#avantea

Photo by @amivitale. @olpejeta head rhino keeper @zacharia_mutai relaxes with Najin, one of the last two northern white rhinos on the planet. Zacharia, with Najin's other keepers, has had a front row seat as the @biorescue_project works to restore this iconic species. On this Earth Day, I'm shining a spotlight on the incredible people who work hard to protect wildlife. The plight of wildlife has received much needed attention, but very little has been said about the communities on the front lines. We often forget that the best protectors are often local communities. Their efforts are ultimately the best immunization against forces that threaten both their wildlife and way of life. @biorescue_project @leibnizizw #Avantea, @KenyaWildlifeService @SafariParkDvurKralove @tunajibu @bmbf.bund @leibnizgemeinschaft @MinistryOfTourismAndWildlifeKE @natgeo @thephotosociety @nikonusa @photography.for.good #amivitale #kenya #NorthernWhiteRhinos #nikonambassador #dontletthemdisappear #nikonnofilter #nikonlove #rhinos #saverhinos https://www.instagram.com/p/CcqfV2DuXyA/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Photos by @amvitale. On this day, four years ago, Sudan, the last living male northern white rhino passed away. At 45, Sudan was elderly for his species. He had lived a long life and had found stardom as the “most eligible bachelor in the world.” In his final moments, there was only silence except for drops of rain and the muffled tears of the people who loved and protected him. I think back often on this moment and it is the silence that I remember most - a haunting silence that seemed to foreshadow what a world without wildlife would be like. Without these creatures, we suffer more than the loss of an ecosystem. We suffer a loss of imagination, a loss of wonder, a loss of possibilities. Figuring out how to create a sustainable and just human society that doesn’t destroy the natural world is our single most important challenge. Hope always remains. What’s going to save us all is to get beyond our routine ways of thinking. Wonder is what allows us to reimagine our future together. Wonder allows us to believe that we can fundamentally change the course we are currently on. Thanks to the groundbreaking and inspiring work of the @biorescue_project there are now northern white rhino embryos that will be transferred into a surrogate southern white rhino mother in the near future. The species may still be saved from extinction. Learn more, including how you can donate, by following and supporting @BioRescue_project and @olpejeta, @SafariParkDvurKralove @leibnizizw @SafariParkDvurKralove @KenyaWildlifeService @OlPejeta Conservancy @elodiesampre #Avantea @tunajibu @tourism_wildlifeke @bmbf.bund @leibnizgemeinschaft @natgeo #kenya #NorthernWhiteRhinos #nikonambassador #nikonnofilter #rhinos (at Ol Pejeta Conservancy) https://www.instagram.com/p/CbTZvdqPFYs/?utm_medium=tumblr

Photo by @amivitale. Breaking news!! THREE more northern white rhino embryos have been created this month by @biorescue_project, the global team of scientists and conservationists working to save the species from extinction at @olpejeta conservancy in northern Kenya. This brings the total to TWELVE embryos. This time they were able to use sperm from Angalifu, improving the genetic diversity of the embryos. Head rhino keeper @zacharia443 sits with Najin, one of the last 2 northern white rhinos before the operation (1). The scientists and conservationists of Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (@leibnizizw), @SafariParkDvurKralove @KenyaWildlifeService @OlPejeta Conservancy and #Avantea conducted this sixth successful oocyte collection on July 9 (2). Prof. Dr. Thomas Hildebrandt of @leibnizizw meticulously looks for the oocytes with Susanne Holtze (3-4). Frank Goeritz checks on Fatu while she is anesthetized (5). KWS Veterinarian Domnic Mijele, Ol Pejeta Vet Stephen Ngulu and Frank Goeritz in the operation (6). Immediately after the oocyte retrieval, the 17 eggs were airlifted accompanied by Dr. Hildebrandt (7) to Avantea laboratory in Cremona, Italy for maturation, fertilization, embryo development and cryopreservation. Two embryos were produced using semen from northern white rhino bull Suni, who has provided the genetics for all the existing embryos; the third embryo was from Angalifu. TWELVE pure northern white rhino embryos await implantation in southern white rhino surrogates, a step expected to begin by the end of 2021. Owuan is the sterilized southern white rhino bull who will serve as the oestrus detector for the females as they come into season. (9) Ariemet (19yo) and Mojo (11yo) are southern white rhino surrogates who will carry the northern white rhino embryos. Neither Najin nor Fatu are able to carry a pregnancy. Both southern white rhino surrogates have successfully carried before. Ariemet has 4 calves and Mojo, 1. (10) Learn more, including how to help, by following @biorescue_project. @tunajibu @tourism_wildlifeke @bmbf.bund @leibnizgemeinschaft @natgeo #kenya #NorthernWhiteRhinos #nikonambassador #nikonnofilter #rhinos (at Ol Pejeta Conservancy) https://www.instagram.com/p/CR66DJ2MVoW/?utm_medium=tumblr

Happiest of Birthdays to you, Najin! I hope your 32nd birthday is sweet. In this photo, Najin rests with her friend, @zacharia443 and Fatu, her daughter. Najin and Fatu are the last two northern white rhinos on the planet. The two are cared for by the team at @olpejeta Conservancy in northern Kenya. Hopefully, one day soon, another northern white rhino will walk the planet. Over the last two years, the @BioRescue_project has created NINE northern white rhino embryos using oocytes harvested from Fatu and genetic material preserved from previously deceased northern white rhino males. Each one of them has the potential to become a northern white rhino baby in the near future. Looking forward to more happy birthdays in the future! Learn more, including how you can help, by following and supporting @BioRescue_project and @olpejeta. #HappyBirthdayNajin ❤️ @leibnizizw @SafariParkDvurKralove @KenyaWildlifeService @olpejeta #Avantea @tunajibu @bmbf.bund @leibnizgemeinschaft @MinistryOfTourismAndWildlifeKE @natgeo @thephotosociety @nikonusa #amivitale #kenya #NorthernWhiteRhinos #nikonambassador #dontletthemdisappear #nikonnofilter #nikonlove #rhinos #saverhinos #sudanforever #amivitale #empathyiseverything (at Ol Pejeta Conservancy) https://www.instagram.com/p/CRNtLeWMNAI/?utm_medium=tumblr

Photo by @amivitale. Happiest of birthdays, sweet Fatu! You're 21-years-young today! Fatu and her mother Najin are the two last northern white rhinos alive on the planet. They are loved and cared for by the team at @olpejeta Conservancy in northern Kenya. Hopefully, one day soon, we will be able to welcome Fatu's own child. Over the last two years, the @BioRescue_project has created NINE northern white rhino embryos using oocytes harvested from Fatu and genetic material preserved from previously deceased northern white rhino males. Each one of them has the potential to become a northern white rhino baby in the near future. Looking forward to many happy birthdays in the future! Learn more, including how you can help, by following and supporting @BioRescue_project and @olpejeta. And help celebrate Fatu's birthday by posting and sharing your own photos of her with the hashtag #HappyBirthdayFatu ❤️ @leibnizizw @SafariParkDvurKralove @KenyaWildlifeService @olpejeta #Avantea @tunajibu @bmbf.bund @leibnizgemeinschaft @MinistryOfTourismAndWildlifeKE @natgeo @thephotosociety @nikonusa #amivitale #kenya #NorthernWhiteRhinos #nikonambassador #dontletthemdisappear #nikonnofilter #nikonlove #rhinos #saverhinos #sudanforever #empathyiseverything (at Ol Pejeta Conservancy) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQtqPtTsXC9/?utm_medium=tumblr

Photo by @amivitale. Zacharia Mutui (@zacharia443) sits beside Najin, one of the last two northern white rhinos. Hopefully, someday soon, more of this magnificent species will walk the earth. Over the last two years, the @BioRescue_project has created NINE northern white rhino embryos - each one of them has the potential to become a northern white rhino in the near future. Hope grows stronger every day. Learn more, including how you can donate, by following and supporting @BioRescue_project and @olpejeta, @SafariParkDvurKralove @leibnizizw @KenyaWildlifeService #Avantea @tunajibu @bmbf.bund @leibnizgemeinschaft @MinistryOfTourismAndWildlifeKE @jemu_mwenda @wachira.joseph @natgeo @thephotosociety @nikonusa #amivitale #kenya #NorthernWhiteRhinos #nikonambassador #dontletthemdisappear #nikonnofilter #nikonlove #rhinos #saverhinos #sudanforever #empathyiseverything (at Ol Pejeta Conservancy) https://www.instagram.com/p/CP90n0AhBgv/?utm_medium=tumblr