By Stephanie Pappas, Live Science
Contributor | March 1, 2018 02:05pm ET
The last male northern white rhinoceros is
sick.
Sudan, a 45-year-old rhino and the last male
of his subspecies (Ceratotherium simum
cottoni), is ailing in the wake of two infections on his back right leg,
according to Ol Pejeta Conservancy, the wildlife sanctuary in Kenya where the
last three northern white rhinoceroses on the planet live.
"At the advanced age of 45, his health
has begun deteriorating, and his future is not looking bright," Sudan's
caregivers posted on Ol Pejeta's Facebook page. Rhinos usually live between about 30 and 40
years, according to a follow-up comment by the caregivers, and Sudan's problems
are age-related. [In Photos:
The Last 5 Northern White Rhinos]
Last male northern white rhino Sudan's health improves slightly
6 March 2018
The world's last surviving male northern white rhino has rallied slightly, days after his carers said his future was "not looking bright".
Sudan, who lives at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya, enjoyed a mud bath in the rain on Monday, a spokesman told the BBC.
However, they were still not holding out "big hopes" for a miracle recovery.
The 45-year-old is one of just three remaining northern white rhinos and is the only male.
Read all the latest news from Africa today
Attempts to mate him with the two surviving female rhinos failed, however, and an account was created for him on the dating app Tinder last year, not to find love, but to help fund the development of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) for rhinos.
The move won him fans across the world - many of whom were devastated on hearing news of his "ailing condition" last Thursday.
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