By Sophie Birkett | Head of Operations
Dear Supporter,
As a result of a fortunate chance meeting in a Kenyan coffee shop between GVI’s Limpopo Programs Coordinator and a wildlife tracking entrepreneur, one of the reserves where we work has since been the recipient of some very high tech rhino tracking implants, thanks to your donations!
These implants are GPS enabled; They have GSM, or cellular, communications onboard; Additionally they include a tri-axis accelerometer which senses the rhino’s head movement and can be programmed to send an alarm sms based on specific stationary time constraints and/or a specific unnatural head movement such as that resulting from a bullet’s impact.
Obviously, our aim is to stop poaching before it happens but if a rhino is unfortunately killed and the horn removed and carried outside the reserve, there is a very good chance an alarm will be raised to enable a rapid response, possibly even before the horn has been separated from the animal’s head. This is important to try and stop the supply/demand chain for rhino horn. It also means we can catch those responsible!
There was one catch to the new tech implants: The signal they transmit is Ultra-high Frequency (UHF), and not Very High Frequency (VHF) as is the case with all the other tracking devices on the reserve, so we required a new and totally different receiver and aerial in order to be able to track these implanted rhinos on the ground. Thankfully the Charitable Trust's supporters were yet again, able to step up to the mark and we now have the UHF receiver and aerial to follow these animals.
Thank you for continuing to support Rhinos in South Africa!
All the best
GVI Limpopo
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