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CAPTIVE BREEDING
Beginning in 1974, North American conservationists released more than 6,000 captive-bred peregrine falcons; by the late 1990s, at least 1,650 breeding pairs had been restoredOnce teetering on the brink of extinction in North America due to harmful pesticides and loss of natural habitats, the peregrine falcons ha...
In 1935, Australian government released 2,400 toads to destroy crop-eating beetles. Almost 100 years later, 200 million giant toads threaten 75 wildlife speciesSometimes, a solution can become an impending disaster. In the 1930s, the Australia government released more than 2000 cane toads imported ...
A Tanzanian dam cut a waterfall’s flow by 90%; Engineers built sprinklers to save the coin-sized toad that lived thereA Tanzanian dam cut a waterfall’s flow by 90%, threatening a toad that lived on five acres. Sprinklers, a 499-toad zoo rescue and a 2012 re...
Researchers release a 16ft and 150-pound female Burmese python into the Greater Everglades to test a technology that might help remove snakes of her own speciesResearchers at the US Geological Survey have released a radio-tagged Burmese python into the Everglades. This experiment aims to improve tr...
Arizona removed invasive bullfrogs and rebuilt native frog habitat; Chiricahua leopard frog breeding sites grew from 7 in 2013 to 19 by 2019Efforts to revive the Chiricahua leopard frog habitat in Southeastern Arizona encountered severe obstacles. The introduction of invasive Am...
Why captive African male lions hit puberty earlier than wild lions, some at just 1.2 years of age? Here’s what researchers foundA study found captive-born African male lions reached puberty earlier than wild-born lions, with some reaching the stage before 1.2 years o...
In 1967, Los Angeles Zoo began breeding mountain tapirs from one pair, and the effort still shapes the species todayThe Los Angeles Zoo launched its mountain tapir breeding program in 1967, starting with a single pair. A significant achievement followed i...
In 1981, a dog in Wyoming accidentally killed a small creature. This ironically, brought back an almost extinct species. Decades later, cloning is keeping its genes aliveMore than 40 years ago, a dog unexpectedly killed an animal which was believed to have become extinct – a black-footed ferret. This discove...
In 1826, mosquitoes arrived in Hawaii and pushed native birds toward extinction. Now, scientists are releasing millions of mosquitoes to save themHawaii's native birds face extinction due to avian malaria transmitted by mosquitoes. Conservationists are releasing sterile male mosquitoe...
In 2002, crews removed rats from California’s Anacapa Island; 10 years later, rare seabirds were returning and the island’s ecosystem was recoveringAnacapa Island shows significant seabird recovery ten years after rat removal. Ashy storm-petrels now nest there, and Cassin's auklets have...
In Cumbria, freshwater pearl mussels in the River Kent can filter up to 50 litres of water each day; their filtration can help improve river water for fish, eels and ottersIn a groundbreaking initiative, a conservation project in the UK seeks to rehabilitate the endangered freshwater pearl mussels along the Ri...
In 2024, Naturskyddsföreningen Skåne launched a wetland revival when white storks vanished locally in the 1950s. 6 years later, it aims to support 100 pairs in Southern SwedenExtensive agricultural drainage drove Sweden’s white storks to local extinction in 1954. To bring them back, Naturskyddsföreningen Skåne la...
In 2019, this California sea creature was heading toward extinction; scientists raised babies in captivity and returned them to the oceanWhite abalone faced extinction due to overfishing and sparse populations. Scientists initiated a captive-breeding program, producing millio...
In 1914 passenger pigeon went extinct following the death of Martha in Cincinnati Zoo, over 100 years later more than 500 bird species are facing risk of extinction, finds research studyScientists found that even with complete protection from human-caused threats like habitat loss, hunting, and climate change, about 250 bir...
In 1963, officials counted just 417 nesting pairs of bald eagles as DDT drove them toward extinction. 44 years later, 9,789 pairs helped secure national symbol delistingThe bald eagle, once near extinction, has made a remarkable recovery. Habitat protection and the banning of DDT significantly aided their p...
In 1987, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service captured 27 wild California condors to save them from extinction. 32 years later, the recovery program hatched its 1,000th chick, marking one of North America’s greatest wildlife recoveriesCalifornia condors faced extinction with only twenty-seven birds remaining. Conservationists captured all remaining birds for a successful ...
In the late 1800s, California introduced red foxes for hunting and fur farms; at Seal Beach, they drove light-footed Ridgway's rails down to just 5 pairs in 7 yearsIn the late 1800s, non-native red foxes wreaked havoc on the population of Ridgway's rails, bringing them perilously close to extinction. F...
In 2003, a businessman bought a 23,000-acre estate to restore it; now it's home to a million trees and red squirrelsBusinessman Paul Lister transformed Scotland's 23,000-acre Alladale estate into a wilderness reserve, planting one million native trees and...
The tamarin on Brazil’s R$20 note once had only around 200 left in the wild; Smithsonian zoologist Devra Kleiman helped build the breeding program behind its recoveryOnce on the brink of extinction, the golden lion tamarin saw its population dwindle to a mere 200 individuals. Thanks to Devra Kleiman's pi...
The parrot on America’s El Yunque quarter once had only about 13 birds left in the wild; biologists bred and released new flocks across Puerto RicoFeatured on the 2012 US quarter, the Puerto Rican parrot symbolizes a triumph over extinction. In the 1990s, a genetic analysis unveiled a ...