Rhino Goes Extinct in Vietnam

WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, THOMAS HORSFIELD, RHINO RESOURCE CENTER

Although conservationists haven't recorded a sighting of a Javan Rhino in Vietnam since 2008, the droppings collected between 2009-2010 confirmed that there was only one animal left. In April 2010, researchers found the rhino's body. It was already beginning to decompose, and its horn had been sawed off, suggesting it was most likely killed by poachers.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature reported that rhino populations were under increasing pressure from poachers this year, due to demands from Asian markets, according to BBC News. Only 50 of these rhinos or fewer are thought to remain in the wild.

“It is painful that despite significant investment in the Vietnamese rhino population, conservation efforts failed to save this unique animal," Tran Thi Minh Hien, World Wildlife Federation-Vietnam country director, said in a prepared statement. "Vietnam has lost part of its natural heritage.”