What Happens When You “Adopt” an Endangered Animal?
It’s no secret that the effects of climate change and widespread deforestation are pushing many animal species to the brink of extinction. But conservation organizations are working to improve the odds for these vulnerable creatures. You may have seen opportunities to “adopt” animals as a way to support these nonprofits. But what really happens when you adopt an endangered animal — and are your funds making a difference?
What Does It Mean to Adopt an Endangered Animal?

Many conservation organizations offer supporters the option to symbolically adopt an endangered animal. Of course, this isn’t the same as adopting a dog or cat from the local animal shelter — and it doesn’t mean that they ship a wild panda or leopard to your doorstep.
Symbolic adoption is a mode of fundraising that lets you donate in support of an endangered species of your choice. The money you give may go toward conservation efforts specific to that species or support the broader missions of the organization.
Groups like the World Wildlife Fund, the National Wildlife Federation and Defenders of Wildlife are just a few of the organizations that let you adopt animals at risk of extinction. You can find dozens of species to symbolically adopt, including polar bears, gorillas, tigers, sea otters and manatees. If you prefer more obscure creatures, you can also adopt tarantulas, anacondas, horseshoe crabs, cranes, puffins and warthogs.
Some conservation organizations offer unique adoption opportunities for more specific animals. For example, the Manta Trust lets you adopt one of their memorably named manta rays, including Mrs. Flappy and Babaganoush. The Snow Leopard Trust lets you adopt an adult snow leopard, a cub or an entire leopard family. Sea Turtle Conservancy allows you to adopt and track a particular turtle using its GPS tracking system — complete with delightful turtle names like PopTart and Barbra StreiSAND.
What Is Your Money Used For?

Even though you’re symbolically adopting a specific animal or species, your contribution will likely get pooled into the general fundraising efforts for the organization. That means it may go toward a range of conservation efforts that benefit lots of animals and animal species.
And this isn’t a bad thing! For one thing, this allows organizations to spread the fund around to help less popular animals like spiders, snakes and birds in addition to the more well-known species people usually adopt, like pandas and elephants. And conservation priorities shift over time, so pooling donations lets conservation groups decide where funds are most needed.
The specific mission your donation supports will depend on the individual organization — as will the amount of your donation that goes toward conservation. For example, the World Wildlife Fund promises that 83% of its donations go directly into conservation efforts, including finding long-term solutions to habitat destruction and promoting environmentally-friendly public policies.
Some organizations earmark parts of each donation for specific purposes. For example, The National Wildlife Federation promises to plant a tree for each adoption kit donation, and explains that the trees will be native species that help support local wildlife. Other organizations identify specific threats to the adopted species that their efforts help combat — like the Defenders of Wildlife pledge to protect orcas from toxic pollution and noise disturbance.
What Do You Get in Return for Adopting an Endangered Animal?

What do you get in return for a symbolic adoption donation? This varies between organizations, but many will send you a small collection of donation-related gifts.
For instance, when you adopt a panda through the World Wildlife Fund, you get a special kit for your donation level. The lowest donation tier of $25 comes with an adoption certificate, photograph and species card with facts about the animal. If you go up to the $60 tier, you’ll also get a small plush panda. More expensive tiers include things like framed photos and larger plush animals.
Of course, part of your donation goes toward covering the expense of these kits. So if you want more of your money to go to conservation, you can opt out of the toy and other items.
You can also choose to make a general donation to a wildlife conservation group. These organizations typically allow you to set up one-time, monthly or yearly contributions. Membership may come with gifts like calendars or magazines and email updates on the organization’s mission.
Is This a Good Way to Support At-Risk Species?

Symbolic adoption helps encourage people to donate to wildlife protection efforts. So adopting an animal from a trustworthy organization is a good way to help endangered species. You probably won’t know precisely where your donation goes. But whether it goes toward research, outreach or hands-on work in habitat conservation, you’ll be supporting worldwide species protection.
That said, make sure to do your research before donating. Look into how much funding goes directly to conservation versus administrative costs. Legitimate organizations should be transparent about where your donation money goes and publish their annual reports on their websites. Look for examples of their conservation work, like published research findings or details of their former or current conservation projects.
Endangered animal adoption kits also make nice gifts for kids and anyone with an interest in conservation and wildlife. Symbolic adoption can foster connections with endangered animals and encourage people to take additional actions to preserve wild habitats.