A 41 year old rhino died on Sunday in San Diego Zoo Safari Park. Her name was Nola and she was one of the four last remaining living rhinos in the world.
Nola has been living in the San Diego Zoo since 1989 but her health deteriorated rapidly so she had to be euthanized.
The white rhino had arthritis and other illnesses most likely due to her age. She was also being treated for an abcess in her hip brought about by a bacterial infection.
To treat the abcess, she had to undergo a surgery on November 13. However, her health began to decline rapidly a week ago. Because of this, she also lost her appetite and became listless. Her condition worsen over the next 24 hours. Those treating her monitored her progress carefully but it continued to downturn. She had to be euthanized.
San Diego Zoo Safari Park took Nola in along with six other femal rhinos from South Africa.
To continue the survival of the sub species, scientists are working on developing white rhino embryos. These embryos will be implanted into surrogate rhinos. They hope to have a northern white rhino calf born in San Diego Zoo by a surrogate mother within ten to fifteen years.
The park mourns the loss of one of their iconic figures. "Nola was an iconic animal, not only at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, but worldwide", a statement from the park said as reported in LA Times.
The other three white rhinos are all of age and are guarded in a Kenyan preserve.
Rhinos are being hunted for their horns by poachers. The horns are in demand for their medicinal claims. The white rhinos are no exception to the rule.
Previously, an endangered polar bear also died from a deteriorating health.
