When people ask, “Are white rhinos extinct?”, the answer is more complicated than a simple yes or no. It depends on which white rhino you’re talking about, because there are actually two subspecies. One is in deep trouble, the other is holding on.
Let’s break it down.
Two Types of White Rhinos: Northern vs Southern
White rhinos are not a separate species from black rhinos, but they do have two distinct subspecies:
| Subspecies | Status (2025) | Number Left | Where They Live |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern White Rhino | Functionally extinct | 2 (both female) | Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya |
| Southern White Rhino | Near Threatened (but stable) | ~17,000 | South Africa, Namibia, Kenya, Zimbabwe |
The difference in their fate is striking. While the southern white rhino still has a future, the northern white rhino is now functionally extinct, meaning there are no breeding pairs left, and no chance of natural recovery without human help.
What Does “Functionally Extinct” Mean?
In conservation terms, functionally extinct refers to a species or subspecies that still has living individuals but cannot reproduce naturally in the wild or captivity. In the case of the northern white rhino, the last male, Sudan, died in 2018.
The only two survivors today, Najin and her daughter Fatu, are both female. Neither can carry a pregnancy.
So while they are still alive, the species as a whole cannot continue without scientific intervention. That’s why it’s accurate to say that the northern white rhino is functionally extinct.
Sudan, the last male of his kind:
What Happened to the Northern White Rhino?
The northern white rhino once roamed parts of Uganda, Chad, Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. But decades of intense poaching, mainly for their horns, combined with regional conflicts, pushed them to the brink. By 2008, they were declared extinct in the wild.
Four northern white rhinos were moved from a zoo in the Czech Republic to Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya in the hope that a more natural environment might encourage breeding. Sadly, that didn’t work, and now only Najin and Fatu remain.
Are Scientists Trying to Save the Northern White Rhino?
Yes—and the efforts are remarkable. An international team of scientists, under the BioRescue project, has been working on IVF (in-vitro fertilization) and embryo transfer to bring the subspecies back.
They’ve already created 35 embryos using Fatu’s eggs and frozen sperm from deceased northern white rhino males. These embryos are frozen and will eventually be implanted into surrogate mothers from the southern white rhino population.
In late 2023, a test pregnancy with a southern white rhino embryo successfully reached 70 days before being lost due to a rare infection. While disappointing, it was also proof that the method works. Scientists now hope to achieve a successful northern white rhino pregnancy as early as 2025 or 2026.
There’s also cutting-edge work underway using stem cells and even gene editing, which may one day allow scientists to reintroduce genetic diversity from long-dead northern white rhinos. But those efforts are still in the experimental stage.
What About the Southern White Rhino?
The story of the southern white rhino is more hopeful.
This subspecies was also nearly wiped out by the early 1900s—there were fewer than 100 individuals left. Thanks to strong protection efforts in South Africa and translocation projects like Operation Rhino, their numbers rebounded dramatically over the past century.
Today, the southern white rhino population is stable at around 17,000 individuals, most of them living in national parks, conservancies, and private reserves across southern Africa. We saw quite a few white rhinos in the Sibuya Game Reserve in South Africa.
Still, they are not completely safe. Poaching continues to be a major threat, especially in South Africa. Conservationists use a variety of tools—from armed patrols and drones to dehorning rhinos (removing horns to reduce their value to poachers) and even injecting tracking material into horns to fight illegal trade.
Are White Rhinos the Same as Black Rhinos?
No, white and black rhinos are two different species, not just different colors (in fact, both are usually grayish). The names likely come from a misinterpretation of the Dutch word wijde, meaning “wide,” referring to the white rhino’s wide, square lip used for grazing.
Here’s a quick comparison:
| Feature | White Rhino | Black Rhino |
|---|---|---|
| Lips | Wide, square lips (grazer) | Pointed lips (browser) |
| Size | Larger (up to 2,300 kg) | Smaller (up to 1,400 kg) |
| Temperament | More social, calm | More solitary, often more aggressive |
| Population (2025) | ~17,000 (southern subspecies only) | ~5,500 |
Black rhinos are critically endangered, but their population is slowly increasing thanks to conservation efforts.
So, Are White Rhinos Extinct?
Not entirely.
- The northern white rhino is functionally extinct, with only two females left and no way to reproduce naturally.
- The southern white rhino still has a fighting chance, with thousands alive today—but needs ongoing protection.
The future of the white rhino depends on both conservation in the field and scientific innovation in the lab. One gives us hope for continued survival; the other offers a shot at revival.
Final Thoughts
The story of the white rhino is a powerful example of what humans are capable of—both in destruction and in recovery. While we’ve come dangerously close to losing this iconic animal forever, we’ve also shown that, with effort and international cooperation, it may still have a future.
When you see posts online claiming that the white rhino is extinct, it’s not entirely true. But in the case of the northern white rhino, the warning bells are loud—and they’re real.
If you would like to discuss this further or have a question, please leave a comment down below in the comments section!
Kind regards,
Lizzy
I now have a YouTube channel as well!
YouTubeSources and Further Reading:
- Save the Rhino International
- Ol Pejeta Conservancy – Northern White Rhino Project
- BioRescue Project
- International Rhino Foundation
Hello Africa travellers!
Who am I? Well, the least you can say is that I am quite crazy about Africa, its nature, its climate, its culture, and more.
As a young woman in my twenties, I had already traveled to several African countries by traveling along in an overlander on my own and mostly camping ( or glamping ) and just fell in love with the diversity of it all.
So much, so that at the age of 26, I went back to university to study biology, which, unfortunately, I couldn’t finish because of health reasons (yes, I got sick from a tropical disease, oh cynicism). But this did not stop my dream of traveling back to Africa several times, and I still do.
My dream was back then to leave Europe and go study animal behavior, especially the elephants (sure, that’s every girl’s dream haha), but I am also very much intrigued by hyenas and other “ugly African animals“.
So, I “kind of” have a little bit of a scientific approach to my articles, when I write about African birds, for example. And most of all: the passion.
But life goes on, you move from one side of the country to the other, you get sick again and top it off with lower back problems, and before you know it, you are over 50 hahaha!
Now, I still travel to Africa, but take it a bit “easier” than the good old camping days, and stay in comfortable, yet affordable accommodations, together with my husband Wouter.
These are some of the countries I have traveled to: Kenya, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Tunisia, and a little bit of Lesotho LOL .
While clearly not being African territory, but Spanish, I also visited Gran Canaria and Tenerife, and location-wise, I consider them “African”, because of their climate and nature, sue me :-p
The last trip I took was to South Africa in the year 2023, and it sure got the fevers for Africa back! From the Barberton mountains to the Drakensberg and the Southcoast, one month wasn’t enough at all to see the whole country, so we’ll be back! At ease and with a little bit more luxury than in my younger days haha!
I wish you happy travels!
Kind regards
Lizzy
