Endangered Species

Sombrero ground lizards (Pholidoscelis corvinus) are endemic to Sombrero Island, north of Anguilla, which means they're found nowhere else on the planet.

This Once-Rare Lizard Bounced Back From the Brink of Extinction After 'Painstaking' Restoration Efforts in the Caribbean

In 2018, fewer than 100 Sombrero ground lizards remained on Sombrero Island—but now, more than 1,600 of the critically endangered reptiles are scampering around the limestone landscape

Our most-read stories of the year featured photographer Vivian Maier, underwater caves in the Yucatán Peninsula, auroras and more.

Ten Top Smithsonian Stories of 2024, From a Mysterious Underground Chamber to Dazzling Auroras

The magazine's most-read articles of the year included a close-up look at the adorable yet venomous pygmy slow loris, a profile of a little-known 20th-century street photographer and a majestic journey with divers into Mexico’s underwater caves

Siberian tigers Boris and Svetlaya lounge together in the wild. Boris walked 120 miles to reunite with her after their release from a rehabilitation program.

Two Orphaned Siberian Tigers Reunite as Mates After a 120-Mile Trek Through Russian Wilderness

Conservationists hope the love story between Boris and Svetlaya might indicate a new, successful chapter in tiger repopulation efforts

Monarch butterflies are well-known and beloved migratory pollinators in North America.

Monarch Butterflies Might Soon Be Listed as Threatened Under the Endangered Species Act

If a new proposal is adopted, the insects would become the most commonly seen species to be the subject of federal protection under this law

Hawaiian crows, or ʻalalā, are intelligent birds that play an important role in Hawaiian culture. (This is not one of the five individuals taking part in the pilot release on Maui.)

Scientists Release Five Hawaiian Crows on Maui, Giving the Imperiled Birds a Second Chance—on a New Island

Only about 110 individuals of the species, called ʻalalā, are left in the world, making them the most endangered crows on Earth

An Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis) licks nectar from the Ethiopian red hot poker flower (Kniphofia foliosa).

These Endangered Wolves Have a Sweet Tooth—and It Might Make Them Rare Carnivorous Pollinators

Ethiopian wolves like to lick up the flower nectar of red hot poker plants, and researchers have caught the behavior on camera

Manatees have rebounded since the 1970s but still face myriad threats.

Archaeologists Piece Together the Origin Story of Florida's Manatees, Revealing They Were Once Tourists

A new study suggests manatees weren’t permanent residents in the Sunshine State until around the 20th century, drawn in by a warming climate and construction of power plants

The Santa Marta sabrewing, a highly elusive bird, showed itself in 2022, in Colombia, giving hope to conservationists.

Dedicated Scientists and Birdwatchers Tracked Down These Five ‘Lost’ Birds

A worldwide search party is using 21st-century tools to uncover long-unseen species, one of which hadn't been found since the 19th century

Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs are rebounding from near-extinction in California.

Endangered Sierra Nevada Yellow-Legged Frogs Are Making a Comeback

Scientists are celebrating the recovery of the species in Yosemite National Park, where they were decimated by the introduction of non-native fish and the deadly amphibian chytrid fungus

A diver swims alongside the world’s largest coral colony, located in the Solomon Islands.

See Staggering Photos of the World's Largest Coral, Newly Discovered by Scientists in the Pacific Ocean

The enormous organism is bigger than a blue whale and made up of millions of genetically identical, tiny animals called polyps

This adult Partula tohiveana snail doesn't have a dot of UV-reflective paint on its shell, meaning it was born in the wild.

These Tiny Snails Are Breeding in the Wild for the First Time in 40 Years in French Polynesia

During a release of captive-bred snails in September, researchers discovered wild-born individuals from the Partula tohiveana species—which had been considered extinct in the wild—marking a huge milestone in a global effort to save them

Cloned black-footed ferret Antonia's kits at three weeks old, on July 9, 2024.

A Cloned Ferret Has Given Birth for the First Time in History, Marking a Win for Her Endangered Species

Antonia, a cloned black-footed ferret at the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, has produced two healthy offspring that will help build genetic diversity in their recovering population

Haggis joins Moo Deng as a popular ambassador for the pygmy hippopotamus species, which is endangered.

Meet Haggis, the Latest Baby Pygmy Hippo to Win Over the Internet

Born October 30 to parents Gloria and Otto at the Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland, the hippo is already gaining popularity, following in the footsteps of viral sensation Moo Deng

Moira was released into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego last month. Activities conducted under the Stranding Agreement between NMFS and SeaWorld California under the Authority of the MMPA.

After Months of Rehab, Moira the Cold-Stunned Sea Turtle Has Been Returned to the Wild

When fishermen found the endangered loggerhead sea turtle off Vancouver Island in February, she was listlessly floating in a bed of kelp

The crowning glory of the Gardenia brighamii is its pearly flower.

Can Fungi Save This Endangered Hawaiian Tree?

By inoculating greenhouse na’u seedlings with mycorrhizal fungi, researchers hope to boost survival odds when the plants are returned to the wild

At least 16,425 of the 47,282 tree species examined in a new IUCN report are at risk of extinction.

More Than One in Three Tree Species Around the Globe Are at Risk of Disappearing, New Report Finds

An assessment from the International Union for Conservation of Nature paints a grim picture of the extinction risk of the world's trees

Scientists feared the giant salmon carp had gone extinct, but recent discoveries revealed the elusive species is still in the wild.

A Massive, Mysterious 'Ghost' Fish, Feared Extinct for Nearly 20 Years, Has Been Rediscovered in Cambodia

The giant salmon carp was formally identified in 1991, and since then, fewer than 30 individuals had been documented

Dime Melovski gestures at lynx displayed in a hunter’s lodge in North Macedonia. The hunters found the lynx dead on the road and asked the scientists for permission to taxidermy it.

Can Lynx Be Saved in the Balkans?

A small team of local scientists are fighting rapid industrialization, misinformation and more to save Europe’s iconic cat

In the 1980s, there were only 22 surviving California condors. Now, after careful conservation measures, there are over 300 in the wild and 200 in captivity. (The above bird is not Milagra.)

Meet Milagra, a Rare Condor Rescued as an Egg and Newly Released Back Into the Wild

Milagra, Spanish for “miracle,” was hatched and raised in captivity by foster condor parents after her mother died of avian flu in April 2023

A polar bear looks out of a window frame on a deserted Russian island.

See 11 of the Best Wildlife Photographs From Years Past

A new book reveals striking images from six decades of the beloved Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition

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