Importance Score: 75 / 100 🔴
In June 2025, a claim circulated alleging the complete extinction of the northern white rhinoceros, stating that the last of these rhinos had perished. While the situation is dire, with only two remaining females, a groundbreaking in-vitro fertilization initiative offers a glimmer of hope for the species’ future. The facts surrounding the northern white rhino population and the ongoing conservation efforts are complex, requiring a nuanced assessment.
The Claim: Northern White Rhinoceros Extinction
Claim: As of June 2025, the northern white rhinoceros was extinct after the last rhinoceros died.
Rating: Mixture
The Current Status of Northern White Rhinos
What’s True:
- Northern white rhinoceroses were considered extinct in the wild as of 2008.
- In 2018, the last male northern white rhinoceros died at a conservancy in Kenya.
- Only two northern white rhinos remain: a mother and daughter, Najin and Fatu. They reside under protection from poachers at a Kenyan conservancy.
- Najin and Fatu cannot, on their own, guarantee the continuation of the species.
What’s Undetermined:
- A novel breeding program utilizing in-vitro fertilization offers a potential pathway to revive the species.
- Scientists have successfully created and cryopreserved 35 northern white rhinoceros embryos.
- The plan is to implant these embryos into female southern white rhinoceroses, the closest related species.
- The success of this breeding project remains uncertain.
Rumors of Complete Extinction
In June 2025, rumors resurfaced, suggesting the northern white rhinoceros had vanished entirely.
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A Facebook post, for example, asserted that a species that had existed for “55 million years” could not “survive humans” and was now “functionally extinct” (archived):
As of this writing, the post had garnered significant attention, 154,000 reactions and 62,000 reshares. Commenters expressed sorrow and concern. Additional Facebook posts spread the rumor, some using “officially” instead of “functionally” extinct.
Snopes readers also searched for confirmation of the rhino’s extinction.
The Reality of the Situation
Snopes confirmed the veracity of the rhino’s wild extinction, but acknowledged the existence of two surviving females at a Kenyan wildlife conservancy. Therefore, the claim is rated a “Mixture” of true and false information.
Northern White Rhinos vs. Southern White Rhinos
There are two distinct subspecies of white rhinoceros: northern and southern. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies the northern white rhinoceros as critically endangered and possibly extinct in the wild, primarily due to poaching driven by demand for their horns in Asia. In contrast, the southern white rhinoceros is classified as near threatened, with approximately 10,080 individuals remaining.
The IUCN’s “critically endangered” classification, instead of “extinct in the wild,” reflects the absence of confirmed northern white rhinoceros sightings in the wild since 2006. They have been presumed extinct in the wild since 2008.
The Last Male and the Hope for the Future
The last known male northern white rhinoceros, Sudan, died at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya in 2018, at the age of 45. The two remaining females, Najin and Fatu, live under constant armed guard at Ol Pejeta.
However, the BioRescue project, an international consortium, is striving to recover the species through assisted reproduction. Scientists have created 35 embryos using eggs from Fatu and sperm collected from deceased male northern white rhinos. These embryos are intended for implantation into female southern white rhinos, as Najin and Fatu cannot carry pregnancies due to medical conditions.
The BioRescue team received recognition for their groundbreaking work in 2023. While northern white rhino embryo implantation is pending, they have successfully implanted southern white rhino embryos, marking a milestone and fueling optimism for future success with the critically endangered northern white rhinoceros.