Imagine if you are the only human left on the earth and the future of humans depended on you! That’s the kind of pressure Sudan faces, for he is the world’s last male northern white rhinoceros.

Sudan was born in 1973, which means he turns 42 this year. He was born in a region of Sudan named Shambe, hence his name. When he was three years old, he was taken to the Dvur Kralove Zoo in the Czech Republic. In 2009, he was one of the four rhinos trans-located to Kenya’s Ol Pejeta Conservancy, which Sudan now calls home.

They were moved here in an attempt to breed them in a ‘semi-wild’ environment, since they were no longer breeding in the zoo. After the death of northern white rhino males — Suni from Ol Pejeta and Angalifu from the San Diego Zoo Safari park — Sudan is the last male northern white rhino left in the world.

Unlike humans, at his age, Sudan who belongs to the most critically endangered rhino sub-species, is quite old. That is because rhinos have a life expectancy of 40-50 years. But he lives a life that very few humans can boast of — he has armed rangers guarding him 24 hours a day at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, as he is in danger of being poached. Officials have also removed his horn to make him less alluring to poachers.

The northern white rhino population was spread over parts of Uganda, Chad, Sudan, Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo. By 1960, there were more than 2,000 but their numbers drastically dwindled due to excessive hunting for their horn, hide and meat.

Today there are only five northern white rhinoceros in the world, out of which four are female. As there is only one male left, and he is old, experts are now placing their hopes on in-vitro fertilization, an artificial method of impregnating the female northern white rhinos, before time runs out.

With inputs from Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya.

Domino effect

The disappearance of any species from the ecosystem will cause a domino effect that will affect us. The rhinos are responsible for maintaining a landscape of different edible plants by selective eating and fertilizing them with their dung. With their disappearance, the natural green landscape will shrink affecting the herbivore population. With fewer herbivore species to prey on, the population of large predators like lions and tigers will also begin to dwindle. Eventually, besides ecological imbalance, the African economy which largely depends on wildlife tourism, will also take a hit.

The Ol Pejeta Conservancy occupies approximately 360 square kilometers of African savannah within Kenya’s Laikipia district. It is home to 106 black rhinos and 23 white rhinos. All the ‘big five’ animals call Ol Pejeta home, and its predator densities are the highest in the region, second only to the Maasai Mara.

At the beginning of this year, the conservancy set up a campaign called ‘Keep Rhino Rangers Safe’ to raise money for the men who guard Sudan 24 hours a day (www.ketto.org/olpejeta). This campaign garnered international media attention and went viral on social media. To raise more awareness for Sudan, they also set up an accompanying internet campaign known as #LastMaleStanding.

Guard speaks:

Simon Irungu who is the armed team commander and Kenya Police reservist at Ol Pejeta Conservancy shares what it takes to protect the northern white rhinos from poachers.

An average day saving rhinos:

“A police reservist is on call at all hours of the day. During daily night-time patrols I assign rangers on the armed team patrol areas and equip them with all they need like ammunition, night-vision goggles and GPS units. We set out for patrol at dusk and return to camp by morning. We often find ourselves in the line of fire to protect animals – it is part of the job, especially while foiling attempted poaching attacks. It’s our duty to apprehend any individuals found on the conservancy without authorisation and to deal with any suspicious activity that may jeopardise the security of our animals.”

Hardest part of the job:

“We’re a team of 32 individuals charged with guarding over 90,000 acres of the conservancy. Planning and preventing attacks is challenging. With the rising demand for rhino horn and ivory, we face many poaching attempts and while we manage to counter a large number of these, we often risk our lives in our line of duty. In spite of the above factors, our conservancy is among the least damaged by poaching now, thanks to a dedicated and united team and the support of our management and beyond.”

Courtesy: World of Animals