MOKOPANE, South Africa. (AP) — A South African university launched an anti-poaching campaign Thursday to inject the horns of rhinos with radioactive isotopes that it says are harmless for the animals but which can be detected by customs agents.

Under the collaborative project among University of the Witwatersrand, nuclear energy officials and conservationists, five rhinos were injected Thursday in what the university hopes will be the mass injection of the declining rhino population.

Last year, about 20 rhinos at a sanctuary were injected with isotopes as part of initial trials that paved the way for Thursday's launch. The radioactive isotopes even at low levels can be recognized by radiation detectors at airports and borders, which can lead to the arrest of poachers and traffickers.

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