After the recent death of Angalifu, a male Northern White Rhinoceros at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, the species is near extinction. There are only five others, all in captivity.
The zoo boasts the most successful captive breeding program for rhinos on the whole planet; however with a single elderly female at the park, the extinction of the second-largest land mammal may happen within our lifetime.
Our source quoted the World Wildlife Fund:
Back in 1960, there were more than 2,000 northern whites, according to the World Wildlife Fund, but poachers obliterated the population and by 1984, there were about 15 of the rhinos left of the original 2000. By 1993 through aggressive conservation efforts, their population doubled to 30. But heavily armed poaching gangs have now virtually annihilated the species, the WWF says.
How Angalifu died and facts about the species can be found on colindurrant.co.uk, including one tiny glimmer of hope for the species…
News to Share Brief source: “Northern White Rhino is Five Rhinos away from Extinction” on colindurrant.co.uk
Image (license CC BY-ND 2.0) by Heather Paul on Flickr
Image information:
Angalifu the Northern White Rhinoceros male (Ceratotherium simum cottoni)
The northern white rhinoceros, or northern square-lipped rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum cottoni), is one of the two subspecies of the white rhinoceros. These animals are extinct in the wild and there are currently seven left in captivity – two at the San Diego Safari Park.
This is Angalifu, a male at the San Diego Safari Park in Escondido, CA. Angalifu is one of three male Northern White Rhino’s in the world. Unfortunately this species of rhino will be extinct in our lifetime.
Photographed at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, CA
