Park rangers at the Madikwe Game Reserve get Special Forces Military style training to combat rhino poaching which is set to hit a record high in 2013. Full story: As a group of journalists turn their backs to them, five armed rangers in camo military dress melt into the African bush under a baking sun. Such infantry-style tactics of concealment and ambush are credited with turning the tide on one frontline in the rhino-poaching wars in South Africa's rugged Madikwe Game Reserve. Since April, the park's rangers have been undergoing military training overseen by a former British special forces soldier. They've also been kitted out with state-of-the-art equipment provided by the Ichikowitz Family Foundation, a charity that supports anti-poaching initiatives on the continent. [Alan Ives, Ex-British Army Soldier]: "Traditionally it takes about three weeks to teach this and we push this through in six days. So we run from five in the morning until about eight at night. We train them on unarmed combat, we train them weapons skills, patrolling, cam and concealment, basic field admin, communications and navigation." The rangers in Madikwe have bushcraft skills and a rich knowledge of flora and fauna honed from lifetimes spent in the rough countryside. [Alan Ives, Ex-British Army Soldier]: "One of the guys had no boots to fit him and some of the guys had no socks. Not all of them had matching uniforms. They had one set of uniform and they couldn't wash it. So for 20 days they kept that on and they stank, and then they washed it. When we came here we changed all that. We gave them two sets of uniforms per guy. We gave them brand new boots, we gave them socks, we gave them, taught them how to shoot. And all of them can shoot now very, very comfortably at 200 yards and most at 600 yards as well." The Madikwe rangers now have scopes mounted to their rifles and torches or flashlights for night patrols, among other equipment upgrades. [Given Nimane, Ranger]: "All we had was just bush experience, we didn't know how to handle a rifle properly. We couldn't shoot perfect. We didn't have that much combat skills when it comes to, maybe let me say, we hit contact, what to do. How to react if something happens. But after Alan and them came, yeah they changed our lives a lot. I've got kids so I don't want my kids to end up seeing a rhino on 10 Rand cash. So I decided I have to be in the bush fight for their future." Since the training began in April, the park has not lost a single rhino. The success of such tactics in Madikwe compared to Israeli-sized Kruger National Park—which has lost 500 rhinos so far this year and counting—may come down to size and geography. Rhinos are being gunned down in a wave of poaching to meet soaring demand from newly-affluent economies in Asia, notably Vietnam and China. The animal's horn is highly prized as a crucial ingredient in traditional medicines. At 65-thousand dollars a kilogram, rhino horn on the streets of major Asian cities is now more valuable than gold or platinum. According to government data, as of November 6, 825 rhino had been poached in South Africa in 2013, compared to 668 for 2012. For more news and videos visit ☛ http://ntdtv.org Follow us on Twitter ☛ http://twitter.com/NTDTelevision Add us on Facebook ☛ http://on.fb.me/s5KV2C

• published: 12 Nov 2013
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