{The last male northern white rhino on earth has joined the dating app Tinder – as part of fundraising efforts by conservationists to save the species.}<\/p>\n
At 43 (or 100 in rhino years), Sudan is described as “one of a kind”, who likes to eat grass and chill in the mud.<\/p>\n
Attempts to mate the animal – who lives in Kenya – with only two surviving females have failed.<\/p>\n
Conservationists say they need to raise $10m (\u00a37.8m) to develop in vitro fertilisation (IVF) methods for rhinos.<\/p>\n
“It’s never ever has been done in rhinos before,” Richard Vigne, head of Ol Pejeta Conservancy, told the BBC.<\/p>\n
“This is a 10-year programme to recover that species.<\/p>\n
“We’ll hopefully keep him alive as long as we can – but we are in a race against time if we are going to recover this species.”<\/p>\n
On Tinder, Sudan’s profile reads: “I don’t mean to be too forward, but the fate of my species literally depends on me.<\/p>\n
“I perform well under pressure… 6ft (183cm) tall and 5,000lb (2,268kg) if it matters.”
\nIn a joint campaign launched by Ol Pejeta Conservancy and Tinder, app users now have an option to donate when they open Sudan’s profile.<\/p>\n
Scientists in several countries are currently testing how to use IVF techniques on the two northern white rhino females.<\/p>\n
They also do not rule out using Sudan’s sperm for IVF with southern white rhinos – although they are a distinct species. Still the crossing option would be better than extinction, they say.<\/p>\n
Sudan – who is often described as “the most eligible bachelor in the world” – has his own team of armed bodyguards, who are protecting him around the clock.<\/p>\n
Countless TV shows have been made about the ageing animal.<\/p>\n
Northern whites are the only rhinos that can survive in the wild in central Africa.<\/p>\n
But they have been hunted into near extinction by poachers who target their horns.<\/p>\n
Source:BBC <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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