Endangered Species

From our start in 1961, WWF has worked toward the protection of endangered species. Our mission is to use the best conservation science available and work with people to find solutions to save the marvelous array of life on our planet.

WWF’s experience over nearly half a century has shown species conservation is vital — and it does work. Already, conservation efforts have brought many animals back from the brink of extinction. It has helped to not only conserve rich and varied ecosystems but also delivered real benefits to local people through new livelihood opportunities and sustainable development.

But our work is far from done. Destructive human activities have led to the current rate of species extinction, which is at least 100–1,000 times higher than the expected natural rate.

This has impacts far beyond the potential cultural loss of iconic species such as tigers, rhinos and whales. Species and the ecosystems they are part of provide essential goods and services that make human life possible and contribute enormously to our health and well-being — breathable air, clean water, food, fibers, building materials, medicines, energy, fertile soils, climate regulation, transport, and recreational and spiritual values.

Our conservation efforts are directed towards flagship species, iconic animals that provide a focus for raising awareness and stimulating action and funding for broader conservation efforts in our priority places; and footprint-impacted species whose populations are primarily threatened because of unsustainable hunting, logging or fishing.

Her are some of the endangered species: 

Scientific Name: Panthera pardus orientalisHabitat: temperate forests
Location: Russian Far East and Northern China
Population: Fewer than 50 individuals

#1. Amur leopard survey revealed a total of 12 leopards in Russia’s Primorsky Province, located between the Sea of Japan and the Chinese border.

#2. Scientific Name: Cheloniidae and Dermochelyidae families

Habitat: Open water and coastal habitats

Marine Turtle

Three of the seven existing species of marine turtle are critically endangered

Six of the seven species of marine turtles are listed as Endangered or Critically Endangered, and the outlook is increasingly grim. Marine turtles have the ability to reproduce abundantly; females can lay hundreds of eggs in one nesting season. Even under natural conditions, relatively few young turtles survive their first year of life. Predators such as crabs, foxes and birds often kill the hatchlings as they make their way from the nest to the sea.

#3. Tiger 

As few as 3,200

Wild tiger numbers are at an all-time low. The largest of all the Asian big cats may be on top of the food chain and one of the most culturally important and best-loved animals, but they are also vulnerable to extinction. Tigers are forced to compete for space with dense human populations, face unrelenting pressure from poaching, retaliatory killings and habitat loss across their range.