NAIROBI, March 6 (Xinhua) -- The project to rescue the northern white rhino from extinction through artificial fertilization remains on track, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said on Thursday.
Now in its seventh year, the project employs advanced reproductive technologies, including in vitro fertilization and surrogacy and is overseen by the KWS in collaboration with international donors and research partners, the agency said in a statement issued in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.
Kenya is home to the world's last two remaining female northern white rhinos, housed at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Laikipia County under 24-hour surveillance. The death of "Sudan," the last surviving male northern white rhino, at the conservancy in 2018 intensified efforts to revive the species through artificial insemination.
Since 2019, a team of local and international scientists has retrieved more than a dozen eggs from one of the two remaining female rhinos. These eggs were airlifted to Europe for fertilization using sperm from a deceased northern white rhino bull named Suni.
So far, three embryos have been successfully created -- two using Suni's sperm and one using semen from another deceased northern white rhino, Angalifu, who died in 2014 in San Diego, the United States.
According to the KWS, the transfer of embryos to two southern white female rhinos, identified as surrogate mothers and sheltered at Ol Pejeta Conservancy, has been seamless.
In late February, scientists and veterinarians conducted a sterility check on "Jomo," a southern white rhino teaser bull responsible for detecting estrus in the surrogate mothers ahead of embryo transfer. Additionally, a pregnancy test was conducted on "Daly," one of the selected surrogate mothers, to confirm her suitability for carrying an embryo to term, the KWS said.
The KWS also expressed hope that through advanced reproductive technologies, conservationists will reintroduce the majestic northern white rhino to its natural habitat. ■
