In the early 1990s, conservation groups encouraged substituting rhino horn with the horn of the saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica, Bovidae)—a well-intentioned plan that had disastrous results.28 Over a million saiga antelopes roamed Russia and Kazakhstan in 1993, but fewer than 30,000 (mostly hornless females) remained by 2003 due to rampant poaching and use in TCM. After experiencing one of the most rapid and dramatic population crashes of any mammal, the saiga antelope was added to the Red List of critically endangered species in 2002, and TCM practitioners are now actively discouraged from using saiga antelope horn, as well.

During the 1990s, Paul But, PhD, then a professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, performed experiments in rats to test the effectiveness of rhino horn and some of its alternatives.8 His study found that rhino horn and high doses of water buffalo horn could reduce fever and counter toxins, as could a combination of herbs without any type of horn. In a 1993 paper, the Chinese Association of Medicine and Philosophy recommended Rehmannia glutinosa (Scrophulariaceae) and Coptis chinensis (Ranunculaceae) as acceptable botanical substitutes for rhino horn, based on Dr. But’s study.29

The 2002 survey of herbal practitioners featured in Mending the Web of Life, mentioned earlier in this article, noted potential botanical replacements for rhino horn.14 Of the 83 respondents who provided suggestions for replacing rhino horn, the second most cited suggestion (after water buffalo horn) was sheng di huang (Rehmannia glutinosa). Respondents also recommended Uncaria rhynchophylla (Rubiaceae) as a potential alternative for “clearing heat and arresting tremors”—a specific action assigned to rhino horn.

For the 2006 report commissioned by DEFRA and IFAW, also mentioned previously, both rhino horn and plants considered as having functions similar to rhino horn were investigated through assays.11 Rhino horn did not demonstrate anti-bacterial or anti-inflammatory properties through testing, but most of the herbs selected as possible alternatives demonstrated some anti-bacterial activity and/or potential anti-inflammatory properties.

The report identified 9 potential botanical alternatives to rhino horn, based on tests conducted by the authors and evidence from published TCM and other scientific literature: Rehmannia glutinosa root, Scrophularia ningpoensis (Scrophulariaceae) root, Paeonia suffruticosa (Paeoniaceae) root,

P. veitchii or P. lactiflora root, Arnebia euchroma (Boraginaceae) root, Isatais indigotica (Brassicaceae) root, Lonicera japonica (Caprifoliaceae) flower bud, Forsythia suspensa (Oleaceae) fruit, and Salvia miltiorrhiza (Lamiaceae) root. After the early 1990s, some rhino populations—primarily African rhino species—grew substantially. White rhino populations increased from 7,095 in 1995 to 17,500 by the end of 2007, and black rhino populations increased from 2,410 in 1995 to 4,240 by the end of 2007.27,30