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SOS
Rhino : In the News:
: Articles : Rhinos:
Ghosts of our Future |
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On the island of Borneo at the
edge of a remote jungle forest, Dr. Nan
Schaffer is thoughtfully studying an
ultrasonic image. Her subject is a 20
year-old female Sumatran rhinoceros.
She's looking for clues, any information
that will help her understand how
to save a species of animal she
describes as docile and romantic, a
species which the rest of the world
simply calls endangered. No one has
seen a live baby Sumatran rhino for
more than 12 years.
 The Sumatran is one of the five
species of rhinos remaining on earthó
it is estimated that a scant 300 of the
Sumatran rhino survive. Javan rhinos
number even fewer: a ghostly 70.
Though there are more of the white
(6500), black (2500) and Indian
(1900) rhinos, each breed is considered
endangered and appears on the Red
List published by the International
Union for the Conservation of
Nature (IUCN).
These frighteningly small numbers
are the result of poaching, which has
decimated the herds by as much as 80
to 95 percent, as is the case with black
rhinos. The reasons for rhino killings
are as old as pain, vanity and greed.
Rhino horn is valued at US$30,000
per pound (0.5 kg). Prized for medicinal
and ornamental purposes, the horn
is nothing), more than keratin and
hair. It is not an aphrodisiac, as many
believe. But dispelling the myths does
not seem to help the rhinos. In fact,
Schaffer believes only one strategy can
help themóproactive intervention by
humans. We must work fast and effectively
to save the rhinos in their habitat.
Humans have been their exterminator,
and humans must be responsible
for their survival. "The rhinoceros is
an ancient beast. They have been on
this earth for more than 40 million
years, yet their extinction may occur in
my lifetime," Schaffer says.
 In many ways, Schaffer's career has
paralleled the actual and philosophical
development of zoos. In the 1970s and
1980s, zoos were viewed by some as
"arks". They dedicated themselves to
saving the world's animal wealth.
Through exhibiting animals to the
public, zoos could raise awareness and
gain monetary support for vanishing
animals. Zoologists established breeding
programs to maintain and increase
numbers of endangered animals in
captivity. They endeavored to keep the
animals as wild as possible so they
could be reintroduced to their habitats.
To realize this goal, however,
would require vast amounts of information.
 Researchers concentrated on
numerous areas of interest, including
intensive study of animal behavior,
dietary requirements and habitat conditions
that would optimize healthy
births. Genetic material such as sperm
was being collected, analyzed and cryopreserved.
The concept of the "frozen
zoo" became popular. Schaffer had her
first experiences with this type of work
in her final year at veterinary school.
She collected and studied the semen of
gorillas at several zoos which were having
difficulty in reproducing.
With the new information gained,
the results of her efforts foreshadowed
other discoveries. Schaffer observed in
the male gorilla that, similar to
humans, high numbers of sperm
abnormalities were common. Some of
these individual male gorillas needed
access to highly fertile females to be
productive, but the cause of the males'
problems remained unknown.
Research efforts produced a great deal
of new information, but such discoveries
were just pieces of an enormous
time-consuming puzzle. New information
might be gathered at great cost,
often without tactical reproductive
solutions to show for it.
 The era also offered Schaffer some
life-changing opportunities, including
the chance to befriend Rudy. In an
effort to preserve the genetic material
of their Indian rhino, the Milwaukee
County Zoo in 1982 invited Schaffer
to work with Rudy. "He didn't have a
mate," Schaffer explains. "His feet
were bad and they didn't think he'd be
able to breed. They expected me to
walk right into the cage and get semen
from him to preserve it." This was not
an unusual request for Schaffer, since
she had been exposed to the practical
aspects of animal breeding at home on
a Texas dairy farm. She had, however,
previously witnessed the rambunctious,
sometimes violent breeding display of
the rhinoceros during her fellowship at
the Bronx Zoo. The idea of intentionally
exciting a 3000-pound (1360 kg)
rhino made working with Rudy a perilous
prospect.
"Rudy was big for his species,"
Schaffer recalls. "I peeked through a
small opening in his cage - all I could
see was this massive animal. There was
no way I would get in this animal's
cage. But they said that he was quite
agreeable and cooperative. And he really
did let me come right into the
cage."
Week after week, Schaffer visited
Rudy, manually collecting seminal
fluid, which, unfortunately, was clear.
"He was very patient with the various
techniques we tried on him, but he
just couldn't comprehend what all the
fuss was about." Schaffer spent more
than 18 months visiting Rudy weekly,
before collecting a windfall of preservable
material. "Billions and billions of
sperm. It was a highly concentrated
sample. From then on, he regularly
produced preservable samples. It was
like a light finally went on. He was
completely conditioned. "
Many samples from Rudy were
cryopreserved before he finally succumbed
to his physical ailments. These
samples appeared viable for artificial
insemination, but practically no information
was available on female anatomy
or physiology. As for many species,
the lack of information about rhinos
was a significant obstacle to their
preservation in captivity.
Understanding reproduction in the
female rhinoceros became Schaffer's
challenge in the early 1990s. Bibi, an
older female rhino at the Sedgwick
County Zoo in Wichita, Kansas,
would be the subject. Bibi was a black
rhino that had given birth to healthy
offspring twice in her earlier years. But
by the age of 31, she had spontaneously
aborted her last three pregnancies.
Clearly, Bibi could become pregnant,
but it was Schaffer's challenge to help
her to carry to full term and deliver a
healthy calf.
Schaffer designed and used a
restraining chute for Bibi. With rectal
ultrasound examination, she determined
that Bibi's reproductive anatomy
was normal. Other factors were
presumably involved. Over the next
year, Bibi's health needs were carefully
observed and responded to, including
bad teeth, an abscessed toe, occasional
vaginal infections, and ulcerated skin
sores. "The zoo's vet, Bill Bryant, treated
all of her symptoms as necessary,"
Schaffer recalls. ëWe ground her food,
rubbed oil on her skin and treated her
toe. We started supplementing her diet
with oral progesterone (the hormone
responsible for maintaining pregnancy),
and we gave her molasses twice a
day to raise her glucose levels. Through
this intensive management, she finally
maintained her pregnancy." On 16
August 1993, Bibi delivered a male calf
in excellent health. Schaffer takes pride
in her part of the work. "I have helped
to bring at least one rhino into the
world," she says. The zoo staff chose to
name the newborn Rudy, short for
Ruwdesia in Swahili.
Schaffer and the progressive group
of professionals with whom she has
worked have made great strides in
gathering valuable information about
rhino reproduction. She has come very
close to a successful rhino impregnation
through artificial insemination,
and continues to work towards this
goal. But at the rate at which rhinos
are diminishing from the Earth,
Schaffer's joy over past successes is
tempered. "We must now broaden our
approach. We don't have enough of
everything we need to preserve the rhinos
principally in captivity. Not
enough time. Not enough money. Not
enough space."
Captivity supports field efforts
with information and provides a separate
gene pool, she explains, as she
stresses the importance of allowing the
rhinos to live and breed where they do
these things best - in the wild. "Rhinos
have the best chance for reproducing
in their natural habitats." It's a
straightforward conclusion. However,
it's also a very complicated endeavor.
Political and socio-economic factors,
including land overuse, are just a few
of the issues that add to Schaffer's concern
for the rhinos' future. "Several
countries have had their populations of
rhinos exterminated with the outbreak
of civil war. Rhino horn is a lucrative
incentive for poachers. This factor
increases the cost of preserving this
species many-fold."
That's one of the reasons Schaffer
began laying the groundwork in 1983
for a philanthropic rhino support network.
During her work with the Rhino
Reproductive Program at the
Milwaukee Zoo, Schaffer envisaged an
awareness program that could deliver
this message of need. She wanted to
give the rhinos a voice.
SOS Rhino, a non-profit organization,
was officially established in 1997.
Its activities include raising funds to
support rhino conservation and
research, and partnerships with other
organizations, such as the Black Rhino
Foundation, to further the causes of all
breeds of rhinos. SOS Rhino participated
in the Rockin' for Rhinos concert
tour.
"The support for these animals is a
very worthy cause," Schaffer says, "but
the lack of general awareness is sobering.
Most people aren't even clear on
what a rhino is. They're often confused
with the hippo. We have a lot of work
to do."
Schaffer believes sanctuaries and
nature preserves are an important part
of the overall conservation effort. By
saving a rhino in its natural habitat all
the associated flora and fauna are saved
as well, she explains. As a large, charismatic
animal, the rhino acts as an
ambassador for its ecosystem.
One way to support this ecosystem
is through ecotourism, a form of
tourism that helps support ecology,
and has helped some animals in Africa
by raising awareness and securing
funds through safari trips. SOS Rhino
is supporting sanctuaries in Africa,
India and SouthEast Asia. They have
supported sanctuaries in Malaysia and
Indonesia for the Sumatran rhino.
"Visitors will be able to see the natural
habitat of the Sumatran rhino and
have a chance to see one of the most
elusive animals on Earth," Schaffer
says. "Sumatran rhinos usually die
when placed in a zoo environment and
have never bred successfully in captivity.
The sanctuary may be our only
chance of experiencing this amazing
creature. Ultimately, the goal is to help
bring these unusual rhinos, which have
hair and can climb rocky terrain, back
from the edge of extinction."
Schaffer's current work at the sanctuary
involves ultrasonographic analysis
of female reproduction. Intensive
studies of the Sumatran rhino are
revealing a distinctly different reproductive
physiology from other rhinos.
Researchers hope to be able to help
optimize the conditions for pregnancy
to occur.
For Nan Schaffer, baby Sumatran
rhinos born in the wild would be the
culmination of work well done.
"I have spent 18 years doing this,"
she declares. "I don't have another 18
years. Neither do the rhinos."
Next :: Page 2 of "Rhinos: Ghosts of our Future"
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