Black Rhino

The market for black rhinos is a unique market that differs from many other markets. The black rhinos horn is about 30 times the average income on a family in southern Africa. Thus, to many people, the black rhino is worth a lot more dead than alive. As Wheelan describes, this gives people an incentive to kill the black rhino, which has resulted in a huge problem. The black rhino's population has dramatically dropped and unlike other markets, the supply of the good is becoming very very limited. In most markets, people have the means by which they can create more supply of the good however, as is the case in the market for black rhinos, because of these poachers they are close to becoming extinct, and thus the supply is quickly running out. Even worse, as the supply dwindles, the price on the market for the black rhino increases even more, thus giving people an even greater incentives to kill them. Another aspect that is different about the black rhino market is the fact that these animals are communal property rather than private property. If they were private property, the owner would have an incentive to protect them and keep them alive because he can make more profit, but since they are public property, this is not the case.  The fact that they are public property creates a bigger problem for conservation. However, as every Economic student knows, there are ways in which incentives can be changed. One way is by haring the profits that can be made by tourism. If the people of the land would get a portion of the profit from tourists who come and take pictures of the black rhino, they would have an incentive to keep it alive.