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Conservation news

Environmental science and conservation news

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Indigenous fishers lead science-backed conservation...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/24

When Fredy Yavinape was a young child, he didn’t know the biological concept of an “umbrella species.” These are species that require large areas of undisturbed habitat to survive, which is why they serve as an indicator of the conservation status of the entire ecosystem. Now, at 48 years old, Yavinape knows what they are. […]

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Scientists weigh giant sea curtain to shield...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/24

Thwaites Glacier rises above the Amundsen Sea in the Antarctic, a towering white cliff abutting cerulean waters. Roughly the size of Great Britain and spanning 120 kilometers (80 miles) across, Thwaites — part of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet — may seem all but invincible. But among scientists, it’s known as the “Doomsday Glacier” for […]

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Oakes Award delivers top prize to Mongabay journalist...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/24

Mongabay journalist Karla Mendes has received the 2025 John B. Oakes Award from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. Mendes was presented with the prestigious prize at an event in New York on Sept. 18 for her investigation documenting a direct connection between increased violence against Indigenous Arariboia leaders and the expansion of illegal cattle […]

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Typhoon Ragasa batters Hong Kong and south China...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/24

SHENZHEN, China (AP) — Typhoon Ragasa, one of the strongest in years, has caused massive destruction in Taiwan and the Philippines before slamming ashore in southern China. The typhoon whipped waves taller than lampposts onto Hong Kong promenades and turned seas rough on Wednesday. In Taiwan, 17 people died in a flooded township and 10 […]

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Mongabay founder Rhett Butler named to Forbes...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

Rhett Ayers Butler, Mongabay founder and CEO, has been named to the 2025 Forbes Sustainability Leaders List, which honors 50 global leaders working to combat the climate crisis. “Mongabay has tended to fly under the radar. We’ve focused on the journalism rather than promoting ourselves, so this recognition is especially meaningful — and it reflects […]

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Panama upwelling fails in 2025, threatening marine...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

Every year in the Gulf of Panama, between December and April, trade winds from the north push warm surface water away from the coast, allowing cool, nutrient-rich water from the depths to rise, in a process called upwelling. This is critical for the region’s marine life and fisheries. However, for the first time in at […]

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The mire of Brazil’s BR-319 highway: Deforestation,...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

The continued failure to halt the BR-319 highway cutting through the Brazilian Amazon is an example of the systemic problem identified by Hannah Arendt in her study of the minister of transportation of Nazi Germany, who had administered the movement of trains throughout Germany and its occupied territories, including the trains that carried millions of […]

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Timing, not traits, helps California’s jewelflowers...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

The small, bell-shaped flowers that dangle like gems in dazzling hues of yellow, maroon, purple, brown and white give jewelflowers their name. Yet these plants, from the genera Streptanthus and Caulanthus, belong to the humble mustard family. Native to California, more than 60 species dot the state’s myriad landscapes, splashing the hillsides of the Sierras, […]

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Protecting Indigenous Amazon lands may also protect...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

Indigenous territories are widely recognized as vital for conserving the environment and biodiversity, but far less is known about their role in protecting human health. Only recently have researchers begun to fill in this knowledge gap and investigate how the protection of these areas can provide health benefits as well as ecosystem services. Now, a […]

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Iberian orcas sink sailboat in latest ramming ‘game’...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

Five people were rescued after a pod of critically endangered Iberian orcas rammed into a sailboat several times, causing it to sink off Portugal’s Costa do Caparica, near the nation’s capital, Lisbon, on Sept. 13. None of the people on board suffered any injuries, according to the Portuguese maritime authority. The boat, owned by yacht […]

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Animals that spread seeds are critical for climate...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

When a toucan plucks fruit from a tree in the Amazon Rainforest, it’s doing more than just finding lunch. Moving to a new location and depositing seeds via its droppings could be crucial in addressing climate change. New research shows that when animals that spread seeds disappear, forests lose much of their ability to capture […]

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100,000 Ecuadorians protest Canadian mining project...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

More than 100,000 people marched through Cuenca, a city in southern Ecuador, on Sept. 16, demanding that federal authorities revoke an environmental license for a gold mining project that may impact an important freshwater source. The Loma Larga mining project, run by Canadian mining company Dundee Precious Metals, borders the 3,200-hectare (7,900-acre) Quimsacocha National Recreation […]

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Rising seas won’t reduce ocean borders of small...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

A landmark opinion from the United Nations International Court of Justice has ruled that rising sea levels caused by climate change do not require countries to redraw their maritime borders. Small island nations, among the most vulnerable to sea level rise, are hailing the decision as a victory against a threat to their sovereignty. In […]

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São Tomé and Príncipe commits to creating a marine...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

The island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe has taken a significant step in marine conservation, announcing that it will establish eight marine protected areas in its coastal waters. The declaration is the country’s first formal commitment to marine protection. The law designating the MPAs has been approved by the Council of Ministers and is […]

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Most Caribbean coral reefs to stop growing by 2040,...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/19

Most coral reefs in the Caribbean could stop growing, and even start eroding away, by 2040 if global warming continues unchecked, a new study finds. Coral reefs, especially those near shores, protect valuable coastlines from flooding during cyclones and storm surges by breaking up wave energy. For the reefs to continue to act as natural […]

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South African Wild Coast communities challenge Shell...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/18

A South African court heard arguments Tuesday from coastal communities, NGOs and British oil and gas giant Shell on whether the multinational should be allowed to proceed with offshore exploration on the country’s Wild Coast. The hearing was accompanied by protests against marine oil and gas exploration across the country. The case goes back to […]

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Australia targets at least 62% emissions cut in the...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/18

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia on Thursday set a new target of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by between 62% and 70% below 2005 levels by 2035. The new target adds to Australia’s ambition of a 43% cut by the end of this decade and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, leader of the center-left […]

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Landmines and violence in Colombian Amazon confine...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/18

Siona Indigenous guards in southern Colombia are raising alarm that landmines and armed groups are cutting off their families from natural resources and trapping them in small portions of their territory. It’s been an ongoing problem for decades, Mongabay contributor Jose Guarnizo reported. In August 2024, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) expanded its […]

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Pet sharks have become cool, but is owning them ethical?

Conservation news ·

2025/09/18

When Laurie was a kid, she had recurrent nightmares that featured her getting eaten by a shark. Decades later, Laurie goes to sleep next to them (or at least in the same house). She’s the proud owner of two epaulette sharks (Hemiscyllium ocellatum) in her 1,135-liter (300-gallon) tank: bottom-dwelling spotted sharks up to 0.6 meters […]

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Funding is needed to save Samoa’s ‘little dodo’ from...

Conservation news ·

2025/09/18

It’s early August 2025. Deep in the rainforests of Upolu, on the island of Samoa, Moeumu “Moe” Uili and I have paused our hike, counting the seconds between coo calls from an unseen pigeon hidden in the dense canopy. Moe mutters, “Nah, the intervals between the calls are too irregular. That’s got to be a […]

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