Rare rhino killed in national park

A javan rhino, one of the world's rarest large mammals, has been found shot dead with its horn chopped off in a national park.

Authorities believe there are only three to five Javan rhinos left in Vietnam. Only 40 to 60 survive in Java, Indonesia. There are none in captivity. Rangers found the animal's carcass inside Cat Tien National Park in Dong Nai province on 29 April, already fully decayed, and authorities believe it could have died more than three months ago. A park official, Bach Thanh Hai, said poachers had shot the rhino through the leg and removed its horn, which is used for traditional medicine. "It's very sad news for our rhino conservation," Mr Hai said.