There were once tens of thousands of the northern white rhinoceros roaming across Africa.
The story of how humans hunted this species for its horn, causing the population to dwindle to 2500 by the 1960s and only 30 by the end of the 20th century, is a grim tale of greed and myth. Vietnam's appetite for rhino horn drove the price to $300,000 in this decade, according to The Atlantic. Rhino horn is said to increase virility, cure cancer, or just make an expensive cocktail. While the cocktails are indeed expensive, there is no truth to the other tales. Truth didn't stop the slaughter.
Although the last male northern white rhino had to be put down in March due to illness, leaving behind two aging female rhinos, human ingenuity could yet save the species, according to the UK Observer.
Scientists intend to use a combination of in-vitro fertilization (IVF), stem cell science and gene editing to bring the northern white rhino back from the brink of extinction. Part of the plan, explains conservation researcher, Jan Stejskal of the Czech Republic, could involve thawing frozen samples of semen preserved from white males that once lived in zoos across Europe. In a process that could start later this year, the semen would be used to fertilize eggs taken from the last females of the species to create embryos.
There will, however, be a number of challenges to overcome. The two remaining living white rhinos, Najin and Fatu, are old females and their egg quality is poor. Scientists will also need to perfect the technique of implanting embryos into surrogate mothers before there is a high chance of success. According to Professor Cesare Galli from Bologna University, they are also considering using the sperm of the northern white rhino to fertilize the eggs of the female southern white rhino to essentially create a hybrid.