JOHANNESBURG, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- South Africa recorded 230 rhinos lost to poaching in the first eight months of 2026, down from 248 during the same period last year, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment said Tuesday.
In a statement marking World Rhino Day, the department said South Africa's rhino population increased by 4.9 percent from 2024, with a minimum estimated population of 15,096 animals at the end of the year, comprising at least 2,565 black rhinos and 12,531 white rhinos.
Despite the increase in population and the decline in poaching, the department warned that the number of rhinos killed for their horns remained significantly high.
In Kruger National Park, 114 rhinos were poached between January and August this year, compared with 123 during the same period in 2025.
The department said the park had strengthened its anti-poaching capacity by appointing additional field rangers and rhino monitors under the Rhino Renaissance Initiative.
The broader rhino conservation plan includes dehorning, layered security, appropriate technology, skills development and strengthened integrity management, it said.
The department said a 10-year biodiversity management plan for black and white rhinos, published in April, aims to grow and secure rhino populations through improved biological management and support for expansion projects.
It is also establishing a National Rhino Conservation Coordination Committee to coordinate and monitor the implementation of the plan.
Meanwhile, the National Integrated Strategy to Combat Wildlife Trafficking continues to target the entire illegal trade chain, from poachers and traffickers to those financing and profiting from criminal operations, the department said. ■