White Northern Rhino Honored In Astor Place Statue Has Died

EAST VILLAGE, NY — The last living male of the white northern rhinoceros subspecies has died, just days after a statue was erected in his honor in the East Village.

The statue, titled "The Last Three," was installed at Astor Place on Thursday to represent the last living animals of a species that humans have hunted to the brink of extinction.

Sudan, the last living male, died on Monday, officials at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya said. Veterinarians at the conservancy decided to euthanize the 45-year-old rhino after his age-related illnesses worsened significantly in his final hours.

After Sudan's death, just two white northern rhinos remain alive in the world: Najin and Fatu. The species is extinct in the wild, with the animals kept under armed guard 24 hours a day at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy.

All three animals are represented in the 17-foot bronze sculpture at Astor Place. The art installation was meant to draw attention to the plight of the animals, whose extinction is imminent.

White northern rhinos, the second largest land mammal after the elephant, have been hunted to near extinction by poachers eager for their valuable horns. Even while Sudan was alive, the animals were unable to breed because of Sudan's age and because the female rhinos are infertile. The only hope for saving the species is in vitro fertilization, the conservancy said. Sudan's genetic material was collected on Monday and "provides a hope for future attempts at reproduction of northern white rhinos through advanced cellular technologies," the conservancy said in a statement.

The installation in the East Village, which was officially unveiled on Thursday, was created by Australian artists Gillie and Marc Shattner. The wife-and-husband duo are world-renown artists who have installed artworks throughout the globe, and are especially dedicated to animal conservation efforts.The Shattners said they wanted to highlight the plight of the northern white rhino, and to draw attention to the breed's impending extinction.

"The whole mission was to recreate the three rhinos," Marc Shattner said about the sculpture, which is titled "The Last Three." "We just wanted everyone to know their names so that when they do leave this world they won't be forgotten."

Image credit: Ciara McCarthy / Patch