In an attempt to curb poaching in South Africa, animal preservationists have started injecting rhino horns with radioactive material.

According to James Larkin, the Chief Scientific Officer for the Rhiosotope Project, injecting trace amounts of radioactive isotopes into rhino horns is like “putting a massive bright light into the horn that no one can turn off.”

The drastic measure doesn’t prevent poachers from stealing the horns — it’s not like the rhinos are now deathly radioactive — but instead prevents the horns from being trafficked. When poachers try to move the stolen horns across international borders, the same detectors used to track nuclear material can be employed to track the poached horns and to identify the poachers.

Let’s just hope that radioactive material doesn’t create an army of Rocksteadys from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or something.

South Africa starts injecting rhino horns with radioactive material to curb poaching. pic.twitter.com/4nYdNWGnlT

— The Associated Press (@AP) July 31, 2025