Last southern black rhino in Europe dies in Frankfurt am Main
His good phases had recently become rarer. The decision to euthanize him was made on Wednesday. "Many of us have worked closely with and around him for years - something like this is not easy for anyone," explained zoo director Christina Geiger.
Kalusho had come to Frankfurt from Zimbabwe in 1989 as part of a rescue program with the rhinoceros cow Tsororo. This made the zoo the only keeper of southern black rhinos in the whole of Europe. All other black rhinos kept in Europe are other subspecies, mostly East African black rhinos.
Southern black rhinos are very rare not only in zoos but also in the wild. They are one of the most endangered species of all. Rhino cow Tsororo died in Frankfurt back in 2016 and her three daughters were reintroduced to Africa. The future of rhino husbandry in Frankfurt was initially unclear.
Read also:
- This will change in December
- German activists speak out in Dubai on suffering in Israel and the Gaza Strip
- Nuclear fusion - hype or solution to energy problems?
- Budget crisis fuels debate on citizen's income - Bas warns against populism
Kalusho, the last southern black rhinoceros in Europe, spent his later years in Frankfurt on the Main, where he had been brought from Zimbabwe in 1989. The decision to euthanize him was made on Wednesday, and Christina Geiger, the zoo director, expressed her sorrow at the loss of a longtime colleague. Despite the arrival of other subspecies of black rhinos in European zoos, Frankfurt was the only keeper of southern black rhinos in Europe before Kalusho's death. The future of rhino husbandry in Frankfurt remains uncertain.
Source: www.stern.de
