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 and made projections about global extinction rates, the chairman of the Heinz Center for Biodiversity is still trying to get the world's attention about the dwindling number of animals inhabiting the earth.

in a recent article for Scientific American

Lovejoy highlights some of nature's most visible creatures: big cats like lions and tigers. He says scientists have a term for animals most of us never think of as endangered: the "living dead." At the current rate of extinction, he writes, these wild creatures will no longer live in the wild and will be confined to zoos and wildlife areas a century from now. 

A Minnesota scientist, meanwhile, is playing a prominent role in efforts to avoid that outcome.  

 directs the Minnesota Zoo's conservation work. In addition to coordinating tiger conservation with other zoos around the country, she's spearheading initiatives closer to home to save creatures that might not be as visible as the big cats.

Smithsonian Conservation Biological Institute

 explain the intricate steps they are willing to take to promote breeding in captivity:

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Biodiversity expert Thomas Lovejoy says that if trends continue, lions and tigers will no longer live in the wild and will be confined to zoos and wildlife areas a century from now.

Lions, tigers have 100 years left in the wild, says biodiversity expert

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