Mozambique's new conservation: How the Rhino Recovery Fund and Mozambique Wildlife Alliance are saving rhinos
Aiming an immobilizing dart at a rapidly moving animal while leaning out of an airborne helicopter seems like an absurd undertaking, but this is how wildlife veterinarians are able to sedate a charging rhino. It's hair-raising work, but can save the rhino's life. Once the rhino lies down, the helicopter lands and a team of experts from Mozambique Wildlife Alliance (MWA) race towards the immobilized animal. They gently cover its eyes with a cloth, keeping it calm. The loud whirring of the propellers is drowned out by the roar of an electric chainsaw that the team uses to carefully cut off the rhino's horn above the growth point, where it is painless. By removing the rhino's horn, they're removing a target on its back. This is a stopgap solution to disincentivize poaching, and it's saving Mozambique's rhinos.
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