These are true stories of endangered animals that have been brought back from the brink. These stories show that it is never too late. With proper care and help from us it is possible to recover the population of endangered and helpless animals. Some of these animals were expected to become extinct. It was believed that there was very little chance of their population recovering; regardless, simple care and diligence has proven that anything is possible, even in hopeless cases.

The comeback of an endangered fish species!
Scientists believe that the shortnose sturgeon is the first time in U.S. a fish marked as endangered has been shown to have recovered. The population of this fish has gone up by 400 percent in the Hudson River since being added on to the endangered species list; regardless, this species of fish is still endangered in other rivers. Recovery is slow and rare. This success story offers a flicker of hope and potential for future success.

Bald eagles may no longer be endangered
The bald eagles have recovered from low numbers years ago. It is expected that they will soon be removed from the endangered species list. Even if they are removed from the endangered species list they will continue to be protected so they do not start going down in numbers again.

Gray wolves are no longer endangered
The gray wolves were once hunted to extinction and they were added to the endangered species list. Their numbers have since increased to numbers that they no longer need protection under the endangered species act. Though the wolves will not have federal protection, they will have state level protection. If the population drops anytime within the next five years, the federal government will quickly return them to the endangered species list on an emergency basis.

Baby vulture born in captivity sparks hope for endangered species
The oriental white-backed-vulture is one of the most endangered of all vulture species. This bird has been bred in captivity for the first time in India. When the dwindling population of this vulture was captured from the wild and isolated for the breeding program they did not know what to expect. The birth of this baby vulture on Jan 1st, 2007 turned out to be the best New Year's gift the breeding center could get!

Little piggy is back from the brink!
Pygmy hogs are the world's smallest and rarest pigs. They were actually considered to be extinct until a small group of them were spotted in Assam, India, in 1971. Six of these pigs were captured to be bred in captivity. The program has been so successful that 10 out of the 70 pigs in the breeding center are ready to be released into the wild. They are still considered endangered as there are fewer than 100 of them left.

An endangered baby elephant born after artificial insemination
A Thai elephant that was artificially inseminated gave birth to a male calf recently. This species of elephant is severely endangered. This is the first time the Asians have been successful in artificially inseminating an elephant. People are hopeful that this will bring the endangered elephants back from the brink.