I have a question. What is so powerful about fingernails? If your treat them right, they can look quite good. My wife likes to paint them and turn then into a work of art. But can they cure disease or provide better sex? I think not. Yet people are wiping out rhinos to get what their horn is made of: keratin or - you guessed - it fingernails. Some say the belief is based on the legend of the unicorn. If you think a rhino looks like an unicorn then you need a new set of glasses ASAP. There is nothing magical about their horn.

I don’t want to say that all eastern medicine is phony as science has shown aspects of it can be beneficial, such as acupuncture or herbs, but rhino horn? No. Eastern medicine got it wrong here. Science has shown that it has no benefits other than a placebo effect. In fact, it can cause great harm as people who use it would not seek proper treatment and suffer the consequences.

So don’t believe those wild internet stories of someone being cured by rhino horn. It is BS (pardon my language). It was a lie started by the greedy wildlife traffickers to make more money. So if want a placebo cure or aphrodisiac, grind up your own fingernails! It would have the same effect as rhino’s horn and you would be saving these wonderful and amazing creatures. I know that all five species would thank you.

My second best picture of a rhino ( A Black Rhinoceros from the Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania in 2004 )