First , we need to define terms . What is a ' poacher '? the party that ' pulls the trigger '? Or the party responsible for commissioning the activity ? What is the ' black market '?. not sure that selling powdered rhino horn to some ignorant , old , impotent , rich dude , is really policed with any level of zeal , in a large number of jurisdictions . I am naively philistine enough to believe not , that large stockpiles of horn exist , and that an increased , general perception , that this commodity is becoming scarcer , will push up the price . Fortunate for those that hold rhino horn eh ? Imagine if you will , that you hold a quasimonopoly on rhino horn and that you possess significant quantities of the total world supply . Then , suddenly , there are no rhinos left . Extinct . End of story . How much is your cache of this commodity worth ? you know the answer ! IMHO , destruction of a token amount of horn wouldn ' t help Just damn good market manipulation for those that have a vested interest in this ' product '. The rhinoceros doesn ' t stand a snowball ' s chance The fewer there are of them , the higher the incentive to ' secure ' that commodity . Reduce supply . oh how those stockpiles are going to increase in value ! . and nothing will save the last rhino .