Advancements in technology is continuing to play an important role in everyday human life. People are taking advantage of the benefits of these advancements that contribute to better health and ensured safety.
Animals can now also take advantage of these developments too.
Conservationists have come up with a technology that has long been used by humans, now applicable to rhinos. The technology involves a surveillance camera which, when trigerred by certain impulses during times of danter, sends warning signals for authorities to come to the rescue.
Last year, a total of 1,215 rhino horns were poached in South Africa. That's a huge leap for poachers, considering that only 13 rhinos had their horns poached back in 2007. The wildlife conservation organization Protect, with the aid of Humane Society International 9HSI), created the Real-time Anti-Poaching Intelligence Device or RAPID,
In its goal to fight poaching and save the rhinos, Protect incorporated three key features in their anti-poaching piece of technology - a video camera, GPS and a heart rate monitor.
"When poachers see the collar around the animal, they know there's no point in poaching it as they don't get away with the valuable parts of the animal," said Protect director Steve Piper.
The heart rate monitor monitors unusual changes in the rhino's heart rate. When a rhino is, for example, in distress, there is an evident change in its heart rate which is captured by the heart-rate monitor. The monitor in turn sends a signal to a designated control center, and through the video camera, displays whatever is going on. A helicopter awaits police teams if the warning signal is caused by poachers, so the police can easily get dispatched.
Piper described RAPID as a "perfect poaching deterrent," providing recorded evidence and allowing rangers to respond more quickly.
RAPID mechanics seem to be easy to apply, but the conservationis organization is careful in carrying out testing each component. Field trials are just about to start, after four years of working on the device. Along with the rhinos, Protect plans to help save tigers in India, lions, elephants and British birds of prey.
