Even de-horned*
to deter poachers
it was magnificent
as odd and ancient
as the primeval rocks
of the Matobo.
Wide mouthed and grey
white
it watched us
as we watched it
through lenses
taking photos that fade
with the years
as the rhinos
become memories.
First posted for World Rhino Day 2012. World Rhino Day happens every year on 22 September.
You can read about the work of the World Wildlife Fund to help rhinos here.
* rhinos have sometimes had their horns surgically removed to deter poachers. However, this is a stressful operation for the rhinos and not necessarily effective as poachers will kill rhinos for very small amounts of horn, particularly as the animals become rarer and rarer.
As ever, red text contains hyper-links that take you to other websites where you can find out more.
You can read about the work of the World Wildlife Fund to help rhinos here.
* rhinos have sometimes had their horns surgically removed to deter poachers. However, this is a stressful operation for the rhinos and not necessarily effective as poachers will kill rhinos for very small amounts of horn, particularly as the animals become rarer and rarer.
As ever, red text contains hyper-links that take you to other websites where you can find out more.
8 comments:
A wonderful poem for World Rhino Day!
Yuk .... hard to think about.
How to stop these unspeakable crimes, Juliet.
A true snapshot of time, that commodity in such short supply. A poignant and thought-provoking poem, Juliet. A fitting tribute to these fine animals.
How very sad that they are killed and mutilated to produce something so terribly useless and unescessary!
Hard-hitting poem. Some of my daily prayers are for us humans to understand that animals are our close relatives. We wouldn't kill our grandparents for their body parts! Our culture is soul sick,
Wonderful poem to describe something so sad :(
A wonderful and sad poem. Thanks for posting it.
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