Black Spring raise your fist to the sky...

Shew wee it has been a while since my last post, in fact its a whole new season!! Its finally the AWESOME blooming buds, sweet jasmin, thundershowers to come SPRING. Spring day is slightly different this year, there has been a movement on FB to take a stand against the mutilation of one of South Africa's big 5, the Rhino. The plight was simple, tie a black ribbon to the right side mirror of your car and wear black instead of brightly coloured clothing to show your support against this destructive and senseless war against this magnificent mammal.

Some interesting fact on the rhino...

1. Depending on the species, rhinos can live to be 35 – 50 years old.
2. Rhino horns are made of keratin, the same material that makes up your hair and fingernails.
3. The closest living rhino “relatives” are tapirs, horses and zebras.
4. Rhino pregnancies last 15 – 16 months. Yikes!
5. A rhino’s skin is much softer than it looks, and is actually quite sensitive to sunburns and insect bites. (That’s why rhinos like rolling in the mud so much – it helps to protect them from the sunburns and insects.)

Reasons why Poaching is so out of control and the devastation it has caused to the species ...

A total of 333 rhinos were illegally killed in South Africa in 2010, including ten critically endangered black rhinos, according to national park officials. The yearly total is the highest ever experienced in South Africa and nearly triple 2009 when 122 rhinos were killed in the country.
Kruger National Park was hit the hardest losing 146 rhinos to poaching in 2010; the park is home to the largest populations of both white and black rhinos in the country. Rhino poaching across Africa has risen sharply in the past few years, threatening to reverse hard-won population increases achieved by conservation authorities during the 20th century. The first alarming spike occurred in 2008 when 83 rhinos were lost. South Africa responded by intensifying its law enforcement efforts, and made approximately 162 

The recent killing increase is largely due to heightened demand for rhino horn, which has long been prized as an ingredient in traditional Asian medicine. It has been claimed recently that rhino horn possesses cancer-curing properties as well as the ability to cure impotence; despite there being no medical evidence to support the assertion. Each horn weighs around 10kg and currently fetches over US$ 20,000 per kilo on the Asian market.

Help with the fight against rhino poaching and protect the South African black and white rhino's from extinction!!