North America

Blooming Conservation in Orange County

Developing strategies and partnerships to meet the conservation needs of the Orange County region.

Restoration of Bunchgrass Ecosystems in the Blue Mountain Ecoregion

Bunchgrass habitat is one of the most degraded ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest due to cultivation, over-grazing, altered fire regimes and the introduction of non-native plant species.

Giving Palms a Hand

Developing science-based certification protocols for harvesting various species of palm resources.

Three Decades of the Condor

Conservation strategies to save the California condor.

Tortoise Conservation Coming out of Its Shell

The San Diego Zoo has joined the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in operating the Desert Tortoise Conservation Center located in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Banking on the Seed Bank Project

San Diego County is a recognized biodiversity hotspot with an incredibly diverse native flora. This diversity is under constant threat from habitat loss and fragmentation, particularly from intensive coastal development.

Growing Native Seeds for Native Americans Program

Our innovative Native Seeds for Native Americans program links conservation with cultural empowerment of Native American tribes to help renew a connection between native plants and tribal people.

Conserving California Coastal Sage

Southern California has been identified as a one of the worlds richest biodiversity hotspots by the international conservation community.  Much of this diversity is found in a habitat known as coastal sage scrub, which historically occupied large areas of southern California.

Loggerhead Shrike Program Making a Home Run

Since 1991, the Zoological Society of San Diego has been involved in the recovery of the San Clemente loggerhead shrike Lanius ludovicianus mearnsi, one of the most endangered passerines in North America. This shrike is found only on the U.S. Navy-owned San Clemente Island, the southernmost island of California’s Channel Islands and an essential training base for U.S. military.

Health Assessments for Thick-Billed Parrots in Northern Mexico

Current populations of thick-billed parrots are threatened by habitat destruction and degradation. Biologists have proposed the translocation of thick-billed parrots within Mexico and from Mexico into the U.S. in an attempt to bolster existing populations and create a separate population outside of the Sierra Madres.

Research and Outreach for Polar Bears

This program addresses specific aspects of polar bear biology deemed important for conservation management in the wild and zoos including sensory ecology research and the Arctic Ambassador program.

Finding Digs for Endangered Small Mammals in Southern California

This project uses the study of behavioral ecology theory to drive conservation of small mammals in Southern California.

Effects of Wind Turbines on California Condor in Baja and Beyond

As concerns over global warming rise, interest in renewable energy have increased dramatically, resulting in the expanding development of wind turbine facilities around the world. However, wind energy has its own price, posing great risk to birds and bats.

Your “Tern!” Monitoring Least Terns and Snowy Plovers

San Diego Zoo Conservation Research continues to coordinate long-term monitoring efforts essential to understanding and slowing population declines in local threatened and endangered shorebirds.

Managing California Condor Health

San Diego Zoo Conservation Research is undertaking several health related studies for California condors, including West Nile Virus (WNV), effects of chronic lead exposure, and utilizing new DNA sequencing technologies.

Return of the California Condor to Baja and Beyond

Only a few hundred years ago, the California condor ranged from British Columbia to Baja California, Mexico. As European pioneers settled within its range, the species declined dramatically to near extinction in the mid-1980s. Working with Mexican partners, Conservation Research Applied Animal Ecology scientists have embarked on a long-term program to restore the California condor to the mountains of northern Baja California and beyond.

Adding Amphibians to the Ark

The Frozen Zoo® at San Diego Zoo Conservation Research is a precious and irreplaceable resource. It represents one of the most important ex situ conservation efforts undertaken in the last 25 years. Presently, over 95 percent of its 7,600 accessions consist of mammalian taxa, although the most rapidly expanding components of the Frozen Zoo, in terms of new taxa, consist of avian and reptilian species.

Global Amphibian Decline and the Fungus Among Us

San Diego Zoo Conservation Research pathologists are among the leading experts on chytridiomycosis, the devastating fungal disease thought to be the leading cause of the global decline of amphibians.

Mountain Yellow-legged Frog Hopping for Survival

Representatives from California Department of Fish & Game, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), U.S. Forest Service, and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) are working with San Diego Zoo Conservation Research and the San Diego Zoo Herpetology Department to develop a captive breeding and translocation plan for the critically endangered mountain yellow-legged frog.

Check back regularly for additional conservation projects!