# Young white rhino Diederik dies suddenly at Wildlands zoo

> Diederik, a 7-year-old white rhino at the Emmen zoo, died on Wednesday morning of a ruptured aorta that vets could not treat.

Society · published 2026-11-12 14:17 · https://nlnow.nl/a/young-white-rhino-diederik-dies-suddenly-at-wildlands-zoo/

The 7-year-old white rhino Diederik died suddenly on Wednesday morning at Wildlands in Emmen, Drenthe. A post-mortem at the veterinary faculty in Utrecht found he died of a ruptured aorta, the main artery from the heart.

The condition could not be treated. Keepers had seen unusual behaviour in Diederik on Tuesday and kept him in the indoor enclosure for observation, examination and care. The treatment had too little effect, and he died the next morning.

His body was taken to the veterinary faculty in Utrecht, where the post-mortem was carried out straight away. The faculty concluded that the ruptured aorta was fatal and that nothing could have been done to treat it.

Diederik had lived on the Emmen savanna since November 2022, four years ago this month. He moved to Drenthe together with his half-brother from Burgers' Zoo in Arnhem.

He was part of the European population management programme, in which zoos work together to keep a genetically healthy population of the animals.

Wildlands said the young male will be missed on its savanna. "Diederik will be missed," the zoo said.

## Background

- **Wildlands**: Wildlands is a zoo and adventure park in Emmen, in the province of Drenthe in the northeast of the Netherlands. It keeps animals from around the world in large outdoor enclosures and combines the zoo with adventure and play areas for visitors. It is one of the larger zoos in the Netherlands and takes part in international animal breeding and care programmes.
- **EPP (European population management programme)**: The European population management programme is a cooperative breeding programme run by European zoos, coordinated through the European zoo association EAZA, in which each species is managed as one shared population across member zoos. Zoos exchange and pair animals so that the population stays genetically diverse and healthy, and so that it can be sustained over time without depending on wild capture. Participating zoos follow the programme's breeding recommendations for each animal.

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