A rare species of rhinoceros was born in a Belgian zoo

[[MC]Ronin[MC]]

A rare southern white rhino was born in a zoo in Belgium, AFP reported.

"A lovely little male was born early this morning ... Madiba's mother and her baby are doing well," a Piri Daisy zoo said in a statement.

There are approximately 18,000 southern white rhinos in nature, but the subspecies are killed by poachers at a rate of one every eight hours.

Another species of rhino, the second largest land mammal in the world, the northern white, is in even greater danger, with only two.

The remaining northern white couple are female, so they will disappear unless their genes are preserved or restored and an artificial breeding program begins.

In July, southern white was born through artificial insemination in San Diego, which the zoo welcomes as a step towards refining the technique.

The Belgian Zoo has another female, Eli, who is pregnant. The birth is expected "by the end of this year".

Eli already has a little, Setemba, born in 2016 and moved to a zoo in the Spanish city of Málaga as part of a breeding program in Europe.