Scientists have decoded the genome of the Sumatran rhinoceros – one of the most threatened mammals on Earth.
Its genetic blueprint shows that populations have been in decline for a very long time, BBC News reports.
The rhino’s troubles began during the last Ice Age, when its habitat shrunk, says a US team.
Since then, human pressures have caused numbers to dwindle further. There are now thought to be fewer than 250 individuals left in the wild.
“This species has been well on its way to extinction for a very long time,” said study researcher, Terri Roth at the Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden.
The genome sequence data revealed the Pleistocene “was a roller-coaster ride for Sumatran rhinoceros populations,” added lead researcher, Dr Herman Mays of Marshall University in West Virginia.
The Pleistocene is the geological time period that lasted from about 2,588,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the world’s most recent Ice Age.
