A white rhinoSudan, the last male white rhino left in the entire world, is under 24-hour protection by armed guards at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in central Kenya, CNN reports. The entire species depends on his ability to reproduce with the two other females there.
Sudan, however, is no spring chicken. At 42, he may no longer be able to “naturally mount and mate with a female,” the conservancy’s deputy veterinarian George Paul told CNN. He also has a low sperm count.
To make matters worse, the older of the two females has weak legs and may not be able to support Sudan. The conservancy has been trying to coax a conception, but so far, it’s had no luck.
Usually, species can’t interbreed. For example, a northern white rhino can’t mate with a black rhino. There’s a chance, however, that a northern white rhino could mate with a southern white rhino, the only rhino species not on the endangered list.
If the entire population disappears from the globe, the result could spell catastrophe for African savannas — and potentially the whole world.
Poaching and habitat loss seriously threaten the rhino population. In 2013, 1,004 rhinos were poached in South Africa. That’s a terrible number considering only about 20,000 Southern white rhinos and 5,000 black rhinos still inhabit South Africa. Other species of rhino fare even worse:
