Hope for Animals and Their World

Withthe resurgence of red wolves and California condors, there is goodnews on the species front, as chronicled in this collection ofsuccess stories by renowned chimp researcher Goodall. Section onerecounts the revival of six mammal and bird species, includingMongolian miniature horses and Australian wallabies, that becameextinct in the wild but are being reintroduced to their naturalhabitat through captive breeding. Section two describes efforts tobring species back from near extinction, among them Brazil's goldenlion tamarin and the North American whooping crane. Section threedetails continuing efforts to preserve 11 species, including thegiant pandas of China, whose bamboo diet is disappearing, and theAsian vultures of India, whose disastrous population drop—from areported 87 million birds to 27 breeding pairs in 2006—has led to adramatic rise in disease incubated by putrefying cattle carcassesonce scavenged by the carrion-loving birds. Goodall is no Pollyannaabout species reclamation—she acknowledges that there have beenmore losses than gains—but these accounts of conservation successare inspirational.