Researchers at the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa, led by Professor James Larkin, combat rhino poaching by injecting live horns with low doses of non-toxic radioactive isotopes that emit gamma rays.
The process involves sedating the rhinos, drilling a hole into their horn, and inserting the nuclear material, conducted by veterinarians, nuclear experts, and the University of Witwatersrand's Radiation and Health Physics Unit.
The dose levels used are slightly higher than natural background radiation exposure and were calculated using computer modeling and rhino head phantoms. Veterinarians will monitor the rhinos for six months to ensure no harm is caused by the radioisotopes.
South Africa is a key battleground against rhino poaching due to its large rhino population of around 16,000, and more than 500 are killed annually by poachers, driven by a $22 billion global black market trade in rhino horns.
Rhino populations have declined from around 500,000 to about 27,000 due to poaching, driven by the demand for horns in Asia, where they are valued for their alleged medicinal properties and as a status symbol, despite lacking scientific evidence.
Sources: Newsweek, AP News, CNN, BBC, Gizmodo, Barron's, Economic Times, Wonderful Engineering, NY Sun, The Vermilion, Flip the Media, Head Topics, ExtremeTech , Daily Star.
This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.
