Is there anything more inspiring than a wildlife success story?
Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom Protecting the Wild Co-Hosts Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant and Peter Gros have five amazing wildlife tales from 2024. Keep reading to feel inspired!
5 amazing wildlife tales from 2024
1. Giant pandas return to U.S. zoos
Visitors to U.S. zoos can once again see their favorite black and white bears. Giant pandas returned to the San Diego Zoo in August and the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in October.
“This is not just great for zoo guests, but it’s also great for international diplomacy and transboundary conservation,” Dr. Rae said.
Every panda in the world is owned by China and is loaned out to foreign zoos. These countries work with China to conduct research and fund giant panda conservation.
“It’s such good news to know that the U.S. and China are working together to save one of the most endangered species in the world,” Peter said.
Stay tuned for a panda sighting in a future Protecting the Wild episode — you won’t want to miss Peter’s interaction with these bears!
“These bamboo-loving pandas allowed me to participate in chopping down some of their zoo-grown bamboo, their main staple,” Peter said. “Later that day, we filmed a large, loveable pandas sitting up comfortably in his new zoo habitat chowing down on my freshly cut bamboo.”
2. Gray whales sighted in New England
Scientists couldn’t believe their eyes when they spotted a gray whale off the coast of New England in March. For 200 years, the gray whale has been extinct in the Atlantic Ocean. In the past 15 years, five gray whales have been sighted in the Atlantic, marking a historic comeback from their disappearance by the 18th century.
While filming the Season Two episode, “Safe Passage for Whales,” Peter met New England Aquarium’s Orla O’Brien, the first scientist to spot the whale.
“She explained how happy she was to see what was unmistakably a gray whale, back in the Atlantic Ocean,” Peter said. “As the climate is warming and more ice is melting, the Northwest Passage has opened enough for whales to cross from the Pacific to the Atlantic.”
3. Ethiopian wolves turned pollinators
For the first time, Ethiopian wolves were documented as pollinators. A study published in “Ecology” reports the wolves’ habit of feeding on the nectar of Ethiopian red hot poker flowers.
“This is one of the only examples of mammalian carnivore pollination,” Dr. Rae said.
While other mammals, such as sugar gliders, are known to pollinate plants, these wolves are the first large predators to do so. The wolves were observed feeding from the flowers and leaving with muzzles covered in pollen. They then would go on to visit as many as 30 blooms, potentially pollinating as they traveled.
This groundbreaking study shows just how much there still is to learn about the animal kingdom!
4. Death of grizzly 399 in Wyoming
Grand Teton National Park visitors mourned the news of the death of Grizzly 399 in October, but her legacy lives on in bear conservation.
“She was the longest living and longest-studied female bear in that region, and the most famous grizzly bear in America!” Dr. Rae said. “Plus, she kept having cubs well into her senior years. A power mama!”
At the time of her death, she was 28 years old — most wild grizzlies die before age 25. Grizzly 399 gave birth to at least 18 cubs, many of whom went on to have cubs of their own. She was frequently spotted by visitors to the park and even had her own social media pages.
Since 2007, Grizzly 399 has served as an ambassador for her species (a subspecies of the brown bear). Seeing her after hibernation season each year, gave conservationists worldwide hope for the species’ future success.
5. Big cat populations growing
Around the world, big cat conservationists are rejoicing as wild populations of these large carnivores are increasing.
“This is such encouraging news,” Peter said. “All the locations have governments and conservation groups working together to preserve our spectacular big cats of the world.”
In Thailand’s Western Forest Complex, the wild tiger population has tripled in the past 17 years, from 40 to 140, and counting. Meanwhile, in Kazakhstan, two Siberian tigers have been reintroduced to the country after 70 years of extinction.
Leopard populations are thriving too, especially in Zambia’s Kafue National Park.
“I’ve been involved with endangered spotted and striped cats’ conservation programs over the years in my career, so needless to say when I heard the news that the leopard population has tripled in one of the world’s largest conservation areas, I was elated,” Peter said.
The park reports 4.4 leopards per 100 square kilometers, which at over 35,000 kilometers, equates to many big cats!
“This great news gives much hope the that leopard stands to chance of success and recovery in this ecosystem,” Peter said.
For more inspirational wildlife success stories, tune in to Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom Protecting the Wild, weekends on NBC.
Plus, see the co-hosts’ top wildlife stories from 2023.
