If all crocodiles die off, will Lacoste still embroider them on their shirts?

And will we still wear them?

The more than 300 large brands that use images of rhinos, elephants, tigers, pandas, turtles, wolves, etc., for logos may face this question someday. (See post on Pacific Life’s whale preservation efforts.)

Some, like Lacoste, support Save Your Logo, a global conservation initiative partnering with the Fund for the Global Environment Facility, the World Bank, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Eighty-plus years ago, Lacoste’s founder René Lacoste could not have imagined, according to the manufacturer’s website, that the icon he chose to represent the brand would be threatened with extinction.

The first company to join Save Your Logo, Lacoste is currently involved in programs in Nepal, Columbia, China and Florida aimed at protecting crocodiles and alligators. Participants in the Florida program, including students and the general public, will be able to track individual crocs online.

According to Monique Barbut, chair of the Save Your Logo fund, “The idea is to involve (the brands) in the preservation of species that have contributed to their success.”

Other brands participating in Save Your Logo include Peugeot (lion), MAAF (dolphin), and MSN (butterfly).

Note to CMOs: If you want an animal for your brand’s icon, pick one that’s already extinct. Sinclair Oil‘s dinosaur logo has been lumbering along unchanged for over 80 years.