The Endangered White Rhino

The white rhino are renowned for their size and their square upper lip; they also have two horns which distinguishes them from black rhinos. They were once a common species in Africa but risked extinction in the 19^th century before repopulating. A century of management and protection helped this rejuvenation but they then became subject to poachers, as powdered horn is believed to be a medicine in Asian, which led to the extinction of Northern white rhinos in the wild. Four of these rhinos remained in captivity but 41-year-old Nola has now been euthanized after failing to recover from a bacterial infection, worsened by her old age. While Nola was held at a zoo in San Diego, the remaining three in the species are at a conservancy in Kenya. The San Diego Zoo are now planning to use Southern White Rhinos as surrogate mothers for northern white rhino embryos.

Biology students should think about how charities and conservation projects could help increase the numbers of white rhinos, along with other endangered species. They should look into how successful using a sub-species is for surrogacy, and the potential problems with such operations.

Applicants wanting to study Politics should think about the involvement of local and national governments in protecting endangered species.