The Curse of the Unicorn

The Unicorn in Captivity (from the Unicorn Tapestries) – Metropolitan Museum of Art

In his book, The Future of Life, biologist Edward O. Wilson had this to say about the first time he laid eyes upon the rare Sumatran rhinoceros in the flesh: “One of the most memorable events of my life occurred on a late May evening in 1994, in a back room of the Cincinnati Zoo, when I walked up to a four-year-old Sumatran rhinoceros named Emi, gazed into her lugubrious face for a while, and placed the flat of my hand against her hairy flank.  She made no response except maybe to blink her eyes. That’s it; that’s all that happened.  No matter: I had at last met my real-life unicorn.”

The unicorn is an imaginary creature that symbolizes purity.  It was first described by Ancient Greek naturalists as a species that inhabited the distant land of India.  Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD) spoke of the monoceros, “a very fierce animal … which has the head of the stag, the feet of the elephant, and the tail of the boar, while the rest of the body is like that of the horse; it makes a deep lowing noise, and has a single black horn, which projects from the middle of its forehead, two cubits in length.”  Perhaps the Indian rhinoceros comes to mind?

Greater One-horned or Indian Rhinoceros, Kaziranga National Park

The unicorn legend became popular throughout Europe during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.  The creature was said to roam the woodlands and could only be captured by a virgin.  Many people believed that its horn, which was called an alicorn, was an antidote to poison and could be used to treat illness. Alicorns could be purchased from Scandinavian traders, but the price was extravagant – per weight, supposedly many times more than that of gold.  The average alicorn was grooved and about three feet long.  Unfortunately, it never came from a unicorn.  A Dutch physician and naturalist, Ole Wurm, told the world the truth, the alicorn was really the long tusk of the small arctic whale known as the narwhal.  Narwhals are still hunted today for their tusks by certain indigenous populations, but many experts believe that this is not sustainable over the long-term.

White rhinoceros – South Africa

That the rhinoceros might be likened to the legendary unicorn is not so far-fetched, certainly no stranger than ancient sailors believing that hefty, whiskered sea mammals like dugongs and manatees were really mermaids.  Rhinos are distant relatives of horses and the horns of some rhino species can grow quite long.  So, with a dash of imagination and perhaps a pinch of intoxication, a person viewing a rhino could conjure the image of a unicorn in his mind, although that transformation would seem to be a bit easier with several of the antelope species, such as the oryx, that sport spectacular horns, albeit in pairs and from the top of the skull instead of the nose.

Arabian oryx – United Arab Emirates

Like the unicorn’s unusual appendage, the rhino’s horn also was once believed to detect and neutralize poison, and it is still believed by many Asian people to have medicinal properties.  As a result, white and black rhinos in southern Africa are now being killed by poachers at the rate of almost two per day.  If such slaughter continues, decades of dedicated efforts to bring these species back from the brink of extinction will have been for naught.

Unicorns never existed, but rhinos can and must survive as living legends.

If you’d like to know more about what the International Rhino Foundation is doing to combat poaching in southern Africa, go to: http://www.rhinos.org/operation-stop-poaching-now.

Namibia Black Rhino Study

Dr. Robin Radcliffe of the International Rhino Foundation’s Rhino Conservation Medicine Program led a team of scientists from Cornell University, the Palm Beach Zoo and the Medical College of Georgia to Namibia for the first-part of a two-year Morris Animal Foundation-funded Project to study the respiratory and thermoregulatory patterns of black rhinoceros during field capture.  This work was made possible through a collaborative effort with the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism’s Rhino Capture Unit under the direction of Pierre Du Preez and Mark Jago with support from rhinoceros expert, Pete Morkel.

Etosha National Park spans the northcentral and northwestern portion of Namibia and encompasses a diverse landscape of mixed acacia thorn scrub, open plains and mopane woodland, all of which surrounds the vast Etosha pan.  This oasis in an otherwise arid land abounds with wildlife including lions and leopard, giraffe and zebra, oryz and gazelle, and both black and white rhinoceros. Here in the jewel of Namibia lies one of Africa’s largest populations of the endangered desert black rhinoceros – Diceros bicornis bicornis.  It was here that we came to study and learn about the rhinoceros.  Capture and anesthesia of rhinoceros across Africa has been practiced for half a century and the principles of field anesthesia have been well established.  Yet for all of this pioneering work there remains a dearth of scientifically based information on the most fundamental aspects of the anesthesia process in these prehistoric beasts.  Our team was a rare mix of zoological and field veterinarians (Robin Radcliffe and Michelle Miller), University veterinary medical professor (Robin Gleed) and University human medical professor (Art Taft).  Our group, funded by the Morris Animal Foundation, the International Rhino Foundation, Cornell University and the Palm Beach Zoo in partnership with the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, was in Namibia to begin a multiyear investigation looking into some of the most challenging aspects of rhinoceros anesthesia:  How much air does a rhinoceros breath?  What volume of air is moved in and out and what portion of that volume is contributing to gas exchange?  How does ventilation and perfusion change with posture?  These are a few of the many questions the team set out to answer.

Dr. Pete Morkel (right) shares a laugh with Dr. Mark Jago (left) as helicopter pilot Jhanny looks on from the controls of the Bell Jet Ranger.

In just over two weeks the Ministry of Environment and Tourism Game Capture Unit immobilized twenty-eight black rhinoceros for routine ear-notching and radiotelemetry work; data collection was conducted opportunistically on twenty-six animals.  Blood samples were collected at regular intervals to measure blood gas and chemistry values in free-ranging animals under anesthesia.  At the same time, in a subset of animals, the team collected the first in depth data on core ventilation parameters including tidal volume, minute ventilation, and dead space.  These measurements will help the scientists make informed decisions about the effects of potent opioid anesthetic drugs and how posture may alter the respiratory and cardiovascular systems; such data may help devise better ways to manage rhinoceros during capture and anesthesia in both the field and zoological setting.

Dr. Robin Gleed prepares to measure the expired gas of a black rhinoceros as rhino expert Pete Morkel monitors anesthesia.

Dr. Robin Gleed readies the “Hamster Run” for gas collection in a black rhinoceros.

Of course, the scientists met with a number of obstacles along the way.  The first was the numerous challenges of conducting work under difficult conditions.  The team rented a Land Rover TD5 from a tour vehicle company based in South Africa (Kwenda Safari of BushLore – make a note not to rent a 4×4 from this company!).  Upon arriving in Windhoek, the team was disheartened to discover that their expensive Land Rover was not at all what was promised.  The vehicle had seen heavy use and was in disrepair.  The entire morning of the first day and half of the next were devoted to replacing broken parts – a dead battery that repeatedly failed to start, leaking oil from the engine case, and no air conditioning were a few of the shortcomings noted.  With the vehicle finally starting on two salvaged batteries from another, the team could not wait for further repairs so they began the trek 500 kilometers to the north of Windhoek to Etosha National Park.  In the coming weeks we would discover a host of other problems with the Land Rover including two spare tires with only three nuts between them (like many of the other key parts on the vehicle the spare wheels had been salvaged from another vehicle and the rims would not accept the nuts on the other wheels), a host of blown fuses that shut down key systems including the head lights, windshield wipers, refrigeration and the like.  On one wild chase through the muddy Etosha pan following the capture team at high speeds we could not see through the windshield at all until Art Taft changed a few random fuses on the fly.  On another occasion when the fuses did solve the problem and splattered mud covered the windshield, Dr. Morkel stuck his head out of the Land Rover while we crashed through fender high brush on the way to a stumbling rhino.  We made it there in record time too!

Dr. Robin Radcliffe and Art Taft measure the mean expired carbon dioxide of a rhinoceros breath.

Despite all of the challenges of keeping pace with a game capture unit in the wilds of the African bush, the investigation went remarkably well.  The gas collection apparatus designed and built by Dr. Robin Gleed of Cornell University worked extremely well and proved suitable for field collection of minute ventilation in recumbent rhinoceros in the field.  The apparatus, consisting of large four-inch PVC pipes in the shape of giant candy-cane was soon dubbed the “hamster run” because Pierre Du Preez pictured his son fancying such a system of pipes for his pet hamsters.  The gas collection apparatus was simple in that it had no moving parts and no electronics, but its function was no less impressive.  The simple design of pipes separated by a series of one-way valves allowed the investigators to completely separate the inspired air from expired air.  In this way, the team was able to collect the entire volume of air that a rhino breaths out over a minute (minute ventilation).  Together with a variety of other data collected simultaneously, this information will help us determine the precise breathing patterns of recumbent anesthetized rhinoceros.

Dr. Michele Miller running a blood gas on the iSTAT.

The adventures of a rhinoceros veterinarian and his work around the world will continue in future episodes both in Namibia where the team will return in 2011 and also in Sumatra where the International Rhino Foundation and its partners celebrate a pregnancy in one of the rarest rhinos of the world!

By Dr. Robin W. Radcliffe

Rhino Conservation Medicine Program Update

Rhinos at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS) in Way Kambas National Park

Because there are so few Sumatran rhinoceros managed in captivity around the world, a group called the Global Management and Propagation Board or GMPB for the Sumatran rhino was formed a few years ago in order to bring all stakeholders together to truly manage the small and dispersed population at a global level.  In March of this year, the second GMPB meeting was held in Bogor Indonesia and recommendations were made that will serve to maximize the success of these captive programs.

Mr. Steve Shurter of WOCC provides guidance to the SRS and RCMP teams on rhino management procedures andlearns about SRS browse and nutrition.

With all of the rhinos at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS) in Way Kambas National Park in good health, this RCMP trip was focused on integrating the GMPB recommendations as part of the SRS program with a particular goal of moving the young male named Andalas into the SRS breeding program.  On this visit, we were fortunate to receive the guidance of Mr. Steve Shurter, Director of Conservation at the White Oak Conservation Center.  Steve was able to offer many useful suggestions to the SRS team about ways to facilitate the sometimes aggressive introductions that have characterized mixings of Andalas with the SRS females in the past.  In particular, the socialization of Andalas to the other rhinos was considered essential.  The process is simple: expose Andalas to as many of the female rhinos as possible so he learns to communicate with the rhinos long before they are put together for breeding purposes.  This socialization process is being facilitated by feeding the rhinos their daily diets through the fence at the central breeding area.  Our first introductions between Andalas and Ratu as well as those between Andalas and Bina have gone smoothly.  The level of aggression has already declined and we think this will facilitate the mixing of animals that will soon follow.  This regular exposure of male and female rhino will also help the team look for behavioral signs of estrus that may help them choose the proper timing for breeding.  The regular use of ultrasound will also continue as it has proven quite successful in predicting the appropriate time for mixing.

It has been a wet and rainy season so far in 2009 so work on the second breeding area has been delayed.  The rains are starting to taper off so work will begin soon.  This second breeding area will be used to mix Torgamba with the young female Rosa as she begins to reach maturity.

Robin W. Radcliffe, DVM, DACZM
Rhino Conservation Medicine Program

IRF Rhino Conservation Medicine Update from the Field

International Donors Enable Critical Medical Care of Rare Sumatran Rhinoceros

By: Dr. Robin W. Radcliffe and Dr. Andriansyah
Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary, Indonesia
December 10, 2008

The International Rhino Foundation (IRF) is fortunate to have partners from around the world who are helping with the mission of caring for some of the rarest mammals on earth, in this case the Sumatran rhinoceros. Save the Rhino International (SRI), a UK-based charity focused on raising money for rhino conservation in Africa and Asia recently helped the IRF continue its support for the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS) in Indonesia by working with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The BBC provided funds for the rhino sanctuary that included money for rhino food (it costs a lot to feed a rhinoceros!) and medical care.

One of the items we purchased with the BBC funds is a digital microscope camera (manufactured by Olympus America Corporation) that attaches to the center’s microscope and allows capture of images and video. Previously it was impractical for the SRS staff to capture photos through the microscope and this hindered our ability to assist with medical diagnoses from afar when we were not on site. Now I am happy to report that the SRS team will be able to send photo and video documentation to us for our evaluation as needed because of this kind support made possible by the BBC and SRI.

Dr. Andri, Assistant Curator and Veterinarian at the SRS, uses the new digital microscope to evaluate a post-breeding sample from the sanctuary’s bull, Torgamba.

The first thing we did once we set-up the digital microscope system and got it running was to look at Torgamba’s sperm sample from his most recent breeding with Ratu in November of this year. Unfortunately even the best tools can’t help find sperm if they aren’t there……..while we are not giving up on Torgamba our focus will now switch to work with Andalas as the primary breeder. Now, within a matter of minutes, critical biological samples can be analyzed by scientists a world apart through the e-mail transfer of digital photos and video.

While this technology will be important for monitoring breeding soundness, another significant benefit of the digital microscope camera will be the enhanced health care it will facilitate for the Sumatran rhinos under our care. Blood-borne diseases such as Babesia, Anaplasma and Theileria can be difficult to diagnose by microscopic exam without expert laboratory support. Now experts in animal healthcare from Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine (home of the IRF’s Rhino Conservation Medicine Program) will be able to assist with remote diagnosis of disease problems in a timely manner. This will be especially important in cases of emerging disease that could potentially lead to loss of important individuals in this small and endangered population.

Dr. Andri (top) can now communicate timely information using medical digital imagery to Dr. Radcliffe (pictured above with SRS rhino female, Rosa) to enable timely international medical consultation and care. Photo by Oka.

Many thanks for the kind donation from the BBC. As can be seen from the above photo,  we have already put the equipment to good use.

With all best wishes from Sumatra,
Robin, Andri and the SRS Keeper Team

Notes from the Field – SRS Update

December 6, 2007: It is late in the day at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Southeast Sumatra and the afternoon rains have just stopped long enough to allow us to mix two of the center’s rare rhinos for breeding purposes. Torgamba, the sanctuary’s oldest male, will be introduced to Ratu, a young female that was relocated to the sanctuary almost 2 years ago when she was pushed out of her rainforest home by the illegal activities of  local people. The rainforests are protected inside the National Park, but enforcement is problematic.

Torgamba and Ratu see each other and give a few short snorts…..rhino love talk! No fighting or mad running about this time (aggression is common in Sumatran rhinos even during courtship) as the pair gets busy. Torgamba pushes Ratu and Ratu pushes Torgamba. It is a big game of cat and mouse as each rhino tries to make the other one run away. Finally 4 hours later the pair finally mate. It is a long ordeal in rhinos, Torgamba breeds with Ratu for 40 minutes this evening.

But the work does not end here. The SRS keeper and veterinary staff are vigilant in trying to collect a sample to look for sperm. Torgamba has a history of not producing either sperm or offspring. We hope things will be different tonight. We find nothing. Still, we will examine Ratu by ultrasound again in 2 days to confirm ovulation and then check for pregnancy in about 2 weeks time.

Today we celebrate another opportunity and hope for a Christmas baby!

Dr. Robin Radcliffe, Rhino Conservation Medicine Program
Dr. Andriansyah, SRS Staff Veterinarian

The Rhino Conservation Medicine Program is housed at Cornell University, and led by Dr. Robin Radcliffe, DVM/DACZM. Dr. Radcliffe is one of the few veterinarians in the world certified by the American College of Zoological Medicine with a specialty in wildlife. Dr. Radcliffe teaches at the veterinary school at Cornell and oversees the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Way Kambas National Park, Indonesia.

IRF needs your help to continue providing veterinary support for rhino conservation efforts around the world. Visit our website to learn more about how you can help us protect rhinos.