Red-billed oxpecker can help rhinos avoid poachers
Recommended for Preparatory Grades
We have read about rhinoceroses and how they are highly endangered.
Why are rhinos highly endangered?
Rhinos are widely hunted for their horns. So, while they are protected, they still face great danger from poachers (illegal hunters). All this has decreased their population.
Experts have noticed that a bird called the red-billed oxpecker can help warn protect rhinos against poachers. How? By alerting them when humans are nearby.
Red-billed oxpeckers are often seen riding on animals like buffaloes and rhinos. These birds eat the insects and other creatures that cling to the animals’ skin.
What is the discovery?
- A researcher named Roan Plotz has been studying black rhinos in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park, in eastern South Africa.
- Rhinos have poor eyesight. A person can actually get close to them without being seen unless there is an oxpecker on its back.
- The oxpecker makes an alarm sound when it sees people and warns the rhino.
- The study found that there is a 40-50% reduction in sightings of rhinos when they were accompanied by oxpeckers.
Roan suggests that re-introducing more oxpeckers in places where rhinos live can help reduce poaching.
The oxpecker in African culture
The oxpecker’s name in Swahili (an African language) is Askari wa kifaru, which means the ‘rhino’s guard’. This shows us that the oxpecker’s role has been known to the native people.
Watch the video below on oxpeckers. Video Credit: WildEarth/Youtube
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