New York's Empire State highlights endangered animals

New York's famed Empire State Building hosted new guests on Saturday night as images of endangered animals were flashed across its façade, the BBC reports.

The unique display, on one of the world's most recognizable structures, was aimed at sparking conversations about mass extinction.

Pictures of snow leopards, tigers and various sea creatures were shown.

A 350ft (106m) image of Cecil, the famous lion killed in Zimbabwe earlier this month, also appeared.

Organizers said the event was a "first-of-its-kind" live video projection.

It drew huge crowds of spectators, who stopped to gaze at the display and capture their own pictures.

In all 160 species were shown, including marine mammals, insects, and even the shadow of King Kong climbing up the building.

The eight-minute sessions were repeated every 15 minutes from 21:00 to 24:00 local time (01:00 to 04:00 GMT) and were visible from almost 20 blocks away.

The Empire State Building is one of Manhattan's highest structures, standing 150ft (381m) tall.

Up to 40 large projectors were used to shine the striking images on to its facade.

The event was organized as part of a promotion for a new Discovery Channel documentary, Racing Extinction, which is set to air in December.