Scientists from the Leibniz-Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW) in Berlin, Germany, together with veterinarians from Australia, have performed a world first by harvesting egg cells from a black rhino for the purpose of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF). The collected ova were matured in a test tube and were successfully fertilised with rhino sperm but they did not continue to grow into embryos. Nevertheless, the result is a major breakthrough.