World Heritage Committee to meet in Quebec

The World Heritage Committee will consider requests for the inscription of new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List when it meets for its 32nd session in Québec, Canada, from 2 to 10 July.

During this year’s session, hosted by Canada to coincide with the 400th anniversary celebration of the founding of Québec City, 41 States Parties to the World Heritage Convention will present properties for inscription on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Among them are five countries that have no sites inscribed on the List: Kyrgyzstan, Papua New Guinea, San Marino, Saudi Arabia and Vanuatu.

The Committee will also review the state of conservation of the 30 World Heritage sites inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger and may decide to add new sites to that list of properties whose preservation requires special attention. The List in Danger features sites which are threatened by a variety of problems such as natural disasters, pillaging, pollution, and poorly managed mass tourism, that may have a negative impact on the universal values for which they were inscribed on the World Heritage List.

Among sites on the List in Danger, the cultural landscape of Germany’s Dresden Elbe Valley will come under particular scrutiny. In keeping with the decision it took at its last meeting, the Committee will decide whether to keep the property on the World Heritage List or whether the building of a bridge in the heart of the landscape warrants its deletion from the List.

The properties submitted by States Parties for inscription on the World Heritage List number 13 natural and 34 cultural sites (see list below), including two transboundary sites, and five extensions to properties already listed.

To date, UNESCO’s 1972 Convention on the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage protects 851 properties of “outstanding universal value,” including 660 cultural, 166 natural and 25 mixed properties in 141 States Parties.

The Convention encourages international cooperation to safeguard the common heritage of humanity. With 185 States Parties, it is one of the most widely ratified international legal instruments. When they sign the Convention, States Parties commit to preserve sites on the World Heritage List, as well as sites of national and regional importance, notably by providing an appropriate legal and regulatory framework.

The World Heritage Committee, responsible for the implementation of the 1972 Convention, is comprised of representatives of 21 countries, elected by the States Parties for up to six years. Each year, the Committee adds new sites to the List. The sites are proposed by the States Parties. Applications are then reviewed by two advisory bodies: cultural sites by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), and natural sites by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) which inform the Committee of their recommendations. The International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Conservation of Cultural Heritage (ICCROM) provides expert advice on conservation and training in restoration techniques.

The World Heritage Committee also examines reports on the state of conservation of inscribed sites and asks States Parties to take appropriate conservation and preservation measures when necessary. The Committee supervises the disbursement of over $4 million per annum from the World Heritage Fund, aimed at emergency action, training of experts and encouraging technical cooperation. UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre is the Secretariat of the World Heritage Committee.

Accredited journalists will be able to attend the opening ceremony of the 32nd session (2 July, 3 p.m.) which will include the participation of the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee, Christina Cameron (Canada), representatives of the governments of Canada and Québec, the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, the President of UNESCO’s General Conference, George N. Anastassopoulos (Greece), and the Chairman of UNESCO’s Executive Board, Olabiyi Babalola Joseph Yaï (Benin).

Natural properties submitted for inscription to the World Heritage List: Quarry of the Fabrica Nacional de Cementos S.A. (FANCESA), Cal Orck’O, Sucre, Departamento Chuquisaca (Bolivia), an extension to the Pirin National Park (Bulgaria), The Joggins Fossil Cliffs (Canada), Mount Sanqingshan National Park (China), Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems (France), Surtsey (Iceland), Bradyseism in Phlegraean Area (Italy), Saryarka – Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan (Kazakhstan), Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve (Mexico), Hovsgol Lake and its Watershed (Mongolia), “The Putorana Plateau” Nature Complex (Russian Federation), Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona (Switzerland), Socotra Archipelago (Yemen).