With only two female northern white rhinos left in the world, the subspecies is now on its way to becoming extinct. The northern white rhinoceros, one of two subspecies of white rhinoceroses, is now…
With only two female northern white rhinos left in the world, the subspecies is now on its way to becoming extinct.
It is with great sadness that Ol Pejeta Conservancy and the Dvůr Králové Zoo announce that Sudan, the world’s last male northern white rhino, age 45, died at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya on March 19th, 2018 (yesterday). #SudanForever #TheLoneBachelorGone #Only2Left pic.twitter.com/1ncvmjZTy1
— Ol Pejeta (@OlPejeta) March 20,2018
All previous efforts to naturally impregnate the females have failed. Sudan had suffered from low sperm count, which made natural procreation very difficult. To make matters worse, Najin, the only female rhino ready to conceive, was too weak to support a mounted male. Conservationists previously attempted to raise $9 million to fund a fertility treatment for Sudan. To raise awareness and to acquire funding, the last male white rhino was listed on the Tinder app as the “most eligible bachelor in the world.”
All five of the remaining rhino species are considered to be endangered. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List identifies Black, Javan, and Sumatran rhinos as critically endangered. With the death of Sudan, the southern white rhino will likely be the only subspecies left with only around 20,000 animals in the wild. Poaching is still the biggest threat to the rhino species, with the majority of the rhino horn trade happening in China and Vietnam.
