As rhino deaths have soared across South Africa,in Balule reserve the Black Mambas patrol of local women has achieved a 76% reduction in poaching since 2013. Now there are plans to extend the award-winning scheme “The Black Mambas are winning the war on poaching,” insists Siphiwe Sithole. “We have absolutely zero tolerance for rhino poaching and the illegal wildlife trade. The poachers will plunge – but it will not be with guns and bullets.Sithole and Felicia Mogakane are members of South Africa’s Black Mambas, or the world’s first all-female anti-poaching unit that has captured the public’s imagination. But it’s their success in reducing rhino deaths and breaking down the barriers between destitute communities and elite wildlife reserves that is their most powerful weapon in the war on poaching,and has seen them pick up their second international conservation award this week.
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Source: theguardian.com