News Archive

Carnivore keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) in Front Royal, Virginia, welcomed a litter of endangered black-footed ferrets this week.

For graduate fellow Sean Lyons, "getting to the root of it all" was always his focus. So, it comes as no surprise that he wound up working with the root of all life: DNA.

Twenty-three years after being declared “extinct in the wild”, the scimitar-horned oryx has made a remarkable comeback. Smithsonian ecologist Katherine Mertes shares how the species reached the turning point.

Leimgruber has more than 25 years of experience in developing and managing international conservation programs and partnerships.

Smithsonian scientists discuss the impact of the first federal law designed to save endangered and imperiled animals from extinction.

In 2004, the United States Congress designated Dec. 13 to be “National Day of the Horse” - an opportunity to recognize the outsized role domesticated horses have played in human history. But for this year’s Day of the Horse, we’re taking a different tack, if you will, to recognize the Przewalski’s...

Does an animal's personality play a role on whether it will survive in the wild? Researchers are using a surprising clue to find out: poop.

A lifelong goal to save animals led Smithsonian fellow Molly Corder to find ways to protect critically endangered black rhinos from extinction threats.

Roads can be a dangerous challenge for terrestrial and arboreal wildlife. One scientist is trying to change that.

After a potentially deadly injury, one endangered wild horse got a new lease on life thanks to the Smithsonian's veterinary team.

New research shows limitations to recovery without consistent conservation efforts.

Poison frogs living in human care aren’t poisonous, thanks to a “detox” diet of mild insects, like crickets and fruit flies. Can adding alkaloids to a frog’s diet help it regain its toxins and get its “spice” back? 

Here's why eating poop can sometimes be good for animal health—and how the practice is even becoming an important part of human and animal medicine.

When a team of scientists couldn't visit a forest to conduct research, they did it remotely, based on information made available in biodiversity databases.

Wood turtles are one of the most endangered freshwater turtles in North America. To ensure a future for these reptiles, scientists first need to understand where wood turtles remain and how many are left.

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute will celebrate 50 years of unprecedented achievement in the care, conservation, breeding and study of giant pandas April 16. Today is National Panda Day, a fitting start for the Zoo’s six-month-long celebration for its visitors and...

The countdown to the Guam kingfisher’s reintroduction to the wild has begun. Before these birds, also called siheks, can soar over the Palmyra Atoll, scientists need to determine which harness materials can carry a tracking device and stand the test of time. 

A study published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution found that widespread restoration of bison to Tribal lands throughout the Northern Great Plains can help restore the prairie ecosystem while improving the long-running issue of food insecurity and food sovereignty for Native Nations and may...

As the Arctic and the oceans warm due to climate change, understanding how a rapidly changing environment may affect birds making annual journeys between the Arctic and the high seas is vital to international conservation efforts.

Have you herd . . . our Persian onager filly and scimitar-horned oryx calves are exploring their surroundings! Get the latest update on their adventures from Tara Buk, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute animal keeper. 

Guam rails are small, speedy ground birds who can only fly three to 10 feet at a time. They are also only the second bird in history – after the California condor – to recover from being extinct in the wild. The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute is an active participant...

Find out how Smithsonian researchers are using camera traps to study bobcats on the Northern Great Plains.

Sometimes, science stinks — literally! In Montana, researchers are setting up “scat traps" to attract swift foxes, so they can learn from the droppings the foxes leave behind.

Modern technology is helping unravel the mystery of how migratory birds achieve their amazing flights. Researchers are already finding that many birds fly farther, faster and higher than they thought.

From the first bird-tracking study to technology 100 years later, scientists finally know where black-crowned night herons travel.