This probably isn't how Jerry Yang wanted to mark the 1-year anniversary of his return to helm Yahoo, the company he co-founded in 1994. Yang has fought off an acquisition attempt by Microsoft, cut a controversial search deal with rival Google and is now in the midst of a proxy battle with Carl Icahn. But all three crises could pale in comparison to the exodus of talent now facing Yang and Yahoo. 

In the past few weeks, Yahoo has lost Jeff Weiner, EVP of the company network division; Jeremy Zawodny, who helped found Yahoo's developer department; and Usama Fayyad, the company's chief data officer.

But now it appears that Yahoo is also about to lose Caterina Fake and Stewart Butterfield, the couple that founded Flickr.

While Yahoo has more than 14,000 employees, the losses at the top don't bode well for the company or Yang, who has been touting a steady stream of new products (many of which have yet to launch) as the company's ultimate salvation.

As for Yang, his days at Yahoo may also be numbered. Although he's managed to face-down one threat after another, the process has whittled away his credibility in Silicon Valley, according to a Fortune story. With a shareholder meeting set for August, Yang will have a few months to prepare his case, but nobody is expecting a rapid turnaround any time soon.