There Are Now Just 5 Northern White Rhinos Left In The World Fun Love
The death of Angalifu at San Diego Zoo over the weekend brings the rare rhino population, decimated by poachers, closer to extinction.
Angalifu is shown in this Oct. 21, 2014, photo provided by the San Diego Zoo.
Ken Bohn / AP Photo/San Diego Zoo
The male rhino was receiving veterinary care at the time for a variety of "age-related" conditions, according to the park.
Angalifu's death means there are just five known northern white rhinos in the world – one elderly female at the San Diego Zoo, one at a zoo in Czech Republic, and three others at a national park in Africa.
"Angalifu's death is a tremendous loss to all of us," Randy Rieches, curator of mammals for the San Diego Zoo, said in a statement. "Not only because he was well beloved here at the park, but also because his death brings this wonderful species one step closer to extinction."
Angalifu's cause of death was not released, although the zoo said he was suffering from "age-related" issues.
Ken Bohn / Reuters
The white rhino is the second-largest land mammal — only the African elephant ranks larger, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
In 1960, there were 2,000 northern white rhinos, which once roamed southern Chad, the Central African Republic, southwestern Sudan, northeastern Zaire, Democratic Republic of Congo, and northwestern Uganda.
But driven by a lucrative black market for rhino horn, poaching decimated the population. By 1984, just 15 northern white rhinos remained, all of them in Congo's Garamba National Park, according to the WWF.
Under strict protections, the population rebounded to roughly 30 by 1993. But by 2004, the population had shrunk to between 17 and 22. It never recovered.
via
No comments:
Post a Comment