Whenever species—like sea turtles or cougars—get protections that safeguard their habitat, they inadvertently protect all the other plants and animals that live in that habitat. This earns them the name umbrella species. Umbrella species are often large creatures that need lots of food and space to roam. For instance, cougars in North and South America require lots of healthy prey to survive—and that prey, in turn, needs lots of room to thrive. Umbrella species often serve as flagship species, as they are usually large and charismatic, and efforts focused on saving them have a wide-ranging impact.
