Last Sumatran Rhino in United States Will Relocate to Indonesia to Breed
8-year-old Harapan will be sent to a breeding facility in Indonesia to possibly increase its species, which is in the brink of extinction. According to an article by National Geographic, there are only around one hundred Sumatran rhinoceros left in the world.
The alarming decrease of Sumatran rhinos has made the Cincinnati zoo decide to send the male rhino to breed in Indonesia. Harapan will mate with a female rhino, named Rosa, in the breeding facility.
"There are some people who think all of the rhinos ought to be taken into captivity," Terri Roth of Cincinnati zoo said. "There are others who still want to protect the wild populations."
"We are hoping she [Rosa] and Harapan will hit it off. He's a really fun rhino. He seems like a little bit of a pistol, quite frankly."
Roth has also expressed that she is sad that the Sumatran program will end in Cincinnati, but hopeful that Harapan will be able to "contribute to survival of the species."
Sumatran rhinos are said to have problems in reproducing its species. For instance, female rhinos tend to develop problems in reproducing if they do not get pregnant regularly. Female rhinos may turn infertile brought about by uterine cysts.
Two years ago, the Cincinnati zoo had a plan to mate Harapan with his sister, Suci. However, the female rhino died last year and was not able to produce a calf. The death of Suci makes Harapan the last Sumatran rhino in the United States.
Upon his relocation, Harapan will join Andalas, who has been transferred in Indonesia last 2007. The 13-year-old Andalas has fathered one calf in the breeding facility in Indonesia.
Sending Harapan to Indonesia needs a lot of requisites from the Indonesian and U.S. governments. However, Cincinnati zoo officials hope that the remaining requirements that have yet to be approved will soon be granted.
Approval of the requirements will give them a green light to travel Harapan across the ocean, along with the rhino's keeper and a veterinarian.
