Programs
AT THE HEART OF THE ACTION
Dehorning
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Rhino poaching is raging across South Africa.
The situation is becoming critical: births no longer compensate for rhinos killed by poaching. The species is now threatened with extinction.
Rhinoceros horn is in high demand, with powdered horn selling for over US $ 100,000 per kilo.
In order to stop this slaughter, the Balule reserve cuts the rhinos horns. This operation prevents poaching and saves the lives of many rhinos.
Rhinoceros horn is made up of keratin like our fingernails and therefore grows back quickly. The operation should be repeated approximately every two years.
These operations are extremely costly: spotting and putting the rhinos to sleep by helicopter, then intervening on the ground by a team of rangers and veterinarians.
The financing needs of such operations are significant. Your help is needed to save Africa's last rhinos.
Rescue of injured animals
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Human activity is encroaching more and more on animals territory.
Beyond the reduction in their living space, the direct consequences are often dramatic: animals trapped, injured on the roads or by hunters, etc.
The Balule reserve intervenes whenever an animal is injured by humans.
Endangered animals are spotted by rangers patrols.
The veterinary teams then intervene to put the animals to sleep and treat them before releasing them directly into their environment.
It is then necessary to monitor the animals until their recovery.
Anti-poaching
Poaching has been raging in South Africa for a long time.
As the pandemic has deprived many people of their means of subsistence, it is still increasing sharply.
Balule faces two types of poaching: subsistence poaching for bushmeat and organized crime against endangered species like rhinos.
Day and night anti-poaching patrols work by drastically reducing illegal hunting and trapping.
These patrols mobilize many rangers.
Funding for this activity is very costly in terms of salaries and equipment (uniforms, weapons, vehicles, buildings, etc.).
Your financial support is necessary to maintain anti-poaching activities.
Elimination of invasive plants
Many invasive plants are brought in by waterways, wind or human activity.
These, such as water buttercups, can quickly endanger the balance of ecosystems.
Ranunculus, for example, will quickly cover bodies of water, preventing local plants from growing and suffocating aquatic fauna.
These plants represent a significant danger to the equilibrium of the environment and have to be removed.
In order not to disturb the environment, disposal is done manually and therefore requires the intervention of a large workforce.
This also has the benefit of providing work and income for local populations.