- Also called:
- square-lipped rhinoceros
- Related Topics:
- white rhinoceros
northern white rhinoceros
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What is a northern white rhinoceros?
The northern white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) is a critically endangered subspecies of the white rhinoceros and is considered the most endangered animal on Earth. They are grazing mammals that prefer short grasses and rest under shade trees.
Northern white rhinoceroses are lighter and smaller than their southern counterparts. Males can weigh up to 1,600 kg and are larger than females. Females reach sexual maturity around 4 to 5 years, while males do not mate until after age 10. They can live up to 50 years in the wild and 55 years in captivity.
The last known male died in 2018, leaving only two females. Conservationists are working on techniques to create embryos to be carried by southern white rhinoceroses to prevent their extinction.
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Where does the northern white rhinoceros live or come from?
The northern white rhinoceros formerly lived in South Sudan and nearby areas of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, extending west into the Central African Republic. Currently, the remaining population of northern white rhinoceroses, which consists of two females, resides at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Conservationists are working on techniques to create embryos that could be carried to term by southern white rhinoceroses to prevent the northern white rhinoceros from dying out.
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What does the northern white rhinoceros look like?
The northern white rhinoceros is a critically endangered subspecies of the white rhinoceros. As a grazing mammal, it has a broad, square muzzle for eating short grasses, and it rests under shade trees. The northern white rhino tends to be paler than other rhinoceros species. They live in groups of up to 10 individuals and use their horns to fight. Male northern white rhinoceroses are noticeably larger than females.
Northern white rhinoceroses are lighter and smaller than their southern counterparts. The males can weigh up to 1,600 kg (3,500 pounds), stand nearly 2 meters (7 feet) tall, and measure between 3.7 and 4 meters (12 and 13 feet) in length. Compared to southern white rhinoceroses, they tend to have longer limbs, a shorter palate, and a flatter skull.
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Why is the northern white rhinoceros endangered?
The northern white rhinoceros is critically endangered, making it the most endangered animal on Earth. All wild populations are thought to be extinct. The last known male died in 2018, leaving only two females, a mother and daughter, representing the subspecies.
Poaching for their horns, driven by demand in traditional Chinese medicine, significantly contributed to their decline. Despite substitute agents, rhinoceros horn remains highly valued, leading to persistent poaching threats. Other factors include habitat loss and political instability in their native regions. Conservationists are using techniques like in vitro fertilization to preserve the species.
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How many northern white rhinoceroses are left in the world?
Today, there are only two northern white rhinoceroses left in the world. They are both female and reside at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. The last known male northern white rhinoceros died in 2018. Conservationists are working on techniques to create embryos using eggs from the remaining females and sperm from deceased males, with the hope that southern white rhinoceroses could carry these embryos to term.
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What efforts are being made to save the northern white rhinoceros from extinction?
The northern white rhinoceros is critically endangered; the last male died in 2018, leaving only two females. Conservationists are working to prevent their extinction by creating embryos using eggs from the remaining females and sperm collected from males. These embryos, created via in vitro fertilization, are frozen, awaiting advancements in rhino embryo transfer. Another technique involves transforming northern white rhinoceros skin cells into stem cells to produce sperm and egg cells. Due to high demand for their horns, protecting the rhinos from poaching is costly, with estimates of $1,400 per square kilometer annually to detect and deter poachers.
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northern white rhinoceros, (Ceratotherium simum cottoni), critically endangered subspecies of the white rhinoceros and the most endangered animal on Earth. The northern white rhinoceros formerly inhabited South Sudan and adjacent areas of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with its range extending westward into the Central African Republic. The remaining population, two females, resides at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Most researchers divide white rhinoceroses into two subspecies—the northern white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) and the southern white rhinoceros (C. simum simum)—but some, citing differences in comparative anatomy and DNA, suggest that the two groups are different species.
The northern white rhinoceros is a grazing mammal with a broad, square muzzle. It prefers short grasses 7–10 cm (3–4 inches) high for grazing, and it rests under shade trees. It tends to be paler than rhinoceroses of other species. It lives in groups of up to 10 individuals and fights with its horns. Male northern white rhinoceroses are noticeably larger than females.
Northern white rhinoceroses are lighter and smaller than southern white rhinoceroses. Although the largest males of both subspecies ranged between 3.7 and 4 metres (about 12 and 13 feet) in length and stood nearly 2 metres (7 feet) tall, male northern white rhinoceroses tended to be shorter in length than male southern white rhinoceroses. Males of the northern subspecies weighed up to 1,600 kg (3,500 pounds), whereas male southern white rhinoceroses can weigh as much as 2,000–2,400 kg (about 4,400–5,300 pounds). Northern white rhinoceroses tend to have longer limbs, a shorter palate, and a flatter top of the skull than their southern counterparts.
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Male and female northern white rhinoceroses became sexually mature at different times. Females reached this point between ages 4 and 5, but males did not mate until after age 10. After a successful mating took place, a single calf was produced some 16 months later. Although northern white rhinos could breed throughout the year, females gave birth to one calf roughly every 3–4 years. Northern white rhinoceroses may live as long as 50 years in the wild and up to 55 years in captivity.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources considers the white rhinoceros to be a near-threatened species, but this classification is based largely on the success of the southern white rhinoceros—whose numbers increased from about 20 animals in the early 1900s to roughly 19,600 animals in 2020. In contrast, all wild populations of the northern white rhinoceros are thought to have gone extinct. The last known remaining male northern white rhinoceros died in 2018, leaving only a mother and daughter, Najin and Fatu, to represent the subspecies.
To keep the northern white rhinoceros from dying out, conservationists are refining techniques to create embryos that could be carried to term by southern white rhinoceroses. One technique involves harvesting some of the remaining viable eggs from the remaining northern white rhinoceros females and fertilizing them with previously collected sperm from male northern white rhinoceroses. Several viable embryos, created using in vitro fertilization, have been frozen to allow advancements in rhino embryo transfer to catch up. Another technique involves changing northern white rhinoceros skin cells back into stem cells, which could be used to produce sperm cells and egg cells.