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Every wild animal deserves our stewardship.
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From the endangered golden lion tamarind to the threatened American bison, many iconic animal species have captured our imaginations.
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Their conservation stories symbolize our responsibility to protect the wild places and animals of the world, and today we're highlighting a few of our favorites.
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Sea turtles are one of the most beloved animals on Earth.
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These long distance swimmers migrate thousands of miles across the world's oceans.
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Thanks to global cooperation and awareness, sea turtles are protected, but all 7 species are threatened and some are critically endangered.
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Turtles a conservation because they are threatened by pollution, they're threatened by climate change, they're also threatened by fishing and bycatch.
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Today, I'm in the Bahamas to take part in a sea turtle conservation project.
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Kristen, this is really cool.
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All these sea turtles behind us.
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Can you tell me what is going on right here?
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They're between three and four years old.
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So we've had them for that period of time with the intention of releasing them back into the wild.
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How many have been released so far?
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I want to stay over 7,000.
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So somewhere around that.
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Yeah.
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Oh, my gosh.
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You guys must be really proud of that.
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We are.
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We want to give back to the environment.
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You know, we're here.
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We're benefiting from it, and we want to be able to contribute to that.
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So we we take joy and giving back.
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The conservation staff chose a suitable candidate for release.
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Hi.
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I think this one's ready to go explore the ocean.
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What do you say, bud?
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All right, right in here.
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Here we go, buddy.
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Then we brought the young green sea turtle to the resort's fish hospital.
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I'll help on the side.
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OK.
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This is exactly 40 centimeters.
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Nice.
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Recorded its measurements and weight.
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Precious cargo right here.
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Got it.
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Got it.
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And drove out along the coast, 20 minutes away from Atlantis.
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The release site is full of lush seagrass beds.
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A perfect grazing area for this endangered turtle species.
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Your moment.
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Here we go And just let it.
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Let it go.
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Yeah, just let it go a moment.
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Bye.
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This green sea turtle descending gently into its new home is living proof of the conservation work being done by Kristen and the team at Atlantis.
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Yeah, awesome.
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Sea turtles are ancient and iconic animals that must be protected.
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Their species struggle for survival has come to represent the fate of Wildlife Conservation itself.
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The mighty polar bear is a conservation icon that's become an ambassador for all forms of wildlife and for the larger cause of environmental protection.
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I'm at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium to study polar bears and learn about the challenges they face in the wild.
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This is an incredible habitat.
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Yeah.
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I can't imagine anybody having been in the water before having polar bears swimming over their heads.
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Yeah, there are two polar bears here at the Columbus Zoo, a female named Aurora and Lee swimming above me.
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What is he doing?
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Most people picture polar bears on the top of the ice.
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They are super good swimmers.
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Lee is our male.
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He is actually diving for his favorite treat which is yogurt covered raisins.
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Wild polar bears live in Arctic regions like Canada, Alaska, Russia, Greenland and Norway.
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They spend most of their time on sea ice that floats on the surface of polar oceans and seas.
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They are uniquely adapted to be able to live on the ice and swim in the Arctic Ocean.
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Their paws and their paw pads are basically paddles.
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They're giant.
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They have a lot of surface area, they're webbed, and although they are great swimmers, they're not built for marathon distance swimming.
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They are not seals, they're bears.
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The changing of the sea ice when it forms, how much ice is forming, is making them have to swim super long distances to find food.
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Polar bears are expert predators.
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They rely on a technique called still hunting to ambush their primary prey, ring seals.
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They lie in wait near the seals, breathing holes, ready to strike when a seal surfaces for a breath of air.
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But heat trapping gases such as methane and carbon dioxide released by burning fossil fuels have warmed the Arctic by almost 6°F and rising more often than not.
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The sea ice is now forming later and melting earlier.
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Climate change is shrinking the bears icy hunting grounds and threatening their very survival.
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Warmer climates, less ice, shorter hunting season.
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Yeah, it takes a lot of energy to be a polar bear.
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To survive in the Arctic.
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You need to have a really thick layer of fat on your body.
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So their biggest threat is climate change, and they really depend on that ice.
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The growing climate threats confronting polar bears affect all of us as well.
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These iconic creatures speak to us with a powerful voice, a cry for protection and stewardship for our Wild Kingdom.
