Northern White Rhinoceros
Encyclopedia
The northern white rhinoceros, or northern square-lipped rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum cottoni), is one of the two subspecies
of the white rhinoceros
. This subspecies is a grazer in grasslands and savanna
woodlands. These animals are now feared to be extinct in the wild
. There are currently seven left in captivity. Initially, six northern white rhinoceros lived in the Dvůr Králové Zoo
in the Czech Republic. Four of the six rhinos - which are also the only reproductive animals of this subspecies - were transported to a Kenyan reserve in Africa, where scientists hope they will successfully breed and save this subspecies from extinction. One of two remaining in the Czech Republic died in late May 2011. The two other rhinos presently live at the San Diego Zoo's Safari Park in California.
Following the phylogenetic species concept, recent research has suggested the northern white rhinoceros may be an altogether different species, rather than a subspecies of white rhinoceros, in which case the correct scientific name for the former is Ceratotherium cottoni. Distinct morphological and genetic differences suggest the two proposed species have been separated for at least a million years.
, southern Chad
, southern South Sudan
, the eastern part of Central African Republic
, and northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo
.
Poachers reduced their population from 500 to 15 in the 1970s and 1980s. From the early 1990s through mid 2003, the population recovered to more than 32 animals. Surveys in 2000 indicated the population had started recovering, with 30 animals confirmed in 2000, and possibly six others. Since mid 2003, poaching had intensified and reduced the wild population to only five to 10 animals (seven actual count worldwide). The four known remaining northern white rhinos in the wild, in Garamba National Park, have not been seen in recent years, and it is feared they have been killed. If confirmed, this would make the northern white rhino extinct in the wild apart from the last chance efforts by the Ol Pejeta Conservancy to reintroduce it in a wild state.
, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
In January 2005, the government of the DRC approved a two-part plan for the translocation of five northern white rhinos from Garamba National Park to a wildlife sanctuary in Kenya. The second part commits the government and its international partners to increase conservation efforts in Garamba, so the northern white rhinos can be returned when it is safe again. The translocation did not occur, due to the death of the remaining animals.
In August 2005, ground and aerial surveys conducted under the direction of African Parks Foundation and the African Rhino Specialist Group (ARSG) had only found four animals, a solitary adult male and a group of one adult male and two adult females. In June 2008, it was reported that the species may have gone extinct in the wild, since none of these four known remaining individuals had been seen since 2006.
they are currently under, four of the six rhinos that used to live in the Dvůr Králové Zoo
in Czech Republic
were transferred to the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya
in a last bid to save their species. They arrived at the conservancy after an air and road trip on 20 December 2009, and seem to be integrating very well in their new home.
The four rhinos (2 male and 2 female), under constant watch by specialists and staff, lived in specially constructed boma
s with access to a 400 x 400 meter paddock area. After a few months allowed for acclimatization to their new surroundings, they will soon be released into a protected breeding area, where they will encounter other wildlife; this will be their final home.
To prevent any unnecessary injuries they might inflict on each other while interacting in their fenced area, and give their horns an opportunity to regrow to a natural shape (as their front horns had grown bent by much rubbing against enclosure bars in captivity), all four rhinos were sedated and their horns were sawn off. When they are released, this will also make them less vulnerable to the poaching
that drove their species to near extinction, as the horn, which is believed to have aphrodisiac
properties, is solely what the poachers are after. In place of their horns, radio transmitters have been installed to allow closer monitoring of their whereabouts.
The progress of this attempt at saving the northern white rhinoceros is documented on the initiative's own website and on the Conservancy's website. Several documentaries are in the works, including an episode of Ol Pejeta Diaries entitled "Return of the African Titans" for Oasis HD Canada fall 2010, and a follow-up half-hour episode to follow. This translocation is also the subject of a BBC Last Chance to See
special entitled "Return of the Rhino", presented by Stephen Fry
and the zoologist Mark Carwardine
; the TV program reported at the end that the two pairs of rhinos were "flirting
".
Since May 2010, two of the northern white rhinos have been moved from the initial holding pens to a much larger 700 acres (2.8 km²) semiwild enclosure. There they roam among many African animals, including several southern white rhino females and many plains animals.
and the Czech Republic
.
(EAZA) has some internationally coordinated breeding programmes of wild animals such as the European Endangered Species Programme
(EEP). There is also a white rhino EEP, which includes only three individuals, of which two are pure northern white rhinoceros subspecies. These individuals are all located in the Dvůr Králové Zoo in Dvůr Králové nad Labem
, Czech Republic
.
The male named Saut, wild born at Shambe in Sudan on 19 September 1972, died in August 2006, age 33.
The zoo holds one hybrid female. Her mother was a northern white rhino (C. s. cottoni), but her father was a southern white rhino (C. s. simum) named Arthur.
This zoo was also home to four other northern white rhinoceros, two males and two females, but they were transferred to the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya on December 19, 2009 in a joint effort by the zoo, Fauna and Flora International, Back to Africa, Lewa, and Kenya Wildlife Service
. The Czech Dvůr Králové Zoo was the only zoo in which northern white rhinos produced offspring. As the last offspring came to the world in 2000, the zoo management decided to stimulate the rhinos' sexual appetite by putting them back into their natural habitat. The agreement with the Kenyan government expects the rhinos never to be returned to the Czech Republic
. A television program about these events reported "flirting
" among these rhinos after release in Kenya.
Those four are:http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/pejeta-rhino.html#cr
, has two northern white rhinos, both of which were wild-caught. They are a female named Nola and a male named Angalifu. One other female, named Nadi, which was not behaviorally receptive, died on May 30, 2007.
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of the white rhinoceros
White Rhinoceros
The White Rhinoceros or Square-lipped rhinoceros is one of the five species of rhinoceros that still exist. It has a wide mouth used for grazing and is the most social of all rhino species...
. This subspecies is a grazer in grasslands and savanna
Savanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
woodlands. These animals are now feared to be extinct in the wild
Extinct in the Wild
Extinct in the Wild is a conservation status assigned to species or lower taxa, the only known living members of which are being kept in captivity or as a naturalized population outside its historic range.-Examples:...
. There are currently seven left in captivity. Initially, six northern white rhinoceros lived in the Dvůr Králové Zoo
Dvur Králové Zoo
Dvůr Králové Zoo is a zoo located in Dvůr Králové nad Labem, Czech Republic.Dvůr Králové Zoo is a member of the Czech and Slovak Union of Zoological Gardens , founded in 1990, with 15 Czech and 4 Slovak member Zoos. From 1995 to 2010, Dvůr Králové Zoo was member of the European Association of Zoos...
in the Czech Republic. Four of the six rhinos - which are also the only reproductive animals of this subspecies - were transported to a Kenyan reserve in Africa, where scientists hope they will successfully breed and save this subspecies from extinction. One of two remaining in the Czech Republic died in late May 2011. The two other rhinos presently live at the San Diego Zoo's Safari Park in California.
Following the phylogenetic species concept, recent research has suggested the northern white rhinoceros may be an altogether different species, rather than a subspecies of white rhinoceros, in which case the correct scientific name for the former is Ceratotherium cottoni. Distinct morphological and genetic differences suggest the two proposed species have been separated for at least a million years.
Wild population
The northern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) formerly ranged over parts of northwestern UgandaUganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
, southern Chad
Chad
Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...
, southern South Sudan
South Sudan
South Sudan , officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country located in the Sahel region of northeastern Africa. It is also part of the North Africa UN sub-region. Its current capital is Juba, which is also its largest city; the capital city is planned to be moved to the more...
, the eastern part of Central African Republic
Central African Republic
The Central African Republic , is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It borders Chad in the north, Sudan in the north east, South Sudan in the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo in the south, and Cameroon in the west. The CAR covers a land area of about ,...
, and northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
.
Poachers reduced their population from 500 to 15 in the 1970s and 1980s. From the early 1990s through mid 2003, the population recovered to more than 32 animals. Surveys in 2000 indicated the population had started recovering, with 30 animals confirmed in 2000, and possibly six others. Since mid 2003, poaching had intensified and reduced the wild population to only five to 10 animals (seven actual count worldwide). The four known remaining northern white rhinos in the wild, in Garamba National Park, have not been seen in recent years, and it is feared they have been killed. If confirmed, this would make the northern white rhino extinct in the wild apart from the last chance efforts by the Ol Pejeta Conservancy to reintroduce it in a wild state.
Garamba National Park
The last surviving population of wild northern white rhinos were located in Garamba National ParkGaramba National Park
Garamba National Park, located in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Africa, was established in 1938. One of Africa's oldest National parks, it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980. Garamba is the home to the world's last known wild population of Northern White Rhinoceros...
, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
In January 2005, the government of the DRC approved a two-part plan for the translocation of five northern white rhinos from Garamba National Park to a wildlife sanctuary in Kenya. The second part commits the government and its international partners to increase conservation efforts in Garamba, so the northern white rhinos can be returned when it is safe again. The translocation did not occur, due to the death of the remaining animals.
In August 2005, ground and aerial surveys conducted under the direction of African Parks Foundation and the African Rhino Specialist Group (ARSG) had only found four animals, a solitary adult male and a group of one adult male and two adult females. In June 2008, it was reported that the species may have gone extinct in the wild, since none of these four known remaining individuals had been seen since 2006.
Ol Pejeta Conservancy
While technically not in a totally wild state because of the surveillanceSurveillance
Surveillance is the monitoring of the behavior, activities, or other changing information, usually of people. It is sometimes done in a surreptitious manner...
they are currently under, four of the six rhinos that used to live in the Dvůr Králové Zoo
Dvur Králové Zoo
Dvůr Králové Zoo is a zoo located in Dvůr Králové nad Labem, Czech Republic.Dvůr Králové Zoo is a member of the Czech and Slovak Union of Zoological Gardens , founded in 1990, with 15 Czech and 4 Slovak member Zoos. From 1995 to 2010, Dvůr Králové Zoo was member of the European Association of Zoos...
in Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
were transferred to the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
in a last bid to save their species. They arrived at the conservancy after an air and road trip on 20 December 2009, and seem to be integrating very well in their new home.
The four rhinos (2 male and 2 female), under constant watch by specialists and staff, lived in specially constructed boma
Boma (enclosure)
A boma is a livestock enclosure, a stockade or kind of fort, or a district government office. The term is used in many parts of eastern, central and southern Africa and is incorporated into many African languages as well as colonial varieties of English, French and German.As a livestock enclosure,...
s with access to a 400 x 400 meter paddock area. After a few months allowed for acclimatization to their new surroundings, they will soon be released into a protected breeding area, where they will encounter other wildlife; this will be their final home.
To prevent any unnecessary injuries they might inflict on each other while interacting in their fenced area, and give their horns an opportunity to regrow to a natural shape (as their front horns had grown bent by much rubbing against enclosure bars in captivity), all four rhinos were sedated and their horns were sawn off. When they are released, this will also make them less vulnerable to the poaching
Poaching
Poaching is the illegal taking of wild plants or animals contrary to local and international conservation and wildlife management laws. Violations of hunting laws and regulations are normally punishable by law and, collectively, such violations are known as poaching.It may be illegal and in...
that drove their species to near extinction, as the horn, which is believed to have aphrodisiac
Aphrodisiac
An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire. The name comes from Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of sexuality and love. Throughout history, many foods, drinks, and behaviors have had a reputation for making sex more attainable and/or pleasurable...
properties, is solely what the poachers are after. In place of their horns, radio transmitters have been installed to allow closer monitoring of their whereabouts.
The progress of this attempt at saving the northern white rhinoceros is documented on the initiative's own website and on the Conservancy's website. Several documentaries are in the works, including an episode of Ol Pejeta Diaries entitled "Return of the African Titans" for Oasis HD Canada fall 2010, and a follow-up half-hour episode to follow. This translocation is also the subject of a BBC Last Chance to See
Last Chance to See (TV series)
Last Chance to See is a wildlife documentary first broadcast on BBC Two in the United Kingdom during September and October 2009. The series is a follow-up of the radio series, also called Last Chance to See in which Douglas Adams and Mark Carwardine set out to find endangered animals...
special entitled "Return of the Rhino", presented by Stephen Fry
Stephen Fry
Stephen John Fry is an English actor, screenwriter, author, playwright, journalist, poet, comedian, television presenter and film director, and a director of Norwich City Football Club. He first came to attention in the 1981 Cambridge Footlights Revue presentation "The Cellar Tapes", which also...
and the zoologist Mark Carwardine
Mark Carwardine
Mark Carwardine is a zoologist who achieved widespread recognition for his Last Chance to See conservation expeditions with Douglas Adams, first aired on BBC Radio 4 in 1990. Since then he has become a leading and outspoken conservationist, and a prolific broadcaster, columnist and...
; the TV program reported at the end that the two pairs of rhinos were "flirting
Flirting
Flirting is a playful, romantic, or sexual overture by one person to another subtly indicating an interest in a deeper relationship with the other person, and can involve verbal communication as well as body language...
".
Since May 2010, two of the northern white rhinos have been moved from the initial holding pens to a much larger 700 acres (2.8 km²) semiwild enclosure. There they roam among many African animals, including several southern white rhino females and many plains animals.
Captive population
The fully captive northern white rhino population consists of only three animals, and is maintained in two zoological institutions in the U.S.A.United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
.
Dvůr Králové Zoo
The European Association of Zoos and AquariaEuropean Association of Zoos and Aquaria
-External links:*...
(EAZA) has some internationally coordinated breeding programmes of wild animals such as the European Endangered Species Programme
European Endangered Species Programme
The European Endangered Species Programme or EEP is the most intensive type of population management for a species kept in European Association of Zoos and Aquaria zoos...
(EEP). There is also a white rhino EEP, which includes only three individuals, of which two are pure northern white rhinoceros subspecies. These individuals are all located in the Dvůr Králové Zoo in Dvůr Králové nad Labem
Dvur Králové nad Labem
Dvůr Králové nad Labem river valley.Dvůr Králové was first mentioned in 1270. It was a dowry town, owned by the King's wife and responsible for her expenses when her husband died. Today, it is a center of the textile and machinery industries....
, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
.
- Nesari, a female wild born at Shambe, SudanSudanSudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, on 19 September 1972, died in 2011. - Nasi, a female born at Dvůr Králové Zoo, Czech Republic, on 11 November 1977, died in 2008.
- Nabire, a female born at Dvůr Králové Zoo, Czech Republic, on 15 November 1983, is still there.
The male named Saut, wild born at Shambe in Sudan on 19 September 1972, died in August 2006, age 33.
The zoo holds one hybrid female. Her mother was a northern white rhino (C. s. cottoni), but her father was a southern white rhino (C. s. simum) named Arthur.
This zoo was also home to four other northern white rhinoceros, two males and two females, but they were transferred to the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya on December 19, 2009 in a joint effort by the zoo, Fauna and Flora International, Back to Africa, Lewa, and Kenya Wildlife Service
Kenya Wildlife Service
The Kenya Wildlife Service, otherwise known by the initialism KWS, is a Kenyan state corporation that was established in 1990 to conserve and manage Kenya’s wildlife...
. The Czech Dvůr Králové Zoo was the only zoo in which northern white rhinos produced offspring. As the last offspring came to the world in 2000, the zoo management decided to stimulate the rhinos' sexual appetite by putting them back into their natural habitat. The agreement with the Kenyan government expects the rhinos never to be returned to the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
. A television program about these events reported "flirting
Flirting
Flirting is a playful, romantic, or sexual overture by one person to another subtly indicating an interest in a deeper relationship with the other person, and can involve verbal communication as well as body language...
" among these rhinos after release in Kenya.
Those four are:http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/pejeta-rhino.html#cr
- Sudan, a 35-year-old male, who was caught from the wild in SudanSudanSudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
at 3 years old. - Suni, a male, was born in captivity in 1980. He had mated while in zoos. Some of his sperm has been collected and frozen.
- Najin, a female, was born in captivity in 1989. She is Suni's half-sister.
- Fatu, a female, was born in captivity in 2000. She is the daughter of Najin.
San Diego Zoo Safari Park
The San Diego Zoo Safari Park in San Diego, CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, has two northern white rhinos, both of which were wild-caught. They are a female named Nola and a male named Angalifu. One other female, named Nadi, which was not behaviorally receptive, died on May 30, 2007.
Further reading
- http://www.northernwhiterhinolastchance.com/Home_Page.html