The world is creeping closer to the extinction of northern white rhinos, with the death of a 41-year-old female that had been living at San Diego Safari Park since 1989
Nola came to the Safari Park in 1989 from the Dvur Kralove Zoo in the Czech Republic as part of a breeding program.
California: One of the world’s last remaining northern white rhinos died Sunday in Southern California, officials said. Nola, a 41-year-old northern white rhino at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, had been dealing with health issues for months before her condition severely worsened last weekend. Her team of caretakers decided to euthanise her on Sunday morning.
Nola came to the Safari Park in 1989 from the Dvur Kralove Zoo in the Czech Republic as part of a breeding program. Representation Pic/AFP
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“We’re absolutely devastated by this loss, but resolved to fight even harder to #EndExtinction. We ask you to join us in that fight,” the park said in a statement on its Facebook page.
Nola’s death leaves only three northern white rhinos in the world. The other three, a male and two females, are under 24-hour guard at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya.
Nola had surgery on November 13 to drain the abscess from her body but her health began to deteriorate about a week ago; her appetite faltered and she became listless. Her condition got worse over the past 24 hours and vets decided they had to put her down, according to the zoo.
Bad year
It has been a hard year for the sub-species as well as those trying to save them. In December, the park’s other northern white rhino, a male named Angalifu, died of cancer at age 44. In July, Nabire, a female at the Dvur Kralove Zoo in the Czech Republic, died at age 32. A record 1,215 white rhinos were killed in South Africa in 2015. Nola was caught in Sudan when she was about two years old and taken to the Dvur Kralove Zoo to be part of a breeding program in 1989.
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