A fourth rare Sumatran rhinoceros has died at a breeding centre while the last remaining rhino is seriously ill, a report said today.

"We did everything humanly possible, but it just didn't work," said Mohamad Khan Momin Khan, chairman of the Malaysian Rhino Foundation, which runs the centre and its breeding programme.

Three other rhinos died at the Sungai Dusun Sumatran Rhinoceros Conservation Centre in central Selangor state in the past two weeks, forcing a halt to a breeding programme for the near extinct species.

Initial post-mortem examinations have shown that the earlier deaths were from septicaemia, acute blood poisoning caused by bacteria, reports said.

Minah, the rhino that died over the weekend, was born in captivity at a Malaysian zoo in 1987.

Great tragedy

"We thought we were going to succeed. They were beginning to show signs of recovery and they were responding well to the treatment," Mohamad Khan was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times .

"We may have to close Sungai Dusun for a while. I'm too scared. Maybe rhinos shouldn't be sent there any more," he said. "Maybe we should have a new, better facility. We must make sure it is spotless."

"The loss of these rhinos is a real tragedy. We need time to look at what has happened and decide what to do next."

Only 300 of the animals are left worldwide, mainly in Malaysia and Indonesia, as poaching and the destruction of habitats take their toll and captive breeding has shown few signs of success.

Chris Shepherd, an official with the conservation group Traffic Southeast Asia, told AFP : "Protecting rhinos in the wild should be the highest priority, rather than taking them out of it, especially if you house them in one place, making them vulnerable to a virus or bacteria." - AFP