Defenders of Wildlife was founded in 1947 in Washington, D.C. Superseding older groups such as Defenders of Furbearers and the Anti-Steel-Trap League, the organization was established to protect wild animals and the habitats that support them. Today their goals include the preservation of biodiversity and the defense of species as diverse as gray wolves (Canis lupus), Florida panthers (Felis concolor coryi), and grizzly bears (Ursus arctos), as well as the western yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus), the desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii), and Kemp's Ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys kempii).

Defenders of Wildlife employs a wide variety of methods to accomplish their goals, from research and education to lobbying and litigation. They have achieved a ban on livestock grazing on 10,000 acres (4,050 ha) of tortoise habitat in Nevada and lobbied for restrictions on the international wildlife trade to protect endangered species in other countries. In 1988 they successfully lobbied...