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A pregnant rhino has been shot dead and dehorned by poachers on a game reserve near Alexandria. The incident comes as a gruesome reminder of the rhino poaching scourge, which has been relatively quiet in the Eastern Cape in the past six months but continues to threaten the survival of the species. We will update with more information once it becomes available. The only info circulating at the moment is currently behind a pay wall, which we don't have access to.

South Africa: Great team work guys. Live pangolin saved from the illegal trade - disgraceful that 2 cops were among the suspects arrested! In an intelligence driven operation yesterday, 4 suspects were arrested at Makro Wonderboom, Pretoria, 2 were SAPS police officers, 2 x 9mm pistols retrieved. Outstanding work from SAPS Cullinan stock theft and Endangered species, SAPS Silverton K9 and support from US Homeland Security

EAGLE Côte d'Ivoire - 2 traffickers arrested with 32kg ivory. The ivory, concealed in a rice sack, was trafficked from Liberia. The Burkina Faso National trafficker denounced the other for being a known big ivory trafficker.

Zimbabwe Police has arrested one Cong Yanzhong from China for possession of 3 rhino horns worth US$240 000 and 4 pieces of raw ivory weighing 36kgs . The Chinese national appeared in court and was remanded in custody to 22 July 2025 for trial.

In its 2024 annual report, the Elephant-Human Relations Aid (EHRA) organisation says last year was marked by both hardship and meaningful progress in desert-adapted elephant conservation. "It was a year of learning and growth that reinforced our motivation to create lasting impact for elephants and communities we work with,” EHRA's managing director, Rachel Harris, notes in the foreword of the report. She added that the prolonged drought brought new challenges for EHRA: "In response to the drought, the government announced a controversial wildlife cull.

There were 698 lions killed by humans between 1980 and 2018 in the areas surrounding Etosha National Park - an average of 22 lions per year, although researchers say this number is likely an underestimate. A new study found there was no single reason behind the killings.

Rangers from across the southern African region, including Namibia, have established a new community of practice for monitoring and reporting on elephant mortality. Accurate and consistent data on elephant deaths is crucial for understanding and effectively addressing the threats faced by 'nature's gardeners', which include human-elephant conflict, habitat loss and the illegal killing for ivory. Reliable data allows for informed decision-making and effective conservation measures to ensure the long-term survival of African elephants in their natural habitats.

The Rhino Sanctuary Namibia, located about 60km from Windhoek will officially open its doors this September. Although they have already had guests at the lodge to experience the magnificent surroundings and to pay a visit to the white rhinos roaming the area, they are still busy with some final touches. Manager Stefanus Prinsloo explained that the idea for Rhino Sanctuary Namibia came from the lodge owner, Tom Kjær who wanted to assist in protecting the rhinos against increasing poaching in Namibia.

Environment and tourism minister Pohamba Shifeta has come out strongly against CITES' decision to ban ivory from being sold on international markets. In an interview with New Era on the sidelines of the just-ended KAZA summit in Livingstone, he said if the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) refuses member states to sell off ivory stockpiles, they will withdraw their membership. "If CITES refuses, we have some alternatives and plans. We can go for arbitration.

In early May, the environment ministry's forestry directorate raided farms in the Kunene Region where protected mopane trees are being harvested and exported for charcoal and firewood. Trucks carrying loads of wood and charcoal - without permits to do so - have already been seized, the directorate confirmed. An outraged charcoal producer in the Outjo district, who preferred to remain anonymous, claimed a forestry official threatened him and demanded a bribe from him to not stop his charcoal business.

One of Algoa Bay’s most valuable resources is being poached and plundered at an alarming rate. Nelson Mandela Bay has experienced a string of perlemoen-related incidents over the past few days, with experts in the field saying the illegal trade of this protected shellfish is now at an all-time high.

The Skukuza regional court on Friday sentenced a Mozambican national Joshua Mongwe to six years' imprisonment for poaching-related offences. The accused, 29, pleaded guilty to the offence and was subsequently convicted of trespassing in the Kruger National Park, contravention of Immigration Act, possession of ammunition.

Gqeberha police arrested a 28-year-old man on Wednesday after allegedly discovering perlemoen with an estimated street value of R3m in the bakkie he was driving.

Gauteng police have seized meat carcasses hijacked from a delivery truck, guns and ammunition, blue lights and signal jammers at a property in Alexandra, Johannesburg. An elephant tusk was also found at the 7th Avenue premises during Tuesday's operation, said police spokesperson Col Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi.

The Gqeberha-based economic protected resources team under the serious organised crime Investigation unit of the Hawks arrested a 43-year-old man on Friday for possession of perlemoen. The suspect joins his 10 co-accused, previously arrested in Algoa Park in May for allegedly being in possession of perlemoen, as well as running a yshing operation without a permit.

Ten suspects arrested for allegedly running an illegal perlemoen operation appeared in the Gqeberha magistrate’s court on Monday. Acting on a tip-off, the Hawks' Economic Protected Resources team in Gqeberha followed up on information about perlemoen activities at a residential premises in Algoa Park. Surveillance was conducted and law enforcement was granted a warrant to execute a search on Thursday last week, leading to the discovery of an alleged illegal operation.

The Wilderness Foundation has offered a reward in an effort to put the brakes on the recent spate of rhino poaching in the Eastern Cape.

Two rhinos that survived a poaching attack at Schotia Safaris Private Game Reserve, near Nanaga, nearly 10 years ago were killed by poachers on Thursday. After disabling the pair of male and female white rhinos in the attack, the poachers hacked off their horns with pangas before making their escape.

The Skukuza regional court on Thursday convicted and sentenced a man who had been arrested in the Kruger National Park on three separate occasions to an effective 32 years' imprisonment for poaching-related offences. Forster Lubisi, 43, was convicted of three counts of trespassing, two counts of possession of a prohibited firearm with a serial number obliterated, possession of ammunition, possession of a dangerous weapon, killing of a rhino and possession of an unlicensed firearm. He pleaded guilty to the crimes.

Two men were arrested for the possession of stolen firearms, ivory and other property on Friday in Cape St Francis.

Rhino conservation has received a major boost with the recent Gqeberha sentencing of a gang convicted of conspiring to poach rhino. The September 22 sentencing of the Chitlongo Three in the Gqeberha Regional Court, the first achieved under National Environmental Management Act "conspiracy to poach" legislation, gives SA lawmakers a lethal new weapon to pursue suspects who have often escaped prosecution in the past because of a lack of evidence.

Two men have been arrested in Jansenville with 39 black bags of perlemoen worth about R432,000 and an illegal firearm in their possession.

A high-speed chase by the Gqeberha flying squad and a private anti-poaching unit resulted in the arrest of six people for the illegal possession of perlemoen on Tuesday morning.

Four men were arrested after allegedly being found in possession of perlemoen and diving equipment near Port Alfred on Tuesday. An off-duty Port Alfred police officer apprehended four men after allegedly catching them with about R13,000 worth of perlemoen. Police spokesperson Captain Mali Govender said the officer, based at a unit in Port Alfred, received information about possible perlemoen poachers in the Kasouga area.

The Bank of Namibia (BoN) joined the fight to preserve Namibian rhinos by supporting the Save the Rhino Trust (SRT) Namibia through a donation of N$480 000.

During a first of its kind cooperation between US Law Enforcement and the Namibian Police (Nampol), four suspected pangolin traffickers were arrested in Namibia on 21 July. Time-sensitive information received by the Homeland Security Investigations office in Pretoria relating to an imminent dealing by criminals in the illegal sale of a live pangolin was passed to the US Embassy Windhoek's Regional Security Officer, which was shared with Nampol. Based on the information, the Blue Rhino Task Team was able to successfully arrest four suspects.

The Daan Viljoen game park is under constant threat from communities living in the informal settlements of Windhoek who enter the park illegally for poaching. Daan Viljoen is situated 25km west of Windhoek and informal settlements such as Agste Laan and Goreangab are situated near the game park. Khomas Governor Laura McLeod-Katjirua, made this statement during the State of the Region Address (SoRA) on Tuesday.

What should a farmer, lodge manager, landowner or a farm worker do when he stumbles across a poaching scene? Participants of the Animal Crime Scene and Evidence Handling Course received detailed answers to this question while gaining insight into the complexity of gathering evidence. During the course, participants were reminded that they are neither police officers nor experts in collecting evidence.