Global Alliance for Rhino Conservation (GARC)

“Every country and each citizen of our planet has to join hands together in a global alliance to protect life on earth. Biodiversity is our life.”

-UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

Background

The Greater One-horned Rhinoceros is perhaps the most enduring emblem of Nepal's rich biological heritage. Rhinos are precious gift of nature not only for us but also for our future generation. Not only is it important to conservationists for its ecological value but it also holds a universal value. The Greater One-horned Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) is classified by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as "endangered,”.

Out of five species of rhinoceros in the world, one-horned rhinoceros is found only in Nepal and India. In Nepal, Chitwan National Park (CNP) and its surroundings, Bardiya National Park (BNP) and Suklaphanta Wildlife Reserve (SWR) are the main habitats of the rhinoceros. Kajiranga National Park in India houses the largest number of one-horned rhinoceros. Chitwan National Park was established in 1973 with the objective of protecting one-horned rhinoceros and its habitat. Chitwan National Park was recognized as a World Heritage Site in 1984 for its high biodiversity and for maintaining ecological process ecosystems of international significance (DNPWC 2001).

In Nepal, the rhinoceros population was estimated at 1000 individuals until 1950 in the Chitwan National Park. In 2008, rhino population size is estimated at 403 individuals in three Terai protected areas of Nepal. So, the number of one horned Rhino is decreasing dramatically putting this species at high risk of extinction. In recent years, rhino poaching has been one of the major threats for the survival of this species (Rhinoceros unicornis) despite great efforts to curb wildlife poaching and trade in Nepal.

The main factor behind this is-the existing national policy is not strict enough or wildlife friendly, creating an easy environment for wildlife criminals to escape prosecution since they are getting protection from corrupt political bodies

In order to save the one horned rhino, Team for Nature and Wildlife (TNW), a youth's environmental organization, including the concerned local and national animal welfare organizations has been struggling to minimize the poaching of the Rhino. In this regard, TNW has launched a campaign titled "Mission Rhino- Direct and Grassroots lobbying". The campaign includes strong lobbying activities, led and run by youths at local and central level to influence the government to revise existing policies and practices and putting an end to the trend of providing political protection to Rhino poachers.

The government of Nepal has just shown commitment to the conservation of its rich biodiversity and the survival of flagship species like Greater One-horned Rhinoceros for over four decades. But the there has been no significant changes in the control of poaching; in fact the conditions have been worsening everyday leading the species towards the brink of extinction in Nepal. Therefore, the time has come for carrying out lobbying initiatives from the global level through the global animal rights movement. This would hopefully bring about the required action from all the stakeholders involved in this issue for a positive change.

In this regard, TNW Nepal, on the behalf of all the Nepalese organizations involved in environment conservation has decided to form "Global Alliance for Rhino Conservation (GARC)" to save the endangered Rhinoceros together. The alliance formed in the eve of AFA 2010 will be a milestone step towards achieving the goal of International Year of Biodiversity (2010) declared by the UN.

Thank You!

Sujan Dhakal

Global Alliance for Rhino Conservation

Serpents

Nothing frightens people more thoroughly than snakes. Fear is the single most important fact behind the indiscriminate killing of snakes. Snakes, whether poisonous or not, are generally killed on sight. The sighting of a snake generates a hysterical mob armed with all manner of sticks and stones. The snake is invariably killed because if it is not, people feel it will wreak its revenge for any undesirable attention given to it.

Snakes have occupied almost every niche in the earth’s ecosystem. There are snakes that live on trees (arboreal snakes), there are snakes that have made the ocean their home (sea snakes), there are snakes that live in fresh water (water snakes), there are snakes that live underground (fossorial snakes: these depend on homes made by other creatures. Very often, a snake will enter a rat’s burrow, eat up the inhabitants and make the burrow its home). Then, finally, there are snakes that occupy the ground (terrestrial snakes). So, as we can see, there snakes have specialized to take advantage of every available earthly habitat. All snakes are predators and since they have such a wide range of habitats and vary in size from a few inches to around 25‑30 feet, they also prey upon a wide variety of creatures ranging from insects, lizards, birds, fish, frogs and rodents to even pigs and deer. As predators, snakes play a vital role in controlling the population of these animals -- especially rodents, frogs and insects -- since a majority of the snakes feed on them.

In turn, many creatures also prey upon snakes: birds of prey, the mongoose, civet cats, peacocks etc regularly feed on snakes. In fact, rats and larger frogs and birds like the crow and mynah will not pass up an opportunity to eat a baby snake. So apparently the population of snakes in nature is kept in check by these animals and thus, a balance between the various populations is achieved and maintained.

 When human beings enter this scenario, everything changes. Human beings not only alter and destroy the habitat of snakes and other creatures, as far as snakes are concerned they will not hesitate to kill them simply because they fear them. Although most snakes found in India are harmless (non‑venomous), they are still killed because of the lack of information about them and due to an overabundance of myths and misconceptions about them. Then, of course, there is also the trade in snake skins. Therefore the population of snakes is being decimated at an unnaturally high rate.

On the one hand, snakes are being killed relentlessly by human beings and on the other, their main source of food, that is, rodents (rats and mice) continue to benefit from the farming activities of "humans", increasing their populations to alarming proportions. Rodents consume about 25% of the total food grain produced every year in India. Allowing such an unnaturally high population of rats and mice can also lead to the spread of dangerous diseases like the plague and other diseases transmitted by them.

 Snakes probably have the largest number of myths attached to them and are generally ill treated because of them.But there are other myths:

• ·         Snakes hunt human beings: False. Snakes never hunt humans. They usually hunt small rodents, birds, etc. Given even the slightest warning, a snake will run away from humans. They only attack in self-defence, when surprised or cornered.

• ·         Most snakes are harmful: False. Most snakes are harmless.

• ·         Snakes feel slimy: False. A snake is cool and dry to the touch.

• ·         Snakes can hypnotize people and animals: False. The myth probably rose because of the way snakes stare without moving, and because many animals freeze when a snake stares at them.

• ·         Snakes are aggressive and strike whenever possible: False. Most snakes are cowards that prefer to swish away and avoid a fight.

• ·         Snakes are revengeful creatures and seek out the person who has injured it or his family: False. All snakes are afraid of human beings and will keep away from people as far as possible. Moreover, snakes have a very tiny brain and cannot remember such incidents so as to be able to take revenge days or months later.

• ·         some snakes have two heads. False. There is no such thing as a two headed snake. Snake charmers encourage people to believe in this myth when they display the Sand Boa snake which has a blunt tail which looks almost like its head. 

• ·         Snakes cause leprosy. False.  This myth has probably arisen because some snakes have mottled skin. However no snake causes leprosy or any other illness in human beings. Snakes are clean animals.

• ·         Cobras guard jewels and treasures. False. Snakes have no use for precious stones and money nor are they even attracted to them. This myth has probably arisen as a consequence of movies which create such fantasies, preying on peoples fears.

• ·         Cobras have a diamond in their head. False. This is logically, simply impossible.  No snakes have any jewels embedded in their bodies. Neither do they have any supernatural powers which enable them to create precious stones or any other objects.   

sources:various Google sites!!