For years, poaching and habitat destruction have decimated black rhino numbers in Kenya. But after intense conservation efforts by the WWF and the Kenya Wildlife Service, black rhino numbers have increased. In 2003 the Kenyan black rhino population was 428 individuals. At the end of 2005, that number had risen to 539.

The WWF warns that the population of black rhinos is still critically low. The rhinos are hunted illegally for their horns, which are highly valued for making traditional medicines in Asia and for making handles for ceremonial daggers in the Middle East.

Earlier this summer, the IUCN revealed that the the West African black rhinos are now believed to be extinct in Cameroon. Poaching for horns was cited as the main reason for their extinction. This brings to light the severity of the poaching problem and the threat it poses to the survival of remaining black rhino subspecies.

Find out more: Black Rhino Numbers on the Rise in Kenya (WWF)