Endangered Wolf Center
The Endangered Wolf Center is a non-profit wildlife facility in Eureka, Missouri, United States, near St. Louis that is dedicated to preserving and reintroducing to the wild critically endangered species of wolves. It is certified by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). The Center was founded in 1971 by renowned naturalist Marlin Perkins and his wife Carol, who saw that wolves around the world were in danger of becoming extinct. Its mission is to preserve and protect Mexican wolves, red wolves, and other wild canid species, with purpose and passion, through carefully managed breeding, reintroduction and inspiring education programs. Animals born at the facility have been reintroduced to North Carolina (red wolves) and Arizona and New Mexico (Mexican wolves). The Center's research focuses on reproductive, behavioral and nutritional needs for the species housed there. The Endangered Wolf Center is a founding member of the AZA’s Mexican Wolf and Red Wolf Species Survival Plans. As of August 2016, the Center had six species of endangered canids: Mexican wolves, red wolves, maned wolves, African painted dogs, fennec foxes and swift foxes. It had more than 20 Mexican gray wolves, more than any other managed breeding facility. (Only 97 Mexican wolves were known to exist in the wild as of 2015.) The Center serves as the cornerstone of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's program to preserve Mexican wolves and reintroduce them to the wild.
Red-breasted goose
In autumn of 1997 the population was estimated to be around 88,000 individuals. In the winter these numbers can shrink to around 70,000. The red-breasted goose is one of the species to which the "Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds" (AEWA) applies. The red-breasted goose is legally protected in many states, however hunting is still continued. The AEWA is monitoring the species and providing up to date information on the status of the species, its habitat, migrations, ecology, and conservation needs. It was considered a Vulnerable species by the IUCN. Over 80% of the population roost during the winter at just five sites, with nearby feeding areas threatened by changes in land use. In addition, there has been a strong decline in numbers in the last decades. However, it is possible that this decline may have been exaggerated, as it is possible that some birds may winter at unknown sites. The species' winter distribution has already changed significantly since the 1960s when much of the population occurred along the western coast of the Caspian Sea, in Iran, and in Iraq. Some birds may now be wintering farther west as indicated by recorded counts of 2,000 birds in Hungary as of the winter of 2014, whereas counts previously only accounted for a few hundred. As it is not clear to what extent the known population fluctuates in this species—as in other Arctic geese—and given the worsening outlook for the species as a whole, the red-breasted goose was uplisted from a species of Least Concern to Endangered status in the 2007 IUCN Red List. In 2015 it was relisted as Vulnerable. There have been attempts to conserve the species, such as in 2005-2008, a Life-funded project in Romania was implemented so that the habitat quality of an important salt water lake used by the species was increased. The Life Programme and AEWA hosted a workshop in February 2009 for the species that aimed to draft a new International Species Action Plan and report the results of the Life project.