Race against time: Fight to save the Northern White Rhinos
Efforts to save them have been underway for years, and scientists are now closer than ever to a breakthrough.
In the shadow of Mount Kenya, two rhinos graze peacefully, unaware they are the last of their kind. Najin and her daughter, Fatu, are the only remaining Northern White Rhinos on Earth.
The clock is ticking to prevent their species from vanishing forever.
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Efforts to save them have been underway for years, and scientists are now closer than ever to a breakthrough.
As reported by AFP, with no surviving males and neither Najin nor Fatu able to carry a pregnancy, the only hope lies in in-vitro fertilisation (IVF). Fatu's eggs are retrieved at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya and sent to Europe, where they are fertilised with sperm from deceased northern white rhinos.
There are now 36 fertilised embryos ready for implantation, according to Jan Stejskal, project coordinator for BioRescue.
"We hope to achieve the first successful pregnancy with the northern rhino embryo this year," he said. "But I cannot promise it."
According to AFP, scientists plan to implant the embryos into a female southern white rhino, a closely related subspecies.
A year ago, a breakthrough was achieved when a surrogate became pregnant with a southern white rhino embryo, proving IVF can work. But the excitement was short-lived before the pregnancy was detected, the surrogate died from a bacterial infection.
The loss of a sterilised male used to assist in identifying when females are ready for implantation added to the challenges.
Despite the setbacks, researchers remain determined. Other projects could help as well, including a Japanese effort using stem cells to create new northern white rhino eggs and sperm, potentially increasing genetic diversity.
Oxford University is also working on retrieving immature eggs from the ovaries of dead rhinos, a technique that could be used even after Najin and Fatu are gone.
But for now, time is of the essence. Scientists hope to produce a calf while Najin and Fatu are still alive to teach it the behaviours of a Northern White Rhino.
The success rate of IVF in rhinos remains uncertain, as only a handful of attempts have been made. A pregnancy could take up to 18 months, leaving many obstacles ahead.
"We will save them." Suzannah Williams, leading Oxford's effort, believes it's a matter of "when, not if." Stejskal remains hopeful.
However, some conservationists are skeptical. Jo Shaw, CEO of Save the Rhino International, warns that even if a northern white rhino is born, genetic diversity may be too low to restore the species.
She believes efforts should focus on critically endangered Javan and Sumatran rhinos, both of which have fewer than 50 individuals remaining.
But for those working closely with Najin and Fatu, the mission is clear. Zacharia Mutai, their main caretaker at Ol Pejeta, believes humans have a duty to reverse the damage caused by poaching. He was there when Sudan, the last male northern white rhino, died in 2018.
"The birth of a new baby would be a cause for world celebration. And I will be looking after the baby," Mutai said.
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