Poachers Kill 250 Animals In S. African National Park

By SEBASTIEN BERGER, The Daily Telegraph
May 12, 2008

Johannesburg, South Africa — Almost 250 animals including white rhino have been poached in South Africa's world-renowned Kruger national park in recent years, the government admitted yesterday.

The environment and tourism minister, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, said that 249 mammals had been illegally killed in the park, which covers almost a million acres in northeastern South Africa, along the border with Mozambique and Zimbabwe, in the last four years.

He said in a parliamentary written answer that the dead animals included 44 white rhino, four lions, two elephants, and a hippo. The statistics may underestimate the level of poaching, as only confirmed killings are included, but Kruger is probably the best-organized and best-regulated park in Africa.

The opposition Democratic Alliance's environment spokesman, Gareth Morgan, who raised the issue, pointed out that it was "hard to believe" 15 out of South Africa's 22 national parks saw no poaching at all, as the official statistics suggested.

There had been a "meaningful drop" in poaching in Kruger last year, he said, but added: "While there is no acceptable level for poaching in a protected area, it is clear that these figures remain disturbingly high, especially for white rhino.

"It will be important to determine whether the parks have sufficient anti-poaching personnel." Kruger is one area where elephant populations are rising to levels some scientists believe are unsustainable, and South Africa has recently authorised the re-introduction of culling to manage the population, although no official kills have been carried out yet.