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  Zoo Babies With Whoopi GoldbergEven in huge cities like New York or Los Angeles -- where millions of people live, work, and socialize -- it can seem almost impossible to find a suitable mate. But imagine if there were only a handful of humans left on earth. For lack of choices, would our species become extinct? As Whoopi Goldberg discovers, extinction is precisely the predicament faced by a variety of endangered animals all over the world -- and, in some cases, the difficulty of finding the perfect partner is a big part of the problem. Whoopi brings her unique brand of sensitivity and humor to bear on the mysteries of animal magnetism -- and on what's being done to help ensure the survival of endangered species -- when Thirteen/WNET presents the premiere of IN THE WILD: ZOO BABIES WITH WHOOPI GOLDBERG, Sunday, October 3, 1999 at 8 p.m. (ET) on PBS (check local listings). Her exploration into the obstacles to becoming a parent takes Whoopi to a spot she calls "the most amazing place on the face of the earth." It's the World-Famous San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park. While there, she can travel from the Arctic Circle to the jungles of Asia to the plains of Africa -- and see a precious collection of some of the most endangered species on the planet. "There was so much I didn't know about when I came here 20 years ago with my little girl," Whoopi says in the film. "I've realized that it's so much more, that animals and humans are totally interrelated and that zoos like this play a vital role in maintaining that relationship."  Whoopi heads behind the scenes at the San Diego Zoo to help care for an assortment of baby animals. A baby rhino barrels around a dusty pen, but stops to drink from a bottle Whoopi offers. He's adorable at only a month old, nuzzling Whoopi's clothes -- "when the milk ran out, he just moved right on to solids," Whoopi remarks -- but will soon be formidable at a full-grown weight of more than two tons. She comes to realize that all of the baby animals she encounters -- a very thirsty baby Nilgai antelope, a voracious tree kangaroo, a rare albino baby koala -- are lucky to be alive, thanks to the safe haven provided by the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park. As Whoopi learns, it's not just animals from such far away lands as Africa and Australia that are threatened with extinction. She enters a part of the Zoo that houses one of the rarest creatures on earth, with security so tight that no one can get near it, and gets a glimpse of the California condor. Whoopi sees how dedicated wildlife specialists are saving the birds, from breeding them to raising their offspring in captivity with puppets that look like a mother condor. "And the chicks have no idea that this is, like, a faux?" Whoopi asks. Apparently they don't: the Zoo's intensive program has resulted in 20 chicks released into the wild this year alone. Next, she travels across the Zoo, and figuratively across the world, to see one of the world's most captivating -- and most endangered -- monkeys. With a wise, delicate face and a shock of white hair, the beautiful Douc Langur doesn't react well to stress. Native to Vietnam, the monkey's population was devastated during the war. San Diego is one of only three zoos that exhibits these petite primates -- and one of only two zoos that has been able to breed them. Next door is a chimp with a very different personality. Bonobo chimps are rarely too stressed to mate -- in fact, sex is an everyday part of bonding. "Kind of reminds me of Woodstock, you know, make love not war," says Whoopi. "It's not a bad way to go." But, recently, one bonobo had a problem with parental responsibility. Whoopi is introduced to Lolita, a female who matured sexually at a very young age. She gave birth without complications, but abandoned her baby. So Zuri, her son, had to be taken away and raised by humans. Whoopi watches while little Zuri is bottle-fed in a sterilized area. When she's allowed to meet this precious baby chimp face to face -- and his hands reach out to her -- it's true love. "His eyes are so cute -- and tiny little fingers," gushes Whoopi. "The first thing I wanted to do was just paint his nails. I don't know where this comes from, but I thought he would look really good with nail polish. But he's so cute!" Of course, not all zoo residents are as loving as the bonobo chimp. Take pandas, for instance. Zoos have been trying to breed these rare and adored black and white bears in captivity -- with little success. The San Diego Zoo's Bai Yun, an eight-year-old female, couldn't be more obvious in her advances to 20-year-old Shi Shi. But for some reason, Shi Shi is not interested. Even as Bai Yun literally backs into him, Shi Shi retreats to his favorite pastime: eating bamboo. "Bai Yun turned out to be more of a social eater," comments Whoopi. "To me, she looked like the kind of girl who sees food as an overture to something a little more intimate. Now that's a panda I can relate to." Finally, Whoopi looks to the future at the Frozen Zoo -- a laboratory where endangered species' genes are stored at minus 320 degrees Fahrenheit to preserve them indefinitely. In the future, it may be possible to conduct artificial insemination or other high-tech reproductive techniques with these frozen biological samples at the Frozen Zoo as a last-ditch effort with dwindling species. "Not only does saving wildlife make our world a richer place, it actually helps ensure our own survival, too," says Whoopi. "I'm going to make sure that my daughter continues to bring her children here so they can enjoy looking at the animals and at the same time learn about what really makes the world go round." Visit the San Diego Zoo online at: www.sandiegozoo.org. IN THE WILD: Zoo Babies With Whoopi Goldberg is a Tigress Production for Thirteen/WNET in New York. The program is produced by Justine Kershaw and directed by Mark Chapman. Series producer for IN THE WILD is Jeremy Bradshaw. Executive producer for Thirteen/WNET is Fred Kaufman. The series is made possible by Park Foundation and the nation's public television stations. TV Schedule | Feedback | Previous Features Teacher's Guides | Contest Winners | Puzzles & Fun PBS Online Thirteen Online |