The International Rhino Foundation announced today that Sumatran rhino, Ratu, has lost her first pregnancy.
The first breeding between captive-born Sumatran rhino Andalas and his Indonesian mate, Ratu, has sadly ended in a loss of the pregnancy. However, rhino experts say that it is not unusual for a rhino to lose her first pregnancy, and captive breeding efforts for the critically endangered Sumatran rhino will continue.
Sumatran rhinos Andalas and Ratu mated after three years of gradual introductions at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Indonesia’s Way Kambas National Park. In February 2010, an ultrasound revealed that Ratu was pregnant, but recent examinations failed to find an embryo.
Dr. Susie Ellis, executive director of the International Rhino Foundation, explained that this is not out of the ordinary, and is hopeful for future breeding plans.
This is not unusual for a rhino’s first pregnancy. While we are saddened by this loss, the fact that we achieved a pregnancy confirms that our work with the Sumatran rhino breeding program is progressing. Ratu and Andalas are healthy and have produced one pregnancy, so we are optimistic that success will soon be achieved.
Sumatran rhino expert Dr. Terri Roth, whose extensive reproductive biology knowledge was behind three births at the Cincinnati Zoo, added that Emi lost her first pregnancies during the breeding program.
The fact that we achieved a pregnancy after only the third mating between Andalas and Ratu is still a victory. Emi, Andalas’ mother, lost a number of pregnancies early in gestation before she carried one to term. Early pregnancy loss in rhinos appears to be fairly common, but we have the advantage of being able to draw on our experience with Emi to help Ratu sustain her next pregnancy.
Sumatran rhino conservation
The International Rhino Foundation, in partnership with the Rhino Foundation of Indonesia, operates the 250-acre Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary under an agreement with the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry. Five Sumatran rhinos currently reside at the Sanctuary, where they receive the benefits of state-of-the-art veterinary care while being able to roam in their natural rainforest habitat. The total Sumatran rhino population is estimated to be only 200.
According to Dr. Ellis, the IRF and Rhino Foundation of Indonesia are working to increase Sumatran rhino numbers in captivity, while protecting wild Sumatran rhinos.
Captive breeding is one part of an integrated Sumatran rhino conservation strategy. Our focus, along with our local partner, the Rhino Foundation of Indonesia, is to protect rhinos in the wild as well as to bolster the population through captive breeding. IRF also funds anti-poaching units in three Indonesian national parks.
Thanks to those programs, there has been no rhino poaching in the last five years, and poaching of other large vertebrates which share rhino habitat has decreased significantly. Saving this species is a balancing act. We must care for the wild population and also try to breed as many animals as possible in captivity in order to save it.
Indonesia is home to two critically endangered Asian rhino species, the Sumatran rhino and the Javan rhino. Conservationists are hopeful that solid success with Sumatran rhinos may provide a model for development of a similar program for critically endangered Javan rhinos. Although the Javan rhino population is stable for now, it numbers no more than 50 individuals in the wild, and there is no insurance population in captivity.
Asian superstitions about rhino horn are fueling rhino poaching crisis
Sumatran and Javan rhino habitats are threatened by rampant development, human encroachment, and the proliferation of palm oil plantations. However, the biggest threat to rhinos is illegal killing for their horns. Both Asian and African rhino populations are under extreme pressure from a 15-year high in poaching for rhino horn.
Although scientific analysis has confirmed rhino horn actually has no medicinal effect on humans, widespread superstitions about rhino horn as a “remedy” for common ailments still persist in southeast and east Asia.
Source: International Rhino Foundation
Image: Photo © N. Van Strien/International Rhino Foundation
See Rhino Horn is Not Medicine for more information.