Andres Manuel Olivares Miranda describes how animal conservation has helped save some animal species from the brink of extinction.

1. ENDANGERED
ANIMALS
THAT HAVE RECOVERED FROM THE BRINK OF EXTINCTION
Andres Manuel Olivares Miranda

2. WHAT CAUSES
EXTINCTION?
We live in a time when many animal species around
the world are facing extinction. Scientists warn that
global climate change will have a great impact on
many animals leading to the extinction of several
species, and habitat destruction due to an expanding
human population is also a major player in animal
extinction.
Even though the news for many animal species may
seem bleak, it is not all bad news. There are species
that were once on the brink of extinction that are
now recovering their numbers in the wild.

3. BROWN
PELICAN
The brown pelican is a conservation success story.
Before reintroduction programs began, and over
1,200 brown pelicans were reintroduced into the
wild, the brown pelican had almost vanished in the
wild. Certain pesticides had caused this bird's eggs
to have such thin shells that when the mothers sat
on the eggs, the shells broke apart. Since the
reintroduction program began, nearly 24,000 brown
pelicans have hatched.

4. VIRGINIA NORTHERN FLYING
SQUIRREL
This little squirrel that soars through the air from tree to tree was reduced to ten members living in
the wild in 1985. Their numbers were reduced due to intensive logging in their habitat area. Groups
like the Nature Conservancy helped with forest regeneration, and the squirrel was reintroduced back
into the wild. Now, the squirrels number over 1,100 individuals.

5. GRAY WOLF
When a gray wolf population count was taken in
1960, there were only 300 gray wolves in the lower
48 states, and these wolves were scattered in
isolated pockets within Wisconsin and Minnesota.
There was also a small population at Isle Royale in
Michigan.
Gray wolves were reintroduced into many parts of
their former range including within Yellowstone
National Park. Significant populations were also
reintroduced within Idaho and Montana. The recovery
of the gray wolf is a conservation highlight. When a
new wolf census was conducted in 2013, the wolf
numbers had increased to over 5,400 individuals.

6. The Endangered Species Act was instrumental in
helping this goose come back from the edge. Foxes
that were not native to this birds habitat had
decimated the population leaving only 790 birds. The
foxes were removed, and this goose now has over
100,000 individuals in the wild.
ALEUTIAN
CANADA
GOOSE

7. WHAT HELPS?
WHILE MANY SPECIES ARE ON THE VERGE OF EXTINCTION, CONCERTED
EFFORTS BY CONSERVATION ORGANIZATIONS CAN MAKE A REMARKABLE
DIFFERENCE.