Fact check: Has last surviving white rhino on earth passed away?

"RIP to the last white rhino, they have survived for millions of years, but could not survive mankind!" reads a comment on Instagram.

Fact Check:

The claim is misleading as it was not the last white rhino. It was the last white male rhino. There are two other surviving female white rhinos (when the incident took place) and they are still surviving.

According to `Amivitale', there are no words to adequately describe the profound feelings of hope and melancholy inspired by Joseph Wachira's final goodbye to Sudan, the world's last male northern white rhino."

The image in the post is that of the death of the last male white rhino which happened in the year 2018.

According to a report by National Geographic, now, only two female northern white rhinos remain at the conservancy—the last of their kind on Earth.

The article by National Geographic also mentions that the 45-year-old male rhino Sudan had been living under armed guard at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Sudan developed an infection on his back right leg. He had already been suffering from age-related complications, and the infection worsened his condition.

"There are now just two northern white rhinoceros remaining in the world. Najin and Fatu (both female) live under constant protection from poachers in Kenya's Ol Pejeta Conservancy," wrote fauna- flora. org,

"The international consortium of scientists and conservationists working towards preventing the extinction of the northern white rhino through advanced assisted reproduction technologies are pleased to announce that in March and April 2021, four additional northern white rhino embryos were produced," Phsyorg said.

Conclusion: Hence, the claim is misleading. It was not the last white rhino. It was the last white male rhino. There are two other surviving female white rhinos.