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Wednesday, January 03 2007 @ 09:03 AM Central Standard Time
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In Kathmandu, wildlife official confirmed Wednesday 49 rare rhinos are said to be missing from its nature reserve in southwest Nepal.
These endangered Great One-horned rhinoceros, 72 of them, were brought to Babai Valley, southwest of Kathmandu, as one of Nepal’s conservation drive way back in 1984.
They were transferred from Chitwan National Park following a joint conservation scheme with WWF, a global conservation group.
In South Asia, the one-horned species was considered the most successful conservation endeavors. Strict protection measures, particularly in India, contributed to increased population of rhinos from 100 to 2,500 in less than a century.
Laxmi Prasad Manandhar, senior official of the Dept. of National Park and Wildlife Conservation, said that per records 23 rhinos had already died because of poaching. He does not believe that the missing 49 rhinos have fallen into the hands of poachers because of lack of evidence. Their extensive search in June yielded no result and until now they are yet to determine the reason of the disappearance.
Ma. Roma C. Agsalud
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