In the last 100 years, the African Painted Dog population has dropped a whopping 99% - down to just 3000 remaining dogs – making them one of the rarest species in all of Africa. These precious pups are often the victims of poaching, killings by farmers and run-ins with automobile traffic. But one organization has vowed to come to the aid of these defenseless dogs. The Painted Dog Conservation Program (PDCP) is focusing on research, education and community development in order to save them.

With just 3,000 Grevy’s zebra left in the world, The Grevy’s Zebra Trust was established to address the urgent need to conserve this zebra species, found only in northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia where drought has been severe, habitat has shrunk and they are illegally killed and persecuted due to competition for resources with domestic cattle.

The devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Northern Japan on March 11 greatly impacted several zoos and aquariums in the area. The facilities have been dealing with a wide range of issues including flooding, structural damage, power outages, and gas and fuel shortages. Food and drinking water for both staff members and animals have also come into short supply. One zoo, The Aquamarine Fukushima, suffered damage that required the transport of their animals to another aquarium.

When January storms battered San Diego, polluted runoff water may have sickened some 500 brown pelicans. According to Stephanie Costelow, SeaWorld San Diego's curator of birds, the park took in and cared for 102 sick birds in January alone.

First in a series on Julie Scardina's recent trip to Africa

Although the 2009 hurricane season seems to be fairly quiet, it provided excitement for a group of loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings rescued by our experts at SeaWorld Orlando.

This past August, Hurricane Bill spared Florida but the huge storm's affects were still felt by some of the states' smallest residents. Three loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings were under the care of SeaWorld aquarists after rough seas prevented the trio from making their trek into the waters off the Cape Canaveral National Seashore.