South African researchers test use of nuclear technology to curb rhino poaching

Source: Associated Press

South African researchers test use of nuclear technology to curb rhino poaching

By MOGOMOTSI MAGOME
Updated 3:15 AM EDT, June 28, 2024

MOKOPANE, South Africa (AP) — Researchers in South Africa have injected radioactive material into the horns of 20 rhinos as part of a research project aimed at reducing poaching.

The idea is that radiation detectors already in place at national borders would detect the horns and help authorities arrest poachers and traffickers.

The research, which has included the participation of veterinarians and nuclear experts, begins with the animal being tranquilized before a hole is drilled into its horn and the nuclear material carefully inserted. This week, researchers at the University of the Witwatersrand ‘s Radiation and Health Physics Unit in South Africa injected 20 live rhinos with these isotopes. They hope the process can be replicated to save other wild species vulnerable to poaching — like elephants and pangolins.

“We are doing this because it makes it significantly easier to intercept these horns as they are being trafficked over international borders, because there is a global network of radiation monitors that have been designed to prevent nuclear terrorism,” said Professor James Larkin, who heads the project. “And we’re piggybacking on the back of that.”

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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/south-africa-rhino-poaching-nuclear-technology-f5b116134bfa5065d6ddb5b5ccf436b8