SAN DIEGO, N.C. -- Oh, baby! At least that’s what everyone is saying at the San Diego Zoo now that a White Rhino is pregnant.
What makes this a special pregnancy is the fact the rhino was artificially inseminated. Zoo curators said it’s a milestone as they genetically recover the white rhino. Only two northern white rhinos currently remain on Earth and both are female. Researchers used sperm from a male southern white rhino to get the rhino pregnant.
Barbara Durrant, Ph.D., said it’s a “critical step in our effort to save the northern white rhino.” The rhino lives at the Nikita Khan Rhino Rescue at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.
Rhino gestation lasts from 16-18 months. The rhino named Victoria was artificially inseminated in March at the zoo.
Zoo staff are hoping to welcome the baby in summer of 2019.
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