Habitat destruction, deforestation, ozone depletion, global warming and poaching. These ecological actions and events create a world where animals are disappearing at a rapid rate. Our world is on the brink of what scientists believe is the sixth mass extinction. Unlike the five previous mass extinctions, the last of which killed the majority of dinosaurs, the main causes of this current extinction are anthropogenic reasons and not natural events. Scientists estimate that without humans, about one to five species would die each year, which is considered the background extinction rate. But in our society today, human activities are destroying many of these animals' chances of survival. As a planet, we are killing species at a rate 1,000 to 10,000 times higher than expected. Unlike previous extinctions, 99% of species listed under the Endangered Species Act have become threatened due to human activities, such as the introduction of invasive species. , habitat destruction and global warming (the extinction crisis). What can we do to stop this? How can we save the animals we have endangered and threatened? The Species Survival Plan: The AZA, Associations of Zoos and Aquariums, has set up a global system to try to save these highly endangered animals. The program is called the Species Survival Plan. As part of the Species Survival Plan, zoos and aquariums in conjunction with the AZA follow a system of rules and plans to help promote the care of these endangered animals at the facilities. Each animal, among the more than 500 species protected by the AZA, has its own management system put in place by the different organizations. Plans are dedicated to maintaining genetically diverse populations...... middle of paper...... old and are prepared to attempt to bring the species back. At Turtleback Zoo, the lead leopard zookeeper, Danielle, agreed to be interviewed for the project. She explained that under the Species Survival Plan, each zoo equipped with facilities to house leopards receives a breeding pair in the hope that they can produce viable offspring. After the babies are born, the father is sent away and the babies stay with the mother for about a year. After this year, cubs from zoos around the world with Amur leopards, as part of the species survival program, are matched according to the genetic variation of the new offspring. They are sent to different zoos with their breeding pair to repeat the process. Some pairs could even be returned to their natural habitat and released into the wild in order to increase the wild population (Interview with Turtleback Zookeeper Danielle).