Researchers in South Africa are working on a potentially new method to deter rhino poachers and smugglers by using radioactive markers to make smuggled horns detectable at global ports of entry and less desirable to buyers. South Africa is home to the world’s largest rhino population but has battled poaching for decades. The rhino horn is one of the most expensive commodities in the world by weight, fetching tens of thousands of dollars per kilogram. Demand is mainly from Asia where rhino horns are believed to have potent medicinal properties and are also a symbol of wealth. A black rhino is seen at a game reserve near Cape Town, South Africa, file. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings/File Photo The study, a collaboration between the University of Witwatersrand and a global team of scienti...
Read MoreTag: South Africa
A pair of boxing gloves worn by Nelson Mandela at the height of the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa lie under a thick layer of dust in a darkened room, the silence broken only by the thud of moths nose-diving onto the glass display case. The gloves were once one of the most popular exhibits at the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg, one of dozens of heritage attractions and art galleries around the country forced to close their doors due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. A security officer sits at the entrance of the Apartheid Museum, one of dozens of heritage attractions and art galleries around the country forced to close their doors due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Johannesburg, South Africa April 7, 2021. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko "We had to let...
Read MoreSouth Africa will clamp down on captive lion breeding after a review panel concluded the industry risked the conservation of wild lions and harmed tourism, the environment minister said on Sunday. In the nearly 600-page report, the panel appointed by the ministry in 2019 recommended that South Africa end the breeding and keeping of captive lions for economic gain, including hunting them and tourist interactions such as cub petting. FILE PHOTO: Tourists interact with a lion cub at the Lion and Safari Park near Johannesburg, South Africa. Reuters/Tim Cocks The panel also recommended an immediate moratorium on the trade of lion derivatives such as bones, which they found to pose major risks to wild lion populations in South Africa. Barbara Creecy, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries ...
Read MoreRhino poaching is on the rise again in South Africa since the government loosened coronavirus restrictions, following a year-long lull due to the pandemic, wildlife parks say. The strict limits on travel, including international travel, imposed in March last year had the happy side effect of keeping poachers at bay. In 2020, 394 rhinos were poached, 30% fewer than the year before and the lowest yearly tally since 2011. But then South Africa began easing international travel restrictions in November. Veterinarians attend to a tranquillised rhino before it is dehorned, amid mounting fears of a rebound in rhino poaching, as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) travel restrictions ease, at the Balule Nature Reserve in Hoedspruit, Limpopo province, South Africa April 26, 2021. REUTERS/S...
Read MoreSouth African firefighters contained a wildfire along Cape Town’s Table Mountain on Monday more than 24 hours after it began, damaging historical sites and forcing people to evacuate their homes and schools to close. Winds of up to 45 kilometres per hour put water-bombing helicopters out of action and more than 250 firefighters were tackling fast-spreading flare-ups from the ground only. Flames are seen close to the city fanned by strong winds after a bushfire broke out on the slopes of Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa, April 19, 2021. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings Officials believe the blaze may have been started deliberately and a suspect was detained on Sunday evening. They also said it was one of the most damaging cultural heritage fires ever. "With regards to the damage...
Read MoreSA Tourism to tell you most exciting stories about country through Netflix
In a partnership that can best be described as aiming for the stars, South African Tourism (SA Tourism) and Netflix, the world’s leading streaming service have agreed to explore joint opportunities that will benefit both organizations to showcase stories made in South Africa, and watched by the world. The agreement will allow for exploration and collaboration on projects both in South Africa and in key source markets that drive international arrivals to the country. Since Netflix’s launch in South Africa in 2016, the company has dedicated itself to investing in productions (original and licensed content) that are made in South Africa and bringing these unique and diverse stories to the world. Currently, the service is available to 204 million members in 190 countries around the ...
Read MoreThe animals that roam South Africa’s Balule Nature Reserve have a new ally in the battle to keep them safe from poachers - camera phones mounted in protective cases that stream images of their activities to thousands of “virtual rangers” worldwide. With reserves across Africa cutting back on anti-poaching patrols amid a coronavirus-induced tourism lull that has hit funding, Balule has teamed up with handset manufacturer Samsung and tech pioneer Africam to supplement staff numbers with eyes and ears online. Over 55,000 people have become virtual rangers since the project, Wildlife Watch, went live this month. “We need more eyes; we need more people helping us,” said Leitah Mkhabela, a member of the park’s all-female anti-poaching unit known as the Black Mambas. “They can be...
Read Moreदृश्य 1गाड़ी के आगे अचानक दो सींग वाला लहीम-शहीम गैंडा (राइनो) आ गया। मुंह से चीख निकली और साथ ही दिल बल्लियों उछलने लगा। अरे, पृथ्वी का यह दुर्लभ जीव सामने, बिल्कुल लबे-सड़क खड़ा है। थूथन पर बड़ा-सा सींग, दूसरा सींग कुछ आधा-अधूरा सा दिख रहा था। गाड़ी खटाक से रुकी और हाथ दरवाजा खोलने की ओर गया... दृश्य -2सामने दौड़ लगी हुई है। लंबे-लंबे जिराफ एक दूसरे के साथ रेस लगा रहे हैं। उनके शरीर की लय इतनी मंत्रमुग्ध करने वाली है कि पता ही नहीं चलता है कि कब एक छोटा जिराफ गाड़ी के बिल्कुल बगल में, तकरीबन सटते हुए खड़ा हो जाता है... दृश्य 3ऐसा लगता है कि सड़क पर गाड़ी के आगे-आगे धूल का बवंडर चल रहा है। सहसा कुछ अनदेखा सा घटित होता है। धीमी रफ्तार से चल रही गाड़ी, अचानक रोक दी जाती है। फर्लांग भर दूरी पर गाड़ी के आगे जंगली भैंसों का दल खड़ा है। वे बहुत उग्र और परेशान नजर आ रहे हैं। अपने पै...
Read Moreकोविड-19 के असर के कारण रोवोस रेल का परिचालन फिलहाल 5 जनवरी 2021 तक बंद है। अभी की स्थिति के अनुसार 6 जनवरी 2021 से यात्राएं फिर शुरू हो जाएंगी। तब तक कीजिए इस रेल की एक वर्चुअल सैर बीती सदी के अस्सी के दशक के आखिरी सालों में एक दक्षिण अफ्रीकी रेल उत्साही रोहन वोस ने पुराने भाप के इंजनों और डिब्बों को खरीदना और उन्हें सहेजना शुरू किया। जमा-पूंजी बढ़ी तो आज वह रोवोस रेल नाम की लग्जरी ट्रेन कंपनी के मालिक हैं। रोवोस रेल के पास अफ्रीका का सबसे विशाल टूरिस्ट रेल नेटवर्क है। और, यह दुनिया की सबसे आलीशान ट्रेनों में मानी जाती है। पुराने डिब्बों में अब राजसी रौनक है। एडवर्ड काल की आंतरिक सज्जा, 1920 के दौर जैसी ऑब्जर्वेशन कार, लकड़ी के स्तंभों से सजी डाइनिंग कारें, तीन तरह के सोने के कूपे, हर कूपे में मिनी बार और चौबीस घंटे के लिए खिदमतगार- ये सारी बातें एक बेहद आलीशान सफर की दास्तान ल...
Read MoreSouth Africa will keep barring tourists from high-risk countries including India
South Africa will not allow tourists from countries with higher coronavirus infection and death rates, including India, Britain, the United States and France, to enter when its borders open up on Oct. 1, ministers said on Wednesday. But business travellers with scarce and critical skills including diplomats and investors from countries considered “high-risk”, which also include the Netherlands and Russia, can enter, Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor said. “We will review the data every two weeks,” Pandor told a news conference, saying the government would be guided by epidemiological data when deciding which countries were deemed high-risk. President Cyril Ramaphosa this month loosened pandemic restrictions in South Africa, which had one of the world’s strictest lockdowns at the...
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