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Malaysia's last male Sumatran rhino dies

A Sumatran rhinoceros stands in the rhinocerous protection station Tabin in the jungle of Borneo near Lahad Datu, Malaysia, 29 October 2013.
A Sumatran rhinoceros in Borneo in 2013. Photo: John Grafilo/picture alliance via Getty Images

Malaysia’s last male Sumatran rhinoceros, Tam, has died, wildlife conservation group WWF-Malaysia confirmed Monday.

Why it matters: All that remains of the species is 1 female Sumatran rhinoceros in Malaysia and about 80 in Indonesia, per National Geographic.

What's next? The WWF quoted Christina Liew, deputy chief minister of the Malaysian state of Sabah, as saying officials "intend to resume talks with the Indonesian government on the possibility of breeding the country’s last remaining rhino with advanced reproductive technology, test-tube breeding."

Go deeper: Rhino nearing extinction first had trouble in the Ice Age

Conservation