CHICAGO (Feb. 4, 2025)— Chicago’s leading nature and wildlife institutions—Brookfield Zoo Chicago, Chicago Botanic Garden, Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences (Nature Museum), Shedd Aquarium, and The Morton Arboretum—are pledging to safeguard more than 40 endangered species worldwide as a part of Reverse the Red Day on Feb. 7. The coalition’s species pledges and conservation work demonstrate how urban centers like cities and suburbs can be key drivers of species protection, both locally and globally.
Reverse the Red is a coalition supporting partners working to halt extinctions, reverse declines shown on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List and recover species.
For Reverse the Red Day, held annually around the world to celebrate conservation success, the Chicago organizations are making 42 total Reverse the Red Species Pledges, declaring their continued commitment to work hand-in-hand with international partners to protect endangered species. Those species include: the alula plant in Hawaii, the arroyo oak tree in Mexico, Baltimore checkerspot butterflies in Illinois, Blanding’s turtles in the Great Lakes region, Mexican wolves in New Mexico, Guam kingfisher birds in the Pacific, white-bellied pangolins in Africa, Smooth greensnakes in the Midwestern prairies, South American fur seals and sea lions in Peru, and wood frogs in northern Illinois, among others.
Thanks to the steadfast work of Chicago’s leading nature and wildlife organizations, further supported by The Morton Arboretum and Shedd Aquarium being designated in 2023 as the first Centers for Species Survival for trees and freshwater ecosystems respectively, the city is emerging as a key contributor in the international race to protect biodiversity.
“The work and commitment to species recovery from Chicago-based organizations are vital to recovering species,” said Reverse the Red Director of Strategy Michael Clifford. “The thousands of species pledges we’ve received from all over the world so far are demonstrating that actions are happening, and this incredible Reverse the Red network, with specific strategies, skills, expertise and experience is committed to achieving our biodiversity goals—in Chicago and beyond.”
Clifford added, “We know conservation action works but we need to increase the pace and scale substantially. Thanks to work like that of these Chicago-based organizations, the tides are changing. We can have a future where species everywhere are thriving. Together, we can reverse the red.”
Chicago Reverse the Red Species Pledges
Brookfield Zoo Chicago
Brookfield Zoo Chicago’s ongoing conservation and research efforts aim to reverse species declines and support biodiversity globally. For Reverse the Red Day, the Zoo pledged to continue recovery and conservation work for seven species, including white-bellied pangolins (Phataginus tricuspis), Guam kingfishers (Todiramphus cinnamominus), Mexican wolves (Canis lupus baileyi), South American fur seals (Arctocephalus australis), South American sea lions (Otaria flavescens), Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti) and common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus).
The white-bellied pangolin, for example, is a species listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List. White-bellied pangolins are one of the most trafficked mammals in the world. Each year, over 200,000 animals are poached for the illegal bushmeat trade, and their scales are used in traditional medicine and jewelry. Habitat loss has also exacerbated the species’ decline. In 2016, Brookfield Zoo Chicago led the establishment of the North American Pangolin Consortium to aid in better understanding pangolin behavior and physiology and to support field conservation efforts for the imperiled species. Brookfield Zoo Chicago is also proud to be just one of only a few zoos in the world to have successfully bred and birthed pangolins; the Zoo celebrated another pangolin birth in August 2024. The Zoo remains committed to expanding our knowledge of pangolins and supporting conservation efforts in their native environments, including most recently in Deng-Deng National Park in Cameroon’s Eastern region. Read the Zoo’s pledge to conserve pangolins, along with its full list of pledges, here.
Chicago Botanic Garden
The Chicago Botanic Garden has pledged its continued commitment to supporting the genetic diversity of the alula (Brighamia insignis), in partnership with the National Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG), and the titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum), in partnership with the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) in Indonesia. Both species produce seeds which cannot be stored in conventional seed banks; an approach that preserves the genetic diversity of species at freezing temperatures. For these plants that are derived from tropical regions, scientists need to find more creative ways to conserve genetic diversity. That’s why the Garden and its partners adopted a “plant studbook” approach for conserving rare species that can only be preserved as living plant material. A pedigree (or family tree) has been developed for both the alula and the titan arum plants growing in the collections of botanic gardens around the world. This will allow us to track the diversity from the original wild-collected plants through the collections, and support breeding programs that maintain that genetic diversity in the plants that are propagated.
After years of research and collaboration with partners implementing the “plant studbook” approach for the breeding of the alula, the Garden was recently able to help plant experimental plots at NTBG on the Hawaiian island of Kauai to bring us one step closer to returning this plant to the wild. For the titan arum, which is native to the equatorial rainforests on the island of Sumatra (in the Indonesian archipelago) and cannot be self-pollinated, the Garden developed a pollen bank to store pollen and share it with other botanic gardens that have titan arums in their collections to support genetic diversity of the species.
“While these two species are rare, the story of their decline is not—almost 40 percent of known flowering plants are estimated to be at risk of extinction,” said Jeremie Fant, Ph.D., a plant conservation scientist at the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Negaunee Institute for Plant Conservation Science and Action. “We have a responsibility to help plants that have been pushed to the edge of extinction. The ‘plant studbook’ approach provides us with another valuable tool to help reduce biodiversity loss and get plants back into the wild.”
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences
The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences has pledged to continue its recovery and conservation research of Blanding’s turtles (Emydoidea blandingii), smooth greensnakes (Opheodrys vernalis), Baltimore checkerspot butterflies (Euphydryas phaeton) and wood frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus). These species have lost wetland, grassland and woodland habitats upon which they depend. The Nature Museum’s conservation team is working to secure remaining populations, address threats to these species and reestablish populations within their historic range. Working with regional land managers, habitats are being restored, and the Nature Museum team is evaluating applied tools like rearing populations in managed environments, translocation and reintroduction to conserve these species.
“At the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, we are dedicated to the recovery and conservation of species like Blanding’s turtles, smooth greensnakes, Baltimore checkerspot butterflies and wood frogs,” said the Nature Museum’s President and CEO Erin Amico. “By collaborating with regional partners and employing innovative conservation strategies, we are working to restore critical habitats and ensure the future of these species. But this work is far from over—and we need your support. Join us in this essential mission by engaging with our efforts, learning more about our conservation programs and helping us make a lasting impact on biodiversity, both locally and globally.” Learn more about the conservation of these species on the Nature Museum’s website.
Shedd Aquarium
Shedd Aquarium has announced 28 species pledges representing animals from the backyard of our Great Lakes to ecosystems halfway across the world. Nearly two thirds of the aquarium’s pledges are focused on freshwater mussels, both in the Midwest and across Central America, through Shedd’s Center for Species Survival: Freshwater. These vital animals represent some of the most endangered and under-researched species in the world. Shedd is proud to serve as a champion for freshwater animals and environments, which the planet is losing at an especially alarming rate.
The aquarium has also made pledges on behalf of a broad range of marine animals including reptiles, invertebrates, fish and mammals. This list includes three species of endangered Caribbean coral, zebra sharks (Stegostoma tigrinum), bowmouth guitarfish (Rhina ancylostoma), southern California sea otters (Enhydra lutris nereis), sunflower sea stars (Pycnopodia helianthoides) and northern Bahamian rock iguanas (Cyclura cychlura).
“Marine and freshwater environments are particularly susceptible to changes in our climate and human impacts,” said Chuck Knapp, Ph.D., vice president of conservation research at Shedd Aquarium. “Through a network of global partnerships, Shedd Aquarium is contributing to meaningful species recovery efforts designed to halt the loss of aquatic biodiversity and encourage sustainability and resilience in the critically important environments where they live.”
The Morton Arboretum
The Morton Arboretum, in partnership with Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste S.C. in Mexico, pledged its continued commitment to protecting the endangered arroyo oak (Quercus brandegeei). Found only in Baja California Sur, Mexico, the arroyo oak is a keystone tree species that plays a vital role in the dry forest ecosystem and has deep cultural significance to communities in the Cabo region. Climate change, overgrazing by livestock and a lack of young trees to replace the old have put the arroyo oak in danger. There are fewer than 10,000 of these trees left in their small range. See the Arboretum’s infographic in English and Spanish or visit mortonarb.org/arroyo to learn about the conservation efforts underway.
“Approximately one-third of the world’s tree species are threatened with extinction,” said The Morton Arboretum’s Global Tree Conservation Program Director Silvia Alvarez-Clare, Ph.D. “We are seeing progress in our partnerships to protect the arroyo oak, and we can’t stop now. The Morton Arboretum and our partners are making a Reverse the Red Species Pledge to do our utmost to protect the arroyo oak. Together, we can reverse the red and safeguard the future of this keystone tree species.”
These Reverse the Red Species Pledges are just one component of the robust conservation action underway by Brookfield Zoo Chicago, Chicago Botanic Garden, Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, Shedd Aquarium and The Morton Arboretum. Together, this coalition is putting Chicago on the map as a conservation leader. Visit each institution’s website to learn more.