At the edge, looking down

Polar bears are great hunters on icy surfaces, but global warming is shrinking the areas where they can forage. These bears had previously been thought to be able to enter into a walking hibernation state to save energy when they didn't get enough food. The bad news: A study confirmed the white-furred predators have no such ability. This translates into a higher risk for the species.

An American trophy hunter killed one of the most famous animals in Zimbabwe: Cecil the lion, a star at the Hwange National Park. Cecil was lured out of the park, shot with a bow and arrow, then killed with a gun after 40 hours. The case went viral on social media - with celebrities, politicians, and individuals expressing their support for the strengthening of laws against illegal wildlife trade.

As the world mourned the death of Cecil the lion, five elephants were killed in Kenya. Four young elephants and their mother were found dead with their tusks removed in a protected park near the border with Tanzania. Poaching for the ivory trade kills hundreds of elephants every year. These huge mammals could be extinct in the wild within a human generation, conservationists have warned.

The Czech zoo in Dvur Kralove reported that Nabire, a 31-year-old female rhino, died on July 27, 2015. Nabire spent her entire life in captivity. After her death, only four other northern white rhinos remain in the world: one at San Diego Zoo, and three at Kenya's Ol Pejeta Conservancy. The three were moved together there in 2009 to increase their breeding chances - without success.

In Guaymas, Mexico, more than 800 kilograms of cooked, dried and frozen seahorses and sea cucumbers were found being served in an Asian restaurant. Elsewhere in Mexico, at the airport in Tijuana, 274 totoaba fish that are in risk of extinction were intercepted before being shipped to China. All these animals are species protected under law in Mexico.

Around 50 saltwater crocodile heads were found in an old freezer dumped in a remote Australian town. When alive, these crocodiles can grow up to 7 meters (23 feet) long and weigh more than a ton. A thriving market for their highly prized skins poses the main risk for the protected reptiles.

More than 250,000 sockeye salmon returning from the ocean to spawn in the Columbia and Snake rivers in the US have either died or are threatened with death due to warm water temperatures after record heat in June. Idaho has made efforts to trap and move the fish into cooler waters, as they were once on the brink of extinction.

After the recent poaching cases of Cecil the lion and an elephant family in Kenya, three American airline companies announced they would ban the shipment of hunting trophies. Delta Air Lines made the decision after nearly 400,000 people signed a petition through the website change.org. American Airlines and United Airlines followed suit.

The UN approved a plan to combat global wildlife smuggling, reflecting growing global opposition to poaching. Countries are urged to target poachers, provide better economic alternatives to communities, strengthen laws on wildlife trade and better educate people to reduce market demand. These measures provide hope for many endangered species - including the Philippine eagle, pictured above.