Armed Guards Protect Rare Rhinos in Kenya - as part of the news series by GeoBeats. Rhinos in a Kenyan nature conservancy are under 24 hour armed guard. The Rhino is an extremely endangered species that continues to be under threat. Poachers are after the rhino's horn, which is used in traditional Asian medicine, though it is reported to have no medicinal value. At the nature conservancy there is a group of 126 rangers and a 30 man anti poaching team, one of whom is a former poacher. Penalties for poaching do not reflect the seriousness of the crime, and according to conservationist Ian Craig, they "date back to 1973, but in 1973 Kenya would have had 10 thousand to 15 thousand rhinos, and now we have 600." Although Rhinos continue to be threatened by extinction, there is hope. According to the Telegraph: "The population of the southern white rhino was down to 30 at the beginning of the 20th century. It is now more than 20 thousand" The Vietnamese subspecies of Javan Rhino was declared extinct in October of 2011, but on the island of Java, Indonesia there are 35 members of this species remaining. There is a sanctuary for rhinos that is policed with 160 video surveillance cameras and has been patrolled by armed guards since 1998