topic: Habitat Degradation

topic: Habitat Degradation

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As British Columbia mulls continued wolf-killing to save caribou, critics say habitat loss is the real threat
- The provincial government of British Columbia, Canada, has proposed extending its decade-long wolf cull program by five more years in areas that are home to 15 declining woodland caribou herds.
- The province has killed 200-300 wolves each year since 2015 to help endangered caribou populations recover, spending nearly $10 million to date, but caribou numbers have increased only marginally.
- Scientists argue that old-growth forests cut for logging, mining and oil and gas extraction — and not wolves — is the main driver of caribou declines, making the province’s focus on wolf culls a short-sighted approach that will ultimately not save caribou and could have unintended consequences on the ecosystem.
- Conservationists call on the B.C. government to stop issuing new logging permits in areas where caribou live; stop building roads through forest and invest in forest restoration projects; and design long-term strategies for caribou conservation to address habitat loss.

Costa Rica to require wildlife crossings for roads when they impact fauna
Costa Rican lawmakers unanimously voted to require wildlife crossings for new and existing road infrastructure when evidence shows the infrastructure interrupts natural connectivity and threatens wildlife safety. The measure, approved in August 2026, will help wildlife avoid being struck by cars while crossing roads and connect habitat, the regulation notes. Once signed into law by […]
‘They will do it legally or illegally’: Interview with James Giahyue on Liberia’s cocoa boom
- In July, Mongabay published a feature investigation and video report about deforestation in southeastern Liberia dude to cacao cultivation.
- The remote region contains some of West Africa’s last intact rainforests, many of which are under threat due to the emergence of the cacao industry there.
- Liberian journalist James Giahyue told Mongabay that poverty and the involvement of local politicians are helping to drive deforestation there.

US proposes rescinding Roadless Rule protections for national forests
Aug. 25 is a National Day of Action to support U.S. national parks and public lands. One focus of the event is the U.S. government’s intention to rescind a rule that bans road construction and industrial logging across more than 23 million hectares (57 million acres) of national forest land. The 2001 Roadless Rule, has […]
Dragonflies help protect water and ancestral Indigenous languages in Colombia
- Researchers investigating Colombia’s remote region of Guainía have identified nearly 120 dragonfly and damselfly species, uncovering a biodiversity hotspot for these insects.
- Dragonflies rely on pristine freshwater ecosystems, but their aquatic habitats face growing pressure from regional deforestation, unmanaged waste and exponential tourism.
- By naming in their ancestral languages and monitoring local dragonflies, communities are deepening their understanding of ecosystem health and connecting biodiversity and ancestral wisdom with water protection.

Safeguarding passageways is the next step for India’s growing tiger populations
As Bengal tiger numbers rebound in India and increasingly disperse into human-dominated areas, conservationists are urging the government to prioritize protecting ecological corridors that connect vital habitats and tiger populations. But they also warn that corridors shouldn’t become sticking plasters for compromised core habitats, reports contributor Nirmal Ghosh for Mongabay. India is home to roughly […]
Logging and the slow disappearance of Australia’s large old trees (commentary)
- Large old trees store substantial amounts of carbon and provide essential nesting and denning hollows for hundreds of Australian animal species.
- Logging removes these trees directly and increases the risk that surviving trees will be damaged by wind and regeneration burns.
- In this commentary, David Lindenmayer of the Australian National University argues that protecting large old trees is essential because they take centuries to replace.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

World Elephant Day: How these giants are adapting to a changing world
August 12 is World Elephant Day. To celebrate, Mongabay looks back at recent stories about how the future success of these mammals depends on healthy, connected habitats. Asian elephants adjust what they eat A recent study from Malaysia showed that Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) are adapting to rapidly changing landscapes by diversifying their diets — a […]
Brazil’s wildcats face multiple diseases due to habitat fragmentation
- Throughout Brazil, the contact between domestic cats and wild felines has been exposing threatened, biologically vulnerable feral species to diseases, which can reduce their populations.
- According to experts, habitat fragmentation is a common denominator of this crisis, from the Amazon to the Pampa, where felines are forced to leave the boundaries of their native areas and approach sites modified by human action.
- From the imposing jaguar to one of the smallest and rarest, the pampas cat, no Brazilian feline escapes the risks of contracting fungi, bacteria, parasites, and known viral diseases, such as feline leukemia and others.
- Studies and veterinarians warn that mass vaccination of domestic animals and the preservation of natural areas are key pieces to address this problem.

Flames reach edge of orangutan rehabilitation center, with fire season set to intensify
- A wildfire came within meters of an orangutan rehabilitation center in Indonesian Borneo, forcing emergency firefighting efforts to protect more than 60 rescued orangutans.
- The close call comes as a strengthening El Niño fuels fires across Indonesian Borneo, where prolonged drought and expanding land clearing are driving orangutans from their forest habitat.
- Conservationists warn that repeated fire seasons are undermining years of rehabilitation and habitat restoration work while increasing conflict between displaced orangutans and local communities.
- With fires spreading into Key Biodiversity Areas, experts say better fire prevention and stronger support for frontline conservation efforts are urgently needed.

How Mennonites in Belize built a land-buying machine taking over forests
Over the past two decades, Belize lost around 20% of its forest cover — more than 350,000 hectares (865,000 acres). Much of it is the result of agricultural expansion by Mennonites, the conservative Christian denomination that arrived in the country more than six decades ago. To understand the corporate machinery that’s allowed the Mennonites to […]
Introduced fish thrive amid Kashmir’s freshwater habitat degradation
Native fish in the lakes and rivers of India’s Kashmir Valley are under increasing pressure from pollution, habitat loss, dam construction and other human activities, a recent review finds. These same threats are also likely giving exotic fish introduced to these freshwater habitats an edge, researchers say. “Our indigenous fishes are becoming vulnerable, endangered and […]
Land records reveal how Mennonites are reshaping Belize’s forests
- Mennonites have become some of the most prolific land buyers in Belize, acquiring large properties and making bids faster than competitors. But who owns what land isn’t always clear.
- To better understand the land management process, a Mongabay investigation gained access to records in deforested and degraded areas in and around Mennonite communities throughout Belize.
- The documents show that the communities use trusts and churches to acquire and collectively manage land, allowing them to transfer property internally and tap collective resources to purchase more.
- At the same time, Belizeans living in and around Mennonite communities often occupy much smaller plots of land, surviving off subsistence crops or working at Mennonite-owned businesses.

Costa Rica banana plantation destroyed protected wetland, complaint alleges
- A legal complaint in Costa Rica alleges that a banana plantation destroyed parts of a protected wetland in Bananito Sur, located in the Valle La Estrella district in the central province of Limón.
- Workers on the La Paz banana plantation, owned by Standard Fruit Company de Costa Rica, a subsidiary of Dole, cut down and burned vegetation, according to several complaints and court filings.
- The area is a state-recognized palustrine wetland, located inland and unconnected to the ocean or rivers. It provides breeding areas for migratory birds and helps resupply the region’s aquifers.

Researchers find ‘priority zones’ for yellow fever vaccination of golden lion tamarins
- Golden lion tamarins, an endangered species of monkey endemic to Brazil’s Atlantic Forest, are susceptible to yellow fever: An outbreak in 2017-2019 wiped out roughly 30% of the population.
- A new study finds that certain environmental factors, including habitat connectivity and human population, were linked to higher numbers of deaths during the outbreak.
- Scientists have identified areas where tamarins could be at high risk for yellow fever transmission, which could help guide vaccination efforts and help protect the monkeys in the event of another deadly outbreak.

India’s tiger numbers are rising. Protecting their pathways is next
- India has made progress in conserving its Bengal tigers, but now it must accommodate growing numbers as they disperse from protected habitats into human-dominated areas — even as poaching is on the rise and destruction of forested land continues.
- Protected forest corridors are crucial to restoring lost or tenuous connectivity between key habitats, enabling genetic exchange between tiger populations that otherwise risk isolation and inbreeding.
- India has built more mitigation structures than any other country in Asia, including the world’s 10 largest wildlife underpasses and overpasses.
- But even as the country is reconnecting habitat, it’s also rapidly expanding road infrastructure, and even protected forests remain under threat.

Mining, drilling, and fire are fragmenting the world’s largest forests
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. The world’s largest remaining stretches of undisturbed forest are shrinking. Fires now cause more of the loss than logging, while mining and oil and gas development have moved close to the top of the list. That’s the conclusion […]
How carbon markets can succeed & also serve Global South communities (commentary)
- The world’s forests provide essential ecosystem services, capture and store huge amounts of carbon dioxide, face enormous pressure, and need sustained economic incentives if they are to survive.
- So why has the voluntary carbon market consistently fallen short of its promise to support forest conservation and communities, a new op-ed asks.
- “The ecosystem services forests provide are worth something, and the people who live in and protect those forests must be the primary beneficiaries of that value. Anything short of that is not conservation but a new form of exploitation,” the author argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Major orangutan study finds Sumatran population fell nearly 20% despite slower forest loss
- A new study estimates the Sumatran orangutan population declined by nearly 20% between 2011 and 2023.
- The researchers found that habitat loss alone cannot explain the declines, pointing to additional threats such as killing, conflict and habitat fragmentation.
- The study is the first comprehensive reassessment of Sumatran and Tapanuli orangutans since a landmark 2016 survey.
- The Forestry Ministry co-authored the study and says it will use the findings to guide conservation policy, marking a contrast with the previous administration’s public claims that orangutan populations were increasing.

California solar project threatens Mojave wildlife corridor, scientists say
- The state of California has approved a solar project in the Mojave Desert on land that serves as a migration corridor for desert bighorn sheep and habitat for the desert tortoise.
- Scientists and conservation advocates say the approval threatens one of the last intact desert ecosystems in California, but the California Energy Commission says ecological mitigation will reduce the impacts on wildlife and that the project will bring more renewable energy to the state.
- The Mojave is already fragmented by Interstate 15, and solar projects add further threats; the ability to move between mountains is what keeps the bighorn sheep population from collapsing.

Ghana’s High Court sentences politician to 20 years in illegal mining case
- A court in Accra has sentenced Bernard Antwi Boasiako, a regional chairman of Ghana’s opposition New Patriotic Party, to 20 years in prison for unlicensed mining in the country’s Samreboi concession.
- In recent years, the area has been massively degraded by illegal mining, known locally as “galamsey,” damaging remaining wildlife habitat, destroying farmland, and altering natural drainage patterns.
- Civil society hopes the conviction of a prominent politician signals that political cover allowing illegal mining will now be reined in.

For Brazil’s Xokleng people, saving a sacred tree means saving their culture
- The Zág Institute, an initiative of the Laklãnõ/Xokleng Indigenous people, is restoring the Brazilian pine on their traditional territory in the state of Santa Catarina.
- Sacred to the Indigenous people, the Brazilian pine is a critically endangered species; replanting it is seen as a way of strengthening their identity.
- Nearly 100,000 seedlings have been planted across 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres), in the process restoring water sources and degraded land.
- The reforestation project involves the whole community in planting the seedlings, which is done through collective efforts throughout the year and also by donating them to Indigenous families.

New bird species identified on remote Indonesian island
A songbird species previously thought to occur across two Indonesian islands has turned out to be two distinct species, according to a recent study. For more than 120 years, many scientists believed that Indonesia’s Babar Islands in eastern Banda Sea, and Tanimbar Islands, roughly 135 kilometers (84 miles) east of the Babar Islands, were both […]
Why a New England city is building tunnels to protect an imperiled salamander
- In the small U.S. city of Keene, New Hampshire, plans are underway to build small underpasses to help amphibians safely cross a road, including hybrid Jefferson/blue-spotted salamanders, an imperiled species complex.
- In the neighboring state of Vermont, salamander crossings constructed in 2015 have reduced the number of amphibian deaths at that site by 80%.
- Habitat connectivity is crucial: Animals need to move to find water and food, to mate or to escape extreme, climate-change-driven weather events.
- With growing human populations, wild lands are increasingly fragmented and relinking habitat with wildlife crossings has become an important conservation tool.

How to stitch a massive wildlife corridor through the Rocky Mountains
- Across the world, roads, railways, towns and farms sever habitat, preventing wildlife from moving across the landscape. Cutting off animals’ ability to connect can limit genetic exchange and cause entire populations to decline — and ultimately, collapse.
- The Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative, or Y2Y, is trying to create a giant connected area stretching across the Rocky Mountains from the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem in the U.S. to Canada’s Yukon Territory. It will allow animals to move, meet and mate.
- Across Canada, the U.S. and the world, countries are building wildlife crossings that reconnect habitat and keep motorists safe from costly, potentially deadly collisions with animals.

As Sri Lanka braces for El Niño, national parks are a concern amidst encroachment
- Encroachments of national parks in Sri Lanka had occurred as early as the 1950s and 1960s, shrinking park terrain.
- Studies indicate that the resettlement of those displaced as a result of the nearly three-decade long armed conflict had contributed significantly to the deforestation in national parks such as Wilpattu.
- Grasslands in many national parks need to be managed through methods such as prescribed burning to ensure availability of fodder for the herbivores, researchers say.
- The national wildlife conservation agency, meanwhile, says the need to allow natural selection processes to strike a balance in ecosystems inside national parks should not be ignored.

Zero roadkill as Amazon canopy bridges secure 15,000 crossings
- Project Reconecta installed eight rope bridges in a municipality in Brazil, and a 15-month study used camera traps to document thousands of arboreal wildlife adapting to new aerial crossings.
- Safe road passages enable seed dispersal and gene diversity, reversing the “domino effect” of biodiversity loss that begins when highways split habitats.
- Reconecta’s creator, biologist Fernanda Abra, a National Geographic Explorer and winner of the Whitley Award, is now expanding these low-cost conservation tools to other Brazilian biomes and neighboring Suriname.
- Brazil’s federal transport department has officially designated the rope bridge design as the recommended national standard for highways to curb the millions of wildlife deaths recorded on roads annually.

Tourism and infrastructure threaten habitat of India’s Himalayan salamanders
Every monsoon season, in the misty hills of Darjeeling, in West Bengal, eastern India, the elusive Himalayan salamander emerges from beneath the forest floor. The ancient amphibians (Tylototriton himalayanus) engage in a delicate dance, a mating ritual that lasts up to 90 minutes before they attach their eggs to semi-submerged vegetation, such as denseflower knotweed […]
White-rumped vulture returns to a Cambodian sanctuary after a decade’s absence
For the first time in 10 years, a critically endangered white-rumped vulture has been spotted in Cambodia’s Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary. However, this conservation milestone is unfolding just as the sanctuary stares down new threats from mining operations and hydropower dams. During a June 2026 census, surveyors recorded the white-rumped vulture (Gyps bengalensis) at a supplementary […]
How Costa Rica’s extreme climate changes the social behaviors of white-faced capuchin
- For 33 years, a research team has studied white-faced capuchin monkeys in the tropical dry forests of Costa Rica, gathering data on their complex social lives.
- A new study from the team shows that during extreme climate events, large groups of capuchins may go hungry, while smaller groups may fare better.
- Climate extremes alter the physical landscape, causing animals to change their societal behaviors. For capuchins, this means greater competition for food, heightened territorial sensitivity and fluctuating group sizes.
- While capuchins can adapt to environmental changes over time, there are limits to their resilience, as seen during the severe droughts caused by the El Niño in 2014-2016, when dwindling food sources caused capuchins to abandon societal norms in search of food.

Community conservation under fire: Interview with Myanmar’s Clean Mountains founder
- Since the 2021 coup in Myanmar, environmental degradation has worsened, but one small women-led team works on grassroots conservation in conflict areas.
- Clean Mountains helps local communities in Karenni and Karen states with waste management, water conservation, sustainable agriculture and forest conservation.
- Founder Ou Ou discusses how the ongoing conflict has fueled natural resource destruction and also silenced the voices of conservationists.
- She also speaks about the role of gender in conservation work, why women participate more often in waste management efforts and how long-standing traditional beliefs continue to leave women out of decision-making roles.

Warming world could push Southeast Asia forests toward thermal limits, new study
- Countless forest-dwelling species depend on the cooler, moister and more stable conditions found in the understory, beneath leafy tree canopies.
- A new study from Southeast Asia finds the combined pressures of global warming and habitat degradation could send forest understory heat levels soaring within the next three decades, potentially exposing species to unprecedented levels of thermal stress.
- The findings can help prioritize conservation action on vulnerable landscapes, intact forests and heat-resilient areas that could become important refuges for forest species, the research team says.
- Experts say gaining a fuller picture of how forest-dwelling species will be affected by climate change will ultimately require further studies that consider additional factors, such as humidity, wind and ecosystem feedbacks.

Nepal’s Rhino translocation success in numbers masks habitat struggles
While Nepal’s efforts to revive its rhinoceros population is hailed as a conservation success, habitat degradation is forcing translocated rhinos to wander far beyond their designated release zones, according to a new study, reports contributor Bibek Bhandari for Mongabay. The population of the vulnerable greater one-horned rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) in Nepal grew by 16.6% between […]
A win-win, animal crossings make roads safer for wildlife and people
Worldwide, roads act as both death traps and barriers for wildlife, fragmenting the landscapes animals need to survive. However, ecologists and engineers are working to “reconnect the wild” through the strategic construction of wildlife crossings. As Mongabay contributor Ben Goldfarb reports, structures, including underpasses and massive overpasses paired with roadside fencing, have proved highly effective […]
Rare seed collection offers hope for last wild tree of its kind from Chile
On Chile’s Robinson Crusoe Island, in the South Pacific, a tree juts out precariously from the side of a steep cliff. It’s the last known wild individual of Dendroseris neriifolia. To prevent its total extinction in the wild, conservationists recently collected seeds from the tree and have begun trials to cultivate them. All 11 species […]
Declining carp fishes in Bangladesh’s Kaptai Lake leave small-scale fishers struggling
- Kaptai Lake is one of Bangladesh’s largest inland fish hubs, supporting the livelihoods of more than 27,000 registered fishers in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
- Over the past several years, catches of high value carp fishes have declined sharply, forcing many small-scale fishers to abandon or supplement the ancestral profession.
- Researchers said carp species depend on specific spawning conditions including suitable breeding grounds. But the lake’s major breeding areas have been degraded, while overharvesting has further reduced the chances of natural recovery.
- Experts warn that without restoring breeding grounds, increasing carp fry stocking and improving fisheries management, the decline could continue, which would deepen economic pressure on small-scale fishers.

India’s fishers confront homegrown ‘ghost gear’ problem
- Across India’s west coast, fishers often abandon or discard their damaged gear at sea after seabed snags, mounting economic pressures, and increasingly crowded near-shore waters make recovery difficult, creating a constant stream of “ghost gear” into the Arabian Sea.
- Once lost, fishing gear continues to function, whether it drifts through the water column or settles on the seabed, trapping marine life or entangling marine habitat.
- Incentive schemes, retrieval efforts, recycling initiatives and other efforts to reduce harm show promise in some places in India. But experts say they tend to remain piecemeal and face common challenges such as a lack of recycling infrastructure and dependence on short-term funding.
- Many experts say the key to addressing India’s ghost gear problem lies in moving from ad hoc initiatives to institutionalized systems that intervene across the gear’s lifecycle, from design and use to end-of-life disposal.

‘Rare animals, photography and Instagram’ could help an Ivorian rainforest
- In late May, Mongabay accompanied a group of conservationists and scientists to Taï National Park — a large rainforest in Côte d’Ivoire famous for its habituated western chimpanzees.
- Despite the presence of these charismatic apes, the park gets relatively few visitors, whose presence could help to support conservation efforts and deter poachers.
- Conservationists are now planning to promote niche tourism in the park and support work by the Ivorian Office of Parks and Reserves (OIPR) to protect Taï’s stunning biodiversity.
- Chimpanzee sightings are a major attraction for any visitor to the park, but other animals, including one of the world’s largest scorpions and Africa’s largest and rarest owl, could also prove to be a draw for those looking for an adventure-filled experience.

South America’s farms depend, in part, on a healthy Amazon
- The Amazon is not only a carbon store; it is also a major source of atmospheric moisture that helps sustain rainfall across much of South America.
- A new Nature study finds that deforestation lowers the warming threshold at which large parts of the Amazon could lose stability.
- Recent droughts, El Niño conditions, and fire risk show why degraded forests are less able to withstand climate stress and recover afterward.
- Protecting intact forests, restoring degraded areas, and reducing fire are increasingly important for climate resilience, biodiversity, and South America’s food system.

Nepal’s rhino translocation looks good in numbers, but not so much in habitat
- A new study suggests that habitat degradation has reduced the suitability for rhinos in Babai Valley of Nepal’s Bardiya National Park, forcing them to range widely.
- Researchers note that prolonged dry periods in the area could potentially increase ecological stress by reducing access to water, forage and wallowing sites.
- Locals say that many rhinos are now sighted in community forests in the fringes of the national park, with sporadic incidents of human-wildlife conflict.
- Experts stress that translocation is not simply about releasing animals and that long-term post-release monitoring is needed to assess behavioral patterns and identify necessary interventions.

Climate-fueled landslides killed an estimated 58 Tapanuli orangutans, study finds
- The study found that landslides triggered by extreme rainfall in November 2025 likely killed about 7% of the estimated global population of Tapanuli orangutans.
- Researchers warned that without swift intervention, the species could face increasingly frequent climate-driven disasters in the future.
- The study only quantified direct mortality from landslides and did not account for deaths caused by canopy collapse outside mapped landslide areas, starvation, injuries or longer-term ecological consequences.
- In a statement to Mongabay, the forest ministry said it “appreciates and is taking into consideration” scientific studies on the Tapanuli orangutan, including research estimating the impacts of floods and landslides on the species.

The quest to reconnect imperiled rainforest in West Africa
- Conservationists working with the official national parks agency in Côte d’Ivoire are planning to create an ecological corridor linking Taï National Park with Grebo National Park in neighboring Liberia.
- The corridor has support from the Ivorian village of Nigré, where residents will grow native trees alongside their crops to facilitate animal movements.
- Animals that will likely benefit include the bongo; like other antelopes in Taï, they are believed to play a key role in helping to disperse seeds to ensure forest regeneration.
- Stitching together the surviving parts of West Africa’s Upper Guinean rainforest could help ensure this ecosystem and its inhabitants thrive.

The long and winding road to safe highways: Inside the global movement to reconnect habitat
- Across the globe, roads pose a deadly physical threat to wildlife and fragment the landscapes animals need to move through to survive. For some species, a road is a wall: They won’t even attempt to cross.
- Decades of research have proved that wildlife crossings (underpasses and overpasses), combined with roadside fences, prevent deadly collisions, protecting both animals and people.
- Crossings are part of larger efforts to reconnect shattered ecological corridors worldwide. Animals need to move to find food, water, a mate — and to escape more frequent, extreme wildfires and extreme weather events.
- Some of the motivation in building and retrofitting wildlife bridges and underpasses involves public safety and economics. Crashes with large animals cost the U.S. economy more than $10 billion each year.

Report alleges élite ties behind logging permits in Cameroon’s Ebo Forest
- A report by a Swiss advocacy group says a timber company logging Cameroon’s Ebo Forest is tied to a wider network of political élites in Yaoundé.
- The company, Sextransbois, is part of a network of logging and agriculture interests owned by prominent businessman Aboubakar Al Fatih.
- Corporate registry documents analyzed by the group show that Sextransbois was incorporated by relatives of President Paul Biya’s eldest son before being transferred to Al Fatih’s half-brother in 2014.
- Environmental groups have accused a number of companies owned by or linked to Al Fatih of breaking Cameroonian law.

Nepal’s infrastructure risks wildlife habitats beyond protected areas, study warns
- A WWF Nepal mapping study has identified 515 “biodiversity important areas” across Nepal, many of which overlap with existing or planned road, railway and power line projects.
- Conservationists warn that Nepal’s infrastructure boom could fragment wildlife habitats and movement corridors, especially in wetlands, river valleys and mid-hill forests outside protected areas.
- Experts say Nepal doesn’t need to halt development, but must integrate wildlife safeguards early, including route changes, underpasses, overpasses, canopy bridges, and bird-safe power-line designs.

Great Koala National Park tests whether protected forests can stay connected
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. The case for Australia’s new Great Koala National Park rests on a practical point: koalas need more than scattered trees. They need connected habitat that can support populations over time. The national park, planned for the state of […]
Above an Australian highway, a bridge reconnects wilderness for quolls, koalas and other animals
- A new wildlife overpass that spans a major highway south of Sydney is reconnecting habitat between Heathcote National Park and Royal National Park, helping animals safely cross one of Australia’s busiest road corridors.
- The retrofitted bridge includes features for a wide range of species, from rope crossings for gliding marsupials to vegetated pathways for ground-dwelling animals such as wombats, echidnas and amphibians.
- Ecologists say reconnecting fragmented habitat is increasingly important as roads, urban expansion, extreme weather events and climate-driven bushfires isolate wildlife populations and reduce genetic diversity.
- Research from Australia and elsewhere shows that wildlife crossings can significantly reduce animal deaths and help species move, forage and breed, but only when these structures are carefully designed around animals’ behavior and habitat needs.

Electric fences help farmers and elephants coexist in Zambian borderlands
- In 2015, Malawi and Zambia signed a treaty to create a transfrontier conservation area that allows wildlife to cross from Malawi’s Kasungu National Park, to Zambia’s Lukusuzi and Luambe national parks.
- Much of Kasungu’s eastern boundary is fenced, but there’s no fence along its western boundary, located along Zambia’s eastern border.
- This means the elephants can move out of the park into an area of human settlements to reach Lukusuzi. But they also raid farmers’ fields.
- Conservation group IFAW is setting up cluster farms, surrounded by electric wires to prevent the elephants from destroying crops, giving them a chance to cross farmlands to reach secure rangelands in Zambia.

Elephants return to Mount Elgon side of Uganda after four decades
- Monitoring of elephants on Mount Elgon, on the Uganda-Kenya border, shows a herd of elephants have crossed over to the Ugandan side, into areas they had largely abandoned since the 1970s.
- The Uganda Wildlife Authority says their return is a positive sign that efforts to restore degraded forest in Mount Elgon National Park is succeeding.
- Residents of Bukwo district, which overlaps with the national park, say elephants destroyed crops in 2025 but UWA rangers have so far prevented this in 2026.

Radio and satellite alerts help Zambian farmers live with dangerous wildlife
- In Zambia’s Eastern Province, a community radio station beams out programs and messages on coping with human-wildlife conflict.
- Tuning in are villagers living in a transfrontier conservation area straddling this part of Zambia, and neighboring Malawi.
- When Mongabay visited, residents were mostly worried about attacks by hyenas, which officials say have recently claimed the lives of four children.
- But cutting-edge satellite technology also provides farmers with an early warning on the approach of potentially destructive elephant herds.

Endangered Persian leopards persist across borders, despite hunters and landmines
- There are fewer than 1,100 Persian leopards left in the wild, with 80% — perhaps 732 individuals — concentrated in Iran. A handful remain in Russia, the Caucasus and countries across Central Asia.
- This leopard subspecies is endangered and declining, driven to the brink of extinction in habitats across its range across southwestern and Central Asia.
- More than half of all recorded leopard deaths are from retaliatory killings by local communities, who poison, trap or shoot leopards in response to livestock predation. They can also be maimed or killed by snares and traps intended for other, smaller prey.
- The Persian leopard now occupies around one-quarter of its historical range. Their habitat is fragmented and crisscrossed by dangerous roadways and broken by international borders that are fenced or laced with landmines.

In Nepal’s capital, invasive flora crowd out native species
Native plants are rapidly declining in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, replaced by invasive species historically introduced for ornamental and urban greening purposes, reports Mongabay contributor Bibek Bhandari. Botanist Bharat Babu Shrestha said he has observed traditional medicinal plants like the Indian pennywort (Centella asiatica) slowly vanish from Kathmandu over the past decades, displaced by dense, flowering […]
As elephants return in eastern Zambia, communities adapt to coexistence
- Four years ago, more than 200 elephants were relocated to Malawi’s Kasungu National Park, which shares an open border with three farming districts in eastern Zambia.
- The elephants regularly move into farms, sometimes raiding granaries and destroying crops and posing a risk to people.
- Amid deep skepticism, conservationists and wildlife officials are working with locals to change attitudes, turning conflict into coexistence.

Sawfish in Sri Lanka may be ‘functionally extinct,’ but refuges remain
The sawfish, recognizable by its distinctive saw-shaped snout or rostrum, is now thought to be “functionally extinct” in Sri Lankan waters. This, researchers say, means that while a few individuals may still exist, their numbers are likely too low to maintain a viable breeding population, reports contributor Malaka Rodrigo for Mongabay. In a 2021 study, […]
Wetland destruction blamed for rise in croc attacks on Indonesia’s Bangka Island
The destruction of coastal wetlands for illegal tin mining and oil palm plantations is to blame for a surge in crocodile attacks on people on Indonesia’s Bangka Island, residents say. Mongabay Indonesia contributor Taufik Wijaya reported that in February this year, a 40-year-old fisherman was killed by a saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) in the Menduk […]
New study explores how reforestation could help Java’s leopards survive
- A new study finds that strategically restoring degraded forests could help reconnect fragmented habitat for the endangered Javan leopard, giving the species more room to move across densely populated Java.
- Researchers created the first islandwide model of habitat connectivity for the species, showing how targeted reforestation could help offset some of the barriers created by roads, railways and urban development.
- Conservationists say isolated leopard populations face increasing risks from habitat loss, human conflict, disease and inbreeding, with only an estimated 320 Javan leopards remaining in the wild.
- Experts caution that the model still needs to be tested with real-world tracking data, but say reconnecting forests will be essential for the long-term survival of Java’s last apex predator.

Agriculture drives most tropical peatland loss in Indonesia, Peru and DRC: Study
Agriculture is the biggest driver of peatland loss in Indonesia, Peru and the Democratic Republic of Congo, home to the largest expanses of tropical peatlands in the world, a recent study has found. Peatlands are crucial in the fight against climate change: They cover less than 3% of the world’s landmass, but sequester more carbon […]
US proposes endangered species protections for an imperiled Jamaican butterfly
- The U.S. has proposed listing a rare butterfly from Jamaica, the Jamaican kite swallowtail under the Endangered Species Act.
- The striking blue-green and black butterfly, endemic to this island country, hovers on the brink of extinction. Scientists have observed no more than 250 adults in the wild in recent years.
- Deforestation, devastating hurricanes and droughts on the island have destroyed much of this butterfly’s breeding sites; only four remain. Demand for framed butterflies used in home decor is another factor in their disappearance.
- ESA listing would bring attention to the species and stop its trade in the U.S. Conservationists hope it will also fund efforts to protect the butterfly’s habitat.

In one forest, native rats remain. In another, only invaders.
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. In a lowland forest in southeastern Madagascar, what was missing proved as telling as what was found. Researchers working in the Manombo Special Reserve trapped tufted-tailed rats in intact interior forest. But in the nearby degraded littoral areas, […]
Australia’s new national park links habitat to protect koalas
- The government of New South Wales has created a vast new protected area, the Great Koala National Park, along Australia’s east coast to safeguard koalas and 66 other threatened native species.
- Conservationists say this could mark a turning point for a species that is declining rapidly as the eucalyptus forests they depend on disappear and climate change sparks more frequent, intense wildfires.
- However, loopholes in land-use regulations, ongoing logging, development pressures and weak enforcement still threaten this key koala habitat.
- Experts warn that without stronger safeguards and consistent policies, the protected area may not be able to foster lasting conservation gains for koalas and other species.

Inside the fight to save the little-known Galápagos petrel
- Galápagos petrels are rarely seen, yet critically endangered. These large seabirds endemic to five islands in the Galápagos archipelago face significant threats from numerous invasive species.
- In the 1980s, their population plummeted to crisis levels, but sustained conservation efforts have since slowed their decline.
- Conservationists are tackling invasive species and efforts are expanding to privately held farms that host important petrel breeding sites.
- Experts point out that the various organizations working on petrel conservation need to coordinate their efforts so that they can plan effective interventions where most needed.

New ‘cryptic’ gecko species discovered in Vietnam’s imperiled karst forests
In the rugged karst forests of northern Vietnam, researchers have identified a new gecko species, Vietnam’s 12th known species of gecko. The discovery highlights how much diversity the often-overlooked landscape holds. Ziegler’s Slender Gecko (Hemiphyllodactylus ziegleri) was discovered during surveys in the Copia Nature Reserve, in Son La province. The species was named in honor […]
Linking habitats strengthens wildlife microbiomes, helps fight disease: Study
- It has long been known that when terrestrial and aquatic habitats, vital at various times during a species’ life cycle, become disconnected due to human activities (a process known as habitat split), the impacted species can become more vulnerable to disease and see major population declines.
- A new study pinpoints one mechanism contributing to such losses. Researchers analyzed habitat split impacts on the skin microbiomes of frog species in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest and detected microbial changes that increased frog susceptibility to the chytrid pathogen, which is devastating amphibians globally.
- The scientists stress that their findings could likely apply elsewhere and to many species (such as birds, fish and mammals), which need varied habitats during their life cycles in order to maintain a diverse microbiome that enhances disease defenses.
- The researchers say their findings underline the need for conservation projects that protect and connect key habitats, such as forests and streams that are utilized at various life cycle stages, in order to better protect a multitude of species, not only at the macro scale, but also species at the micro scale.

Wetland destruction for mining, oil palm tied to crocodile attacks in Indonesia
- Bangka-Belitung, an island province located to the north of Sumatra Island, accounted for more than a quarter of the world’s tin production five years ago.
- Satellite analysis shows that this globally significant mining industry has come at extensive environmental cost: Bangka-Belitung lost 36% of its old-growth forest between 2002 and 2024, besides the deforestation incurred in the 20th century.
- In 2024, Indonesia’s Attorney General’s Office announced the country’s largest ever criminal corruption case, after investigators uncovered collusion with the state-owned tin miner, PT Timah, and illegal mining operators on Bangka.
- Meanwhile, local wildlife charities say deforestation of the coastal wetland on the west of Bangka Island, which was inhabited by humans at least as far back as the 7th century, may be to blame for the rise in human-wildlife conflicts afflicting local populations.

Citizen science helps reconnect Singapore treetops for elusive leaf-eating langurs
- Singapore’s fragmented forests are home to a small population of Raffles’ banded langurs, one of the world’s most threatened primates.
- Citizen scientists are helping conservationists protect the arboreal species across the island’s densely urbanized landscape.
- By collecting long-term and consistent data in known strongholds, volunteers have identified langur food plants and movement corridors, boosting efforts to enrich and reconnect their habitats.
- The citizen science program has also built public awareness of the elusive species, one of only three primates left in Singapore, an outcome experts hope will rouse wider support for biodiversity protection amid intense development pressure.

Drones aid dugong conservation as threats mount across their range
- Drone technology is revealing new information about the elusive dugong, a marine herbivore classified as globally vulnerable but already extinct in parts of its range.
- Scientists are using drones to improve estimates of dugong numbers and conduct noninvasive health checks.
- Dugongs feed exclusively on seagrass meadows, where their foraging helps to maintain these important carbon sinks.
- Researchers are highlighting the need to link efforts to conserve seagrass meadows with protecting dugongs.

A reforestation corridor in Madagascar offers a future for lemurs and locals
- A reforestation corridor project aims to reconnect 150 hectares of fragmented forest between Andasibe-Mantadia National Park and the Analamazoatra Special Reserve, home to a dozen lemur species and many other animals and plants that are found nowhere else on Earth.
- Led by the Mad Dog Initiative in partnership with The Dr. Abigail Ross Foundation for Applied Conservation, Association Mitsinjo and Ecovision Village, the project represents a unique convergence of science, private investment and community action.
- The project has already planted more than 100 native tree species across 70 hectares, a portion of which were grown in soil inoculated with mycorrhiza, with seedlings showing high survival and growth rates. Even in its early stages, lemurs are using the corridor.
- To address local challenges and increase the chances of long-term restoration success, project partners are investing in ecotourism, health care and education, among other strategies.

Novel research finds unexpected climate resilience in up to 36% of Amazon forest
- In recent decades, the Amazon Rainforest has repeatedly and increasingly been struck by devastating drought along with record heat due to climate change. Add to this record wildfires, rapid deforestation and land conversion for agriculture.
- Numerous field studies and modeling have found that these extreme changes are pushing the Amazon toward a tipping point and collapse of the biome — an ecological disaster that would release large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere.
- But one research team, in a recently published study, offered up some hope: They found that little-studied low water table wetland Amazon forests — constituting up to 36% of Amazon trees — have stood up well to, and even thrived, during major droughts, with an increase in aboveground biomass.
- Those findings, the research team says, put the inevitability of an Amazon tipping point and collapse in some doubt, with the possibility that low water table forests could serve as a refugia for biodiversity. They also urge that these areas become a priority for protection and conservation as a hedge against future climate change.

Invasives take over native plant spaces in Nepal’s cities
- Native plants are declining in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu, largely due to habitat loss and the spread of invasive species.
- Several invasive plants are dominating ecosystems by blocking sunlight, altering soil and displacing native vegetation.
- Non-native species were introduced historically (since the 1850s) and through globalization. Today, a large proportion of Kathmandu’s plants are exotic, with some becoming invasive and harmful.
- Weak regulation, poor monitoring and preference for ornamental or fast-growing exotic plants in urban planning have worsened the problem, highlighting the need for stronger policies, early control and better institutional coordination.

Camera traps take first photos of rare island antelope on Zanzibar
Conservationists have captured the first camera trap images of the highly elusive Pemba blue duiker, a tiny antelope that lives in a remnant of native forest in the north of Zanzibar’s Pemba Island. Standing just 30 centimeters (12 inches) high at the shoulder, the Pemba blue duiker is possibly a subspecies of the blue duiker […]
Climate change tests Nepal’s wild and domesticated yaks
- Traditional herders in Nepal’s alpine rangelands face climate change, rising costs, labor shortages, disease and limited markets for yak products.
- Warming temperatures are altering water cycles, vegetation and soil carbon, while drying wetlands and glacier changes increase fire risk and reduce grazing areas for both domestic and wild yaks.
- Wild yaks face threats from habitat shrinkage, crossbreeding with domestic yaks, overharvesting of food sources like yartsa gunbu and declining rangeland quality, which could undermine their genetic purity and survival.

Small ray of hope for Sri Lanka’s sawfish, now feared ‘functionally extinct’
- Known for its saw-shaped snout or rostrum, the sawfish is now feared “functionally extinct” in Sri Lankan waters, with the last record dating back to 2017.
- Three critically endangered sawfish have historically been reported in Sri Lanka — the narrow sawfish (Anoxypristis cuspidata), largetooth sawfish (Pristis pristis), and green sawfish (P. zijsron) — but they are listed as either endangered or critically endangered due to overfishing, habitat loss and bycatch.
- Researchers say small populations may still be surviving and call for more surveys to identify potential habitats toward conservation.
- The sawfish’s rostrum serves as both a weapon and a sensory organ, helping it to hunt prey in murky waters, and in Sri Lanka, these are traditionally offered to churches as a sign of goodwill.

Dams, drains and other artificial habitats could buy time for threatened mussels: Study
Described as the “liver of rivers” for their water filtering capabilities, freshwater mussels are facing an extinction crisis. These slow-growing, long-lived bivalves are one of the most threatened groups of animals on the planet. Now researchers in Australia have found that artificial water bodies could provide a lifeline for some species. Freshwater mussels live in […]
In Brazil, regenerative farming advances, but deforestation still pressures ecosystems
- Agribusiness accounts for roughly a fifth of Brazil’s economy and about 40% of exports. While it is a major economic engine, it is also responsible for over 90% of deforestation and about a quarter of national emissions, with cattle ranching and soy production the main drivers of deforestation.
- Agricultural innovation transformed states like Mato Grosso from non-arable land into global farming hubs. Now, agribusinesses and researchers in Brazil are exploring whether similar innovation can boost regenerative farming to restore degraded pasturelands and reduce further deforestation caused by agriculture.
- REVERTE, one of Brazil’s largest agricultural regeneration projects, led by Swiss pesticide producer Syngenta, aims to restore 1 million hectares (2.5 million acres) of degraded pastureland by 2030. Over the next decade, Brazil aims to restore 40 million hectares (100 million acres) of degraded land.
- Restoring degraded pasturelands will not be enough to halt deforestation for agriculture in the Cerrado and Amazon, experts warn. They say that without robust land-use governance, enforcement of forest protections and binding private-sector commitments, productivity gains risk fueling further expansion rather than reducing pressure on Brazil’s ecosystems.

The toughest toad in town
Meet our story hero: the admirable red-belly toad. A tiny amphibian found nowhere else on Earth but a small forest patch in southern Brazil. Listed as a critically endangered species, it is capable of amazing things. In 2014, it stopped the construction of a hydroelectric dam that would have destroyed its home. In 2024, catastrophic […]
From forest to flatpack, IKEA faces timber traceability test under EUDR
- As the EU’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) nears implementation this year, furniture giant IKEA may need stronger traceability systems to prove its timber isn’t linked to post-2020 deforestation.
- Although nearly all IKEA wood is FSC-certified or recycled, past investigations show this voluntary scheme can miss illegal or unsustainable logging.
- The EUDR requires geolocation data and stricter due diligence than existing certifications or regulations, but repeated delays and possible rule changes have created uncertainty for companies like IKEA preparing to comply.
- Industry watchdogs say high-profile companies like IKEA can “do more” to champion the landmark regulation and implement leading wood traceability systems, rather than relying solely on existing — voluntary— certification schemes.

In Myanmar’s limestone hills, people and bats are often too close for comfort
- A recent census of cave-dwelling bats in northeastern Myanmar found many karst caverns are increasingly inhospitable for the winged mammals due to human disturbance, posing risks to both bats and people.
- Bats are natural reservoirs for many viruses, researchers say, which means managing the ways humans interact with them is vital to managing potential disease spillover, researchers say.
- The main sources of disturbance are limestone quarrying, tourism and religious activities, hunting of bats for food, and guano harvesting.
- To manage the ecological threats and disease risk, the researchers recommend better conservation protections, improved land-use planning, and dedicated cave management plans that include public education programs on cave hygiene and zoonotic disease risk.

After logging bans, Australia turns to “forest thinning”. Does it reduce fire risk?
- As native forest logging ends in parts of Australia, governments and industry are turning to large-scale forest thinning as a tool to reduce bushfire risk, prompting a new debate over how best to protect communities in a warming climate.
- Research shows thinning can lower fire severity under some conditions, especially when paired with prescribed burning, but its effectiveness often diminishes during extreme fire weather — the very conditions driving the most destructive fires.
- Scientists warn that removing trees can alter forest structure, dry fuels, release stored carbon, and eliminate critical wildlife habitat, meaning the ecological and climate costs may be substantial in high-conservation forests.
- The controversy reflects deeper tensions over land use, public safety, and economic transition, with critics arguing that large-scale thinning risks becoming logging by another name while supporters see it as a necessary adaptation to escalating fire danger.

Some forest restoration linked to short-term rise in zoonotic diseases
Deforestation and land use change can accelerate the spread of zoonotic diseases — infectious illnesses that can spread from animals to humans — including malaria and COVID-19. While habitat restoration is crucial for addressing biodiversity loss and climate change, new research suggests counterintuitively that it can also temporarily increase the risk of certain zoonotic diseases […]
Helicopter translocation brings isolated banteng to safer grounds in Cambodia
- Earlier this month in northeastern Cambodia, conservationists deployed helicopters, trucks and more than 50 personnel to translocate a group of critically endangered banteng into a protected reserve.
- Banteng, a type of wild cattle that once roamed widely across Southeast Asia, have suffered crippling population declines due to hunting and deforestation.
- The effort is part of wider plans to secure a future for the species in Cambodia while rewilding Siem Pang Wildlife Sanctuary, a site that experts say is one of Cambodia’s best protected sites.
- Against the backdrop of intense forest loss, even within protected areas, experts say translocation of isolated animals away from frontiers of development could offer a viable future for conservation in Cambodia.

Cambodia’s canal mega-project threatens coastal communities and marine life
- The Cambodian government is set to begin construction of the Funan Techo Canal, a nearly $1.2 billion, 180-kilometer (112-mile) waterway navigation project that will cut across four provinces to connect the Mekong River to the sea.
- The primary rationale for building the canal is to reduce Cambodia’s shipping costs as well as to generate jobs and economic development.
- Mongabay has followed this mega-project’s development for more than a year, speaking with more than 50 people living along the canal’s proposed route. Virtually everyone we spoke with noted that the government has provided very little information about the project, and amid the uncertainty, fear has taken root.
- In coastal communities in Kep province, where the canal will meet the sea and a new port and deepwater shipping lanes will be built, fishers we spoke with said they worried they’d lose their homes and that construction would render their already meager fishing grounds barren and inaccessible.

Critical shark and ray habitats in Western Indian Ocean largely unprotected: Study
- Almost half of the Western Indian Ocean’s shark and ray populations are considered threatened with extinction, as populations decline.
- The Important Shark and Ray Areas (ISRAs) project has mapped out 125 areas across the Western Indian Ocean that are critical for the survival of many species.
- Yet only 7.1% of these ISRAs fall within existing marine protected areas, and just 1.2% are in fully protected areas where fishing is prohibited.
- Researchers identified challenges related to fishing pressure as the most significant threat to sharks and rays in the region.

Habitat destruction, illegal trade threaten Sri Lanka’s endangered agamid lizards
- Two of Sri Lanka’s rare lizards, the critically endangered Dumbara agama (Cophotis dumbara) and the endangered Ceylon deaf agama (Cophotis ceylanica) are popular on global trading websites as exotic pets since 2015 with the captive bred lizards and juveniles carrying a price tag ranging between $500 to $1000.
- The demand for endemic and exotic lizards as pets is increasing becoming popular, with a spiking demand on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram where Copohotis lizards are among the most popular species to be traded.
- Conservationists warn against the consistent demand contributing to exploitation and over-harvesting of these rare species as climate change and habitat loss make their survival difficult.

Australia’s land-use squeeze
- Australia’s recent land use change has steadily reduced and degraded native vegetation, shrinking the amount of intact habitat available to wildlife and weakening ecosystem resilience.
- Clearing has been concentrated in productive regions, especially along the eastern seaboard and parts of the north, where agriculture, development, and resource extraction continue to reshape landscapes.
- The biodiversity impacts are not only about area lost: fragmentation breaks habitats into smaller, drier, more isolated patches, making populations more vulnerable to fire, heat, invasive species, and local collapse.
- Conservation tools like protected areas and restoration help, but they struggle to keep pace when habitat loss continues through thousands of incremental decisions across overlapping state and federal systems.

Five detained over alleged hunting in Javan leopard habitat
- Indonesian authorities have detained five people following allegations of illegal hunting inside West Java’s Gunung Sanggabuana conservation forest.
- The case drew national attention after camera trap footage revealed an injured Javan leopard and suspected armed hunters operating in the protected area.
- Conservationists say the incident exposes deeper weaknesses in wildlife protection and raises urgent questions about how Indonesia safeguards its last remaining big cats.

Coast-to-coast coral assessment reveals Thailand’s reefs losing complexity
- Marine scientists have documented Thailand’s coral reefs in unprecedented detail, providing a crucial baseline against which reef managers can measure future change.
- The surveys indicate that, as in other parts of the world, Thailand’s reefs are losing structural complexity, becoming dominated by simpler boulder-forming corals, while staghorn and branching species die out.
- Experts say the new baseline can help steer future strategies to prepare for future bleaching events through reef restoration and assisted reproduction.
- The surveys were conducted just before the full effects of the 2024 global bleaching event were felt in Thai waters, which will have inevitably taken an as-yet-unquantified toll on the region’s reefs.

Is South Asia becoming inhospitable for migratory birds?
- Migratory birds are losing critical stopover habitats across South Asia along major global flyways due to human-driven causes.
- Draining wetlands and overfishing eliminate aquatic vegetation, invertebrates and fish that form the dietary base for migratory birds.
- Researchers emphasize that protecting migratory birds requires coordinated action beyond national borders.

For two of the world’s most at-risk primates, threats abound and the future looks grim
- Preuss’s red colobus is found in two populations in West Africa — roughly 3,000 individuals in the Korup–Cross River forest block and none confirmed in the Yabassi Key Biodiversity Area for more than a decade — and faces intense pressure from hunting and habitat loss.
- The Bangka slow loris, restricted to Bangka Island in Indonesia has not been systematically studied for decades and has suffered extensive habitat loss from mining and forest conversion.
- Proper field studies and conservation approaches used for other slow loris species could provide a road map for assessing and protecting the Bangka slow loris.
- For Preuss’s red colobus, a regional action plan is advancing in Nigeria, where monitoring and community outreach are underway, but implementation in Cameroon has been hampered by ongoing civil unrest around Korup National Park.

From south to north, Sri Lanka’s cricket dreams undermine fragile ecosystems
- Sri Lanka plans to construct an international cricket stadium and a sports complex on the northern island of Mandaitivu spanning more than 56 hectares to popularize the sport in the country’s Northern province.
- Mandaitivu overlaps with mangroves and coastal wetlands in the ecologically sensitive Jaffna lagoon, and environmental groups warn that a construction on the low-lying island could reduce flood retention and increase climate vulnerability.
- Mandaitivu’s mangroves support fisheries and coastal livelihoods causing concern about potential decline in aquatic creatures, especially prawns and crabs, impacting the traditional fisherfolk.
- Conservationists say the project echoes past ill-informed infrastructure decisions, such as the Hambantota stadium built within an elephant habitat, reflecting weak environmental governance and repeated ecological trade-offs.

Top-down projects, exotic trees, weak tenure: Congo Basin restoration misses the mark
- Despite a panoply of projects — from tree-planting drives to agroforestry schemes — a new study finds that much of what’s happening in the name of “forest restoration” in the Congo Basin may not be restoring forests at all, but largely focused on growing nonnative, commodity species.
- The research found nearly two-thirds of projects favored planting exotic species over native ones, primarily because they grow more quickly, require less care, and their seeds are easier to source.
- It also noted a lack of ecological monitoring, with few initiatives tracking tree survival rates, soil recovery or carbon storage, and most lasting less than five years — far too short to measure real ecological impact.
- Beyond agroforestry and fuelwood plantations, the study calls for approaches that promote natural regeneration, restore native biodiversity and reconnect fragmented habitats.

Small cat conservationists hail Uganda’s new Echuya Forest National Park
- Uganda’s Echuya Forest Reserve will become a national park, alongside five other forest areas. That news is being heralded by small cat conservationists as a win for the threatened African golden cat (Caracal aurata) and other wildlife that dwell in the forest.
- African golden cats are forest dependent and considered vulnerable to extinction by the IUCN. They’re especially threatened by snaring across their range. It’s unknown exactly how Echuya’s population is faring, but camera-trapping efforts in 2015 required 90 days to record just one of these elusive cats.
- Data coming out of Uganda suggest that national parks can act as strongholds for the felid, raising hopes that Echuya’s population can recover and possibly thrive.
- Wildcat conservationists have also developed programs to build engagement and benefit communities near the new park, initiating goat and sheep “seed banks” as alternatives to bushmeat, setting up savings and loan associations to improve quality of life, and arranging community soccer matches to build goodwill.

Scientists chart a new source, and length, for Africa’s famous Zambezi River
- Historically, the Zambezi River in Southern Africa was believed to begin its journey at a spring in northwestern Zambia.
- A new study suggests the river actually starts off in a shallow depression in Angola’s southern highlands, at the source of a river called the Lungwebungu, giving the Zambezi a new total length of 3,421 km (2,126 mi), or 342 km (213 mi) longer than previously thought.
- The Lungwebungu and several other Angolan rivers contribute about 70% of the water reaching Victoria Falls, making them critical to the long-term health of the Zambezi and the people and wildlife who depend on it.
- The study highlights the importance of protecting the Upper Zambezi Basin, where another recent study recorded significant forest loss over the past three decades.

Central America’s forests are crucial for migrating birds: Study
As winter closes in across much of North America, migratory birds are heading south to warmer climes and more abundant food. But until recently, scientists didn’t have a good understanding of exactly where they went. Researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology U.S. analyzed observations from eBird, a global […]
How do we stop the next pandemic?
How do we stop the next big viral outbreak? The answer to that question lies in preventing zoonotic spillovers. Thousands of pathogens have been silently circulating in our forests for centuries. However, climate change, deforestation and the trade of live animals increases the risk of bringing them in close proximity to humans. So how do […]
Bird diversity drops in human-dominated habitats, Nepal study suggests
- Areas dominated by humans are home to fewer species, with similar ecosystem function and proximity in the evolutionary family tree, a recent study in Nepal’s southern plains suggests.
- Human activities act like a filter, letting only certain birds survive. Even natural areas show signs of such filtering when logging and hunting remove sensitive species, leaving behind only closely related groups of birds that are resilient and adaptable.
- A mosaic landscape provides more “homes” and more ecological roles for birds, helping them survive even amid human disturbances.

Botanists decode secret life of rare plants to ensure reintroduction success
- Working with South African daisies, Colombian magnolias and Philippine coffee trees, botanists the world over are discovering the secrets to bringing extremely rare and threatened plants back from the brink of extinction. Reintroductions are often the only way to build back thriving populations, but scientists face numerous hurdles.
- A major barrier is lack of botanical knowledge about rare species, making it hard to produce sufficient viable seeds, determine triggers for germination, and identify suitable seedling habitat. If seeds aren’t available from rare plants, botanists must use cuttings to propagate plants.
- Newly established plant populations often need help in the face of numerous threats. Climate change, for example, can not only create harsh new growing conditions but also fuels the spread of plant pests. Young plants frequently need to be protected from human activities like poaching, intentional burning or land-use change.
- While it can take decades for reintroduced plants to grow into sustainable, self-replenishing populations, project funding is often limited to three years or less, especially in the Global South. Experts say they hope funding will increase as recognition grows that ecosystem restoration requires plant diversity, including rare species.

Asian golden cat range expands, but declines continue amid rising threats
- The Asian golden cat (Catopuma temminckii) is a medium-sized cat species that was once abundant across Asia, ranging from India to China. Today its population is undergoing a significant decline.
- That’s resulted in it now being declared a threatened species as its habitat is lost or fragmented, and indiscriminate snaring removes it from forests, particularly in Southeast Asia.
- Targeted research, conservation and funding are rare for this species, resulting in significant knowledge gaps about its basic ecology and threats. That uncertainty is causing some conservationists to say it could warrant endangered status.
- It’s hoped that increasing threat levels imperiling the Asian golden cat will spur donor funding, giving researchers the tools to shine a light on the needs of this lesser-known felid. Nepal has so far led the way in conservation efforts.

Thai agri giant CPF sues activist over claims linking it to invasive fish outbreak
- The head of a Thai NGO focused on agricultural monitoring and food sovereignty is being sued by agribusiness giant Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) for alleging the firm is linked to the outbreak of an invasive fish species in Thailand’s waterways.
- The lawsuit has been slammed as a SLAPP (strategic lawsuit against public participation) and a tactic to divert attention away from containing the outbreak and identifying the source and parties responsible.
- The blackchin tilapia has spread to at least 19 provinces, where it outcompetes wild and commercially viable aquatic species, disturbing ecosystems and devastating farmers’ livelihoods.
- The case comes as Thailand awaits public hearing of new anti-SLAPP regulations aimed at curbing judicial harassment.

Heading into COP, Brazil’s Amazon deforestation rate is falling. What about fires?
- Brazil’s official data show deforestation in the Amazon fell 11% in the 12 months to July 2025, with independent monitoring by Imazon confirming a similar trend—evidence that policies under President Lula da Silva are reversing the sharp rise seen during Jair Bolsonaro’s administration.
- Even as land clearing slows, fires and forest degradation have become major drivers of loss. Exceptional drought in 2024, record heat, and the spread of roads and logging left large areas of the forest dry and flammable, causing 2.78 million hectares of primary forest loss—roughly 60% from fire.
- Burned areas have dropped by 45% over the past year, suggesting some recovery, yet scientists warn the Amazon is entering a more fragile state shaped by climate extremes and the lingering effects of past destruction.
- As Brazil prepares to host COP30 in Belém, attention will center on sustaining recent gains and advancing initiatives like the proposed $125 billion Tropical Forest Forever Facility, even as new roads, gold mining, and policy uncertainty—such as the wavering soy moratorium—continue to threaten progress.

Rare earth mining expands into Laos, threatening entire Mekong River
- Satellite data show at least 27 new rare earth mines have opened across Laos since 2022, mostly in protected areas and many within the Mekong River Basin, raising transboundary pollution risks for Vietnam and the wider Mekong system.
- Though rare earth mining is banned in Laos, operations — often funded by Chinese investors — continue under local-level permissions, reflecting weak oversight and growing Chinese influence as Laos seeks to boost its resource exports.
- Past incidents of chemical spills and fish die-offs have already harmed communities in northern and northeastern Laos, yet limited press freedom and civic space mean contamination and environmental impacts remain largely unreported and unmonitored.
- Experts warn that a rare earth mining boom could have severe ecological and social consequences, including deforestation, loss of livelihoods, and toxic pollution, with local communities powerless against unregulated mining backed by local elites and foreign capital.

Uphill battle to save California’s endangered mountain yellow-legged frog
- Conservation organizations released 350 mountain yellow-legged frogs earlier this year, marking another step in an intensive, long-running reintroduction project for this highly endangered species in Southern California.
- Once abundant across its range, populations have declined drastically because of invasive fish species, climate change impacts, and the deadly chytrid fungus that is wiping out amphibians worldwide.
- Conservationists are testing out new ways to boost survival rates of released frogs. Though it’s hoped the species may one day recover, today they are locked in a fight against extinction.

IUCN downgrades guiña threat status, prompting conservation warning
- The guiña, a small wildcat, has been moved to least concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Found only in Chile and Argentina, this small cat was previously listed as vulnerable.
- But the threat downgrade isn’t a sign of conservation success, researchers say. Rather, it reflects more in-depth knowledge of the species. Three out of six recognized subpopulations remain highly in danger of localized extinction and need special attention and urgent conservation action.
- Some conservationists see the downgrade in status as concerning (especially considering the daunting range of threats and number of imperiled populations) and they fear the improved listing may take attention away from the species and result in a decline in conservation funding.

Funding is needed to save Samoa’s ‘little dodo’ from extinction (commentary)
- Since 2014, Samoa’s “little dodo” has been listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List: related to the extinct dodo, an adult manumea, as it’s called locally, has not been photographed well in the wild, and its song has rarely been recorded.
- But an underfunded conservation effort led by the Samoa Conservation Society and the nation’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) could still snatch this fascinating species from the extinction list, a new commentary argues.
- “In my view, a large-scale, multiyear forest conservation project funded by the Global Environment Facility and led by the MNRE is essential,” the author writes.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Nepal’s Himalayan biodiversity struggles with new herds and highways (commentary)
- Nepal’s Limi Valley near the Tibetan border is a high-altitude landscape with immense cultural and natural value, providing both pasture for traditional yak herders and habitat for wildlife ranging from snow leopards to lynx, bears, and a range of wild grazing animals like Tibetan gazelles and blue sheep.
- Recently, though, the building of a road coupled with outmigration and depopulation have led to an influx of herders and hunters that threaten to reduce the area’s high biodiversity richness.
- “Limi Valley and its high alpine pasturelands represent a unique high-altitude ecosystem where rich biodiversity intersects with centuries-old cultural traditions. Yet, the rapid introduction of large goat and sheep herds, coupled with the expansion of roads into previously undisturbed wildlife habitats, places the ecosystem under unprecedented strain,” a new op-ed warns.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Madagascar’s dry forests need attention, and Verreaux’s sifakas could help
- Western Madagascar is home to some of the country’s poorest communities and its most endangered wildlife, presenting intertwined challenges for conservation.
- The region’s characteristic dry forests have been badly damaged by clearing of land for shifting agriculture — and for mining, plantations and timber harvesting — over the past 50 years: Across Madagascar, nearly 60% of dry forest species are classed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered.
- NGO leaders, scientists and government representatives are forming a dry forest alliance to better coordinate efforts to protect this valuable biome.
- Among the new alliance’s first actions was pushing for the inclusion of the critically-endangered Verreaux’s sifaka on the latest list of the World’s 25 Most Endangered Primates, which alliance members hope will attract greater attention to this primate’s threatened habitat.

Indonesia flooding traced to corporate canals that drain peatlands: Report
- Flooding in Indonesia is increasingly traced to corporate destruction of peatlands rather than natural causes, according to a new report by NGO Pantau Gambut.
- The construction of industrial-scale canals poses a growing threat; the report found that 281,253 kilometers of canals have cut through peatland ecosystems, draining the peat and compromising its sponge-like function.
- In addition, the report concluded that peatland protection laws are deeply flawed, as they serve corporate profit interests, rather than environmental protection.

More than half the world’s forests fragmented in 20 years — but protection works: Study
- Large intact forests and connected landscapes support biodiversity and ecosystem processes.
- Globally, more than half of the world’s forests became more fragmented between 2000 and 2020, according to a new Science study, with the highest rates in the tropics.
- The study used new measures of fragmentation that more closely align with ecological functions and is higher than previous estimates of fragmentation rates.
- The study also finds that in the tropical forests, protected areas experienced much lower rates of fragmentation than similar unprotected forests.

Brazil’s market-based forest fund gets new endorsers ahead of COP30 debut
- The Tropical Forest Finance Facility (TFFF) initiative is expected to be launched at Brazil’s COP30, in November, and has received attention due to potential financial support from China.
- In July and August this year, BRICS leaders and Amazonian cooperating countries endorsed a Brazil-led initiative that seeks to reward states and investors in exchange for tropical forest preservation.
- Despite bringing a new formula for a much-awaited solution to climate financing, the TFFF was criticized in a recent report as being a market-based approach that could monetize ecosystem services, ignoring the intrinsic value of forests and biodiversity.

Genetic rescue boosts survival of endangered Pacific pocket mice
Since 1970, wildlife populations globally have plummeted by about 73%. One driver is habitat fragmentation that isolates small populations, leading to inbreeding and fewer healthy offspring. California’s endangered Pacific pocket mouse, limited to three small populations, is a case in point. A new study finds that mixing individuals from these populations in a breeding program […]
From beavers to bison: England’s rewilding revolution
In a recent conversation with Mongabay’s Mike DiGirolamo, rewilding advocate and financier Ben Goldsmith described a quiet but profound transformation taking place in England’s relationship with nature. The change is visible in the return of species like the Eurasian beaver, once trapped out of the British Isles for centuries. Farmers and planners who once saw […]
Discovery of dazzling blue butterfly underscores peril facing Angola’s forests
- Scientists have described a new butterfly species, Francis’s gorgeous sapphire (Iolaus francisi), from Angola’s Namba Mountains, where its survival depends on mistletoe plants.
- High-altitude evergreen forests, known as Afromontane and covering about 590 hectares (1,460 acres) in the Namba Mountains, are the largest of their kind in Angola but remain without legal protection.
- Researchers warn that fires, timber harvesting, and especially unregulated farming could devastate the forests, as has happened at Kumbira, another Angolan Afromontane forest.
- Conservationists say community-led initiatives are key to protecting Namba, as Angola’s parliament moves to consider protected status for nearby Mount Moco, another Afromontane oasis.

Shrinking Mekong megafish underlines risks to the river, study finds
- A new study has found that the Mekong River’s largest freshwater fish are shrinking in size, with critically endangered species like the giant catfish and giant barb now averaging less than half their historical size.
- Researchers analyzed more than 397,000 samples of 257 species across Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, finding that fish longer than 60 centimeters (2 feet) are shrinking fastest, while smaller species show little change.
- Overfishing, habitat loss, dam construction, sand mining, pollution and climate change are driving the decline, raising fears of collapse in one of the world’s most important inland fisheries.
- Scientists warn the trend mirrors global declines in large freshwater species, such as in the Amazon and Nile basins, but recent discoveries of massive fish like a 300-kg stingray show it’s not too late for recovery if urgent action is taken.

Rare Javan leopard sighting renews focus on conservation, monitoring efforts
- A rare Javan leopard was recorded on camera in Mount Lawu forest, Central Java, after officials installed camera traps following a hiker’s report.
- The endangered big cat’s presence highlights Mount Lawu’s ecological importance, where Tahura Mangkunagoro park conserves diverse plants, birds and mammals.
- With only around 350 Javan leopards left in the wild, the sighting underscores urgent threats to the species from habitat loss, hunting and human pressure.
- Authorities and conservation groups are expanding camera-trap surveys and preparing a 2026–2031 action plan to safeguard the species through better monitoring, habitat protection and community engagement.

Sustainable biomass certification scheme is flawed, degrades forests, report finds
- The Sustainable Biomass Program (SBP) is a private certification scheme developed by the bioenergy industry to assure the sustainability of biomass for fuel. A new report alleges that SBP is certifying biomass whose production has caused forest degradation.
- The NGO-commissioned report raises questions about SBP’s certification process, especially methods for verifying wood pellet producer and supply chain sustainability claims to safeguard against deforestation and forest degradation. SBP certification is used to justify green subsidies to the industry, mostly by European nations, but increasingly in Asia.
- SBP acknowledges the concerns raised by the report and said it is open to dialogue. The organization emphasized that its standards are designed to assess “the sustainability and legality of biomass sourcing at the level of the Biomass Producer, not at the forest management unit level” and that it does not “make overarching climate impact claims.”
- The nonprofit environmental groups that commissioned the report question how SBP can assure sustainability without assessing forest management and climate impacts.

Philippine fishers struggle as LNG ‘superhighway’ cuts through biodiversity hotspot
Fishers in the Philippines’ Batangas Bay are struggling to make ends meet and feed their families as nearby coastal areas are developed into a natural gas import hub, Mongabay contributor Nick Aspinwall reported in July. Families that have been fishing in Batangas Bay for years have been asked by local officials to leave to make […]
Green hydrogen development threatens wildlife in Chile
- Chile aims to be a global leader in green hydrogen production by 2030, with major exports going to Europe and Asia.
- But researchers warn that the required infrastructure and production process could threaten rare and endemic species in Chile’s fragile ecosystems, including the Magellanic Steppe and the Atacama Desert.
- In addition, experts say, it would take vast amounts of space and water, which Chile plans to take from the ocean, creating an energetically inefficient and potentially unprofitable model while threatening the wildlife.

Seed-dispersing animals are in decline, impacting forests and the climate: Study
A lot of attention has been paid to the decrease in bee populations and other pollinators, but a recent review article makes the case that we should be equally alarmed by the declining numbers of seed-dispersing animals, which are crucial for growing healthy forests. “Both are important and should be taken into account in restoration […]
A critical stopover for shorebirds awaits protection in Malaysia
- Malaysia’s Teluk Air Tawar-Kuala Muda (TAT-KM) mudflats host tens of thousands of migratory birds along the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, including at one point the critically endangered spoon-billed sandpiper, yet remain outside formal protection despite global population declines from habitat loss.
- A recent study found only 15% of the sandpiper’s suitable non-breeding habitat is protected, with threats from coastal reclamation, invasive plants and sea-level rise; scientists call for prioritizing high-threat wintering areas, especially in Thailand and Myanmar.
- Malaysian authorities plan to nominate TAT-KM as an East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP) site, which would be a first for Peninsular Malaysia, but the process requires local stakeholder support and faces lingering concerns over past proposals for aquaculture development in the area.
- Local fishers, NGOs and conservation groups are raising awareness, restoring habitats and promoting bird-watching to safeguard TAT-KM, amid fears that without formal recognition, development pressures could threaten the ecosystem’s integrity.

Who is clearing Indonesia’s forests — and why?
- Most tropical countries are experiencing record-high deforestation rates, but in Indonesia, forest loss is slowing.
- But nearly half of the forest cleared in 2024 can’t be linked to an identifiable driver, raising red flags about speculative land clearing, regulatory blind spots and delayed environmental harm.
- Land is often cleared but not immediately used; research shows that nearly half of deforested lands in Indonesia remain idle for more than five years.
- Experts say these trends signal regulatory failure, as the government issues permits widely and concession holders face few consequences for clearing forest and abandoning the land, creating a cycle of destruction without accountability.

Efforts to revive India’s disappearing endangered star anise
The Himalayan star anise is a key source of livelihood for India’s Indigenous Monpa community. But the tree that bears the star anise fruit has greatly declined in number after decades of overharvesting of the fruits and seeds, logging for wood and charcoal and unfair market practices, according to a Mongabay India video published in […]
Domestic cats pose interbreeding threat to little known wildcat ancestor
Domestic cats are hugely popular as pets, yet little is known about their ancestor, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat. This species, Felis lybica, is the most widely distributed wildcat in the world, but experts still don’t know its exact population. The wildcat faces several threats to its survival, including interbreeding with domestic cats and the diseases they […]
As gas giants move in, Philippine fishers fight for their seas and survival
- Fishing communities along the Philippines’ Verde Island Passage, a haven for marine biodiversity, say the development of a natural gas import hub in the area is leading to environmental degradation.
- Fishers say their catches have declined since a liquefied natural gas plant was built in the area a decade ago, and that they’re being turned away from remaining fishing grounds due to the ongoing construction of an LNG terminal.
- The Japan Bank for International Cooperation, a key funder of the LNG project, denies these claims, saying in a recent report that it didn’t find evidence that LNG development had led to environmental degradation or a reduction in income for local fishing communities.

Reversing damage to the world’s mangrove forests
Mangroves are an important lifeline for biodiversity, climate and coastal communities. Yet they are disappearing 3-5 times faster than total global forest losses, according to UNESCO. On July 26, celebrated as the International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem, we present recent stories by Mongabay’s journalists on emerging threats to these critical ecosystems […]
Illegal roads expand in Colombia’s deforestation hotspots
- A new report from Colombia’s Inspector General’s Office shows that between October 2024 and March 2025, about 88,800 hectares (about 219,400 acres) of forest were cleared and 1,107 kilometers (688 miles) of irregular roads slashed through seven deforestation hotspots.
- In all these critical areas — Río Naya, Meta-Mapiripán, Vista Hermosa-Puerto Rico, Triple Frontera (Guaviare), Llanos del Yarí – northern Chiribiquete, Caquetá and Putumayo — there was a direct relationship between the expansion of irregular roads, deforestation and coca crops.
- Experts warn that irregular roads fuel permanent deforestation, opening the door to land-grabs as well as armed actors and their illicit activities.
- Colombia reduced deforestation by 36% from 2022-23, reaching the lowest level recorded in 23 years. But deforestation has since increased again, and the government struggles to keep protected areas from being chopped away to make room for illegal roads and coca crops.

In rare triumph, camera traps snap endangered wildcats in Pakistan
- Conservationists in Pakistan have snapped incredibly rare images of two small cat species: the Asiatic caracal (Caracal caracal schmitzi) and the sand cat (Felis margarita).
- The 2025 caracal image comes after two other sightings in the country were captured on camera phones.
- Very little is known about caracal and sand cat populations in the country. Though both species are of least concern at the global level, they’re highly endangered in Pakistan.
- Conservationists say they’re hopeful these sightings will spur interest in small cat species in Pakistan and encourage greater protection and targeted conservation measures.

Tropical forest roots show strain as changes aboveground filter below
- Tropical forest plant roots have not received as much research attention as aboveground vegetation. This knowledge gap affects our understanding of how rainforests adapt to change, including their ability to capture and store atmospheric carbon.
- An emerging field of research is looking at how root systems respond to global change. New evidence dramatically underlines the outsized importance of tropical forests in the global carbon cycle. Tropical forests represent one of the world’s largest carbon sinks, largely thanks to plant roots, which add carbon to soils.
- Despite the challenge of studying tiny roots hidden underground, researchers are uncovering important insights. Some tropical forests send roots deeper into the soil under dry conditions, possibly seeking moisture, which may aid in drought tolerance. Others seem unable to do this, making them more vulnerable to climate change.
- Recent plant root studies are confirming the immense stress tropical rainforests are under, with conditions changing faster than roots belowground can adapt. Knowing more precisely which forests can, and can’t, tolerate escalating climate change and other stressors could better inform management and conservation decisions.

Endangered Andean cat is imperiled by climate change and its solutions
- The Andean cat is an endangered and elusive wildcat species found in the high Andes Mountain regions of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru.
- The species is exceedingly rare across its entire range and researchers must endure high altitudes, reduced oxygen levels and adverse weather conditions to study and monitor widely scattered populations.
- Climate change and our attempts to curb it both put this small cat at risk. As the world warms, the Andean cat’s cold mountain habitat shrinks ever smaller. Global warming is also driving up demand for lithium and other rare metals for electric vehicles, with extractive industries pushing ever deeper into alpine zones.
- With low numbers and low density, addressing local threats is vital to protecting felid populations, making every single Andean cat important for species survival, researchers say. Innovative local community programs have contributed to conserving this small Latin American cat.

What it’s like to live with tigers
MAHARASHTRA, India — In Maharashtra’s Chandrapur district, human-tiger conflict is escalating, with attacks becoming increasingly common. A mix of factors—including the effects of climate change—is driving tigers out of their natural habitats and into closer contact with people. For those living on the frontlines, the toll goes beyond physical danger: fear, anxiety, and unprocessed grief […]
Forest connectivity key to preserving PNG’s spectacular rainforest birds: Study
- Papua New Guinea is a global hotspot of avian biodiversity, home to spectacular and behaviorally complex bird species that occur nowhere else on the planet.
- A new study shows that forest fragmentation reduces unique forest-specialist birds, but boosts generalist species like pigeons, sunbirds and bulbuls.
- Birds suffered greater declines in habitats cut off from the surrounding landscape, compared to degraded habitats that remained connected to nearby intact forests.
- The shift in the bird community in degraded and isolated habitats undermines ecosystem stability and resilience, as birds that once performed vital pollination, seed dispersal and insect control services are lost.

Study urges legal protection for Sulawesi’s endangered bear cuscus amid habitat loss
- A new study has revealed that the endangered bear cuscus in South Sulawesi occupies a highly fragmented and shrinking habitat, with less than 1% of surveyed areas deemed suitable, largely due to poaching, mining expansion and forest loss.
- Despite being previously protected, the species was excluded from Indonesia’s 2018 protected species list, and researchers argue this oversight must be corrected given the animal’s vulnerability and ecological importance.
- The study also highlights the cuscus’ broader scientific significance as one of the few marsupials in western Wallacea, as well as its cultural and emotional value to local communities that have learned to coexist with it.
- Experts and the study’s authors urge stronger habitat protection, stricter environmental controls and greater public engagement to ensure the species’ survival.

Will tropical dry forests survive the next 50 years?
- Tropical dry forests are critically endangered ecosystems that once covered vast areas of the planet but have been largely destroyed, with less than 8% of the original extent remaining in some regions due to conversion to agriculture and development.
- These forests support hundreds of millions of people who depend on them for essential resources, such as food, medicine and economic opportunities, while also hosting remarkable biodiversity, including jaguars, tapirs and numerous endemic species.
- A 2022 study revealed that more than 71 million hectares of tropical dry forests were lost between 2000-2020 alone — an area twice the size of Germany — with remaining forests under immediate threat in rapidly expanding deforestation frontiers and from climate change, with some areas experiencing two additional months of drought compared to the 1960s.
- Immediate conservation action is crucial as scientists warn that without aggressive intervention, including land restoration, assisted migration and emergency management techniques, these ancient ecosystems face collapse within decades.

In Colombia, bird-watching brings tourism and a love for conservation
- Every year, on the Global Big Day, thousands of bird-watchers across the world compete to record as many species of birds as possible.
- In Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia, bird-watching is central to the conservation movement that has emerged in recent decades.
- Though the region has some of the richest bird life of any place on Earth, bird-watchers note that some species have become harder to come by.
- Birds in the Sierra Nevada are threatened by habitat loss as a result of encroaching agriculture, livestock ranching and deforestation, as well as wildlife trafficking and introduction of predators like feral cats.

Major coral loss in Vietnam’s first marine protected area: Study
- Vietnam’s first marine protected area (MPA), Nha Trang Bay, has lost nearly 200 hectares (494 acres) of coral reef since it was established in 2002, according to a new study.
- Major drivers of the coral decline include coastal development, warming sea temperatures and devastating crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) outbreaks worsened by overfishing and nutrient pollution.
- The study calls for stronger conservation measures inside Nha Trang Bay and other MPAs, including pollution control, active reef restoration and inclusive community governance.
- Experts say Nha Trang Bay offers lessons for other MPAs in Southeast Asia facing similar threats.

Mounting risks due to climate change threaten Sri Lanka’s endemic species
- Sri Lanka’s isolation during past glacial cycles resulted in the evolution of unique species, but ongoing human-induced climate change now poses a major threat to their survival.
- Using species distribution models, researchers have discovered that montane amphibians and reptiles that are particularly restricted to narrow ecological niches with limited mobility are particularly vulnerable to rising temperatures.
- Species with direct development, like many Pseudophilautus frogs, which bypass the tadpole stage, are especially sensitive to microclimate changes.
- Of the 34 amphibian species confirmed extinct worldwide, 21 were endemic to Sri Lanka, underscoring the island’s fragility and the urgent need for targeted conservation efforts.

Mongabay India wins best science podcast at Publisher Podcast Awards
Mongabay India’s 2024 podcast miniseries “Wild Frequencies” bagged the “Best Science and Medical” category at the Publisher Podcast Awards ceremony in London on June 11. The podcast is a three-episode series that tells stories of how researchers in India use the science of bioacoustics, or animal sounds, to better understand the lives of wildlife, such […]
Pushback grows against nickel mining in Indonesian marine paradise of Raja Ampat
- The Indonesian government has suspended nickel mining in the Raja Ampat archipelago following public outcry and investigations that revealed environmental violations, including illegal mining on small islands and deforestation by several companies.
- Raja Ampat, one of the world’s most biodiverse marine regions, is threatened by sedimentation, pollution and habitat destruction linked to mining, endangering coral reefs, mangroves and Indigenous communities.
- Despite government claims that operations on one of the islands, Gag, are environmentally compliant, critics say inspections are superficial and driven by political and economic agendas, ignoring broader regional damage.
- Environmental groups warn mining could resume quietly once the outrage fades, and urge the government to establish no-go zones to protect Raja Ampat, challenging rhetoric that frames local resistance as foreign interference.

Climate strikes the Amazon, undermining protection efforts
Fires raged across the Amazon rainforest in 2024, annihilating more than 4.6 million hectares of primary tropical forest—the most biodiverse and carbon-dense type of forest on Earth. That loss, which is larger than the size of Denmark, was more than twice the annual average between 2014 and 2023, according to data released last month by […]
Critically endangered chameleon discovered outside its known habitat in Madagascar
- In April, researchers found individuals of a critically endangered chameleon species in southwestern Madagascar.
- Furcifer belalandaensis had not previously been recorded outside of a tiny area threatened by deforestation for charcoal and agriculture, and by the development of a major mining project.
- Researchers working to improve knowledge of the Belalanda chameleon’s distribution were excited to find three of the rare reptile five kilometers (three miles) away, in the PK32-Ranobe protected area.
- But Ranobe’s forests are also under pressure; captive breeding and revising the protected area’s management plan are among of the conservation measures being considered to ensure the species’ survival.

Tabby’s likely ancestor & Earth’s most widespread wildcat is an enigma
- The Afro-Asiatic wildcat (Felis lybica) is the world’s most widely distributed small wildcat, but it’s also one of the least studied. The cat’s conservation status is listed as “of least concern” by the IUCN. But due to a lack of data, population trends are unknown, and the species, or subspecies, could vanish before humanity realizes it.
- One of the only long-term studies on the cat’s behavior and population genetics occurred in South Africa’s Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. It sheds light on a species that is vital to the ecosystems it inhabits and possesses remarkable adaptability.
- At some point, thousands of years ago, F. lybica was domesticated, making it the ancestor of the common house cat (F. catus), which, in evolutionary terms, has become one of the most successful mammal species on Earth.
- Inbreeding with domestic cats has become a serious threat to Afro-Asiatic wildcat conservation. Wildcat experts urge pet owners to spay their house cats. Feral cats should also be spayed, especially in areas bordering preserves where F. lybica lives. Education about this small wildcat could also help with its conservation.

Bangladesh protects sacred forests to strengthen biodiversity conservation
- Bangladesh is making a list of sacred forests, aged trees and other socially important flora in a bid to strengthen forest conservation.
- The need for conservation of these fragmented forest patches has been neglected for a long time despite being mentioned in the country’s 2012 Wildlife (Conservation and Protection) Law. However, the issue is now finally being looked into.
- Conservationists welcome the initiative and say they believe that the new measures will help protect the biodiversity and ecology that had been set aside in the past.

Brazil rewilds urban forest with vaccinated brown howler monkeys
Following a deadly yellow fever outbreak in 2016, brown howler monkeys are slowly making a recovery through targeted vaccination and reintroduction efforts in one of the world’s largest urban forests. The recovery is detailed in a Mongabay video by Kashfi Halford and a report by Bernardo Araujo. Brown howler monkeys (Alouatta guariba) are endemic to […]
Concrete sprawl in Buddha’s birthplace in Nepal threatens sarus cranes
- Sarus cranes, once abundant in Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha, are rapidly declining due to unplanned urbanization, wetland loss and habitat degradation, with local elders recalling their disappearance from areas that were once full of ponds and farmland.
- A recent survey found that 59% of respondents believe the crane’s range has shrunk, citing habitat loss (44%), hunting (19%) and wetland degradation (16%) as key threats to the bird.
- Lumbini province hosts Nepal’s largest population of sarus cranes, but only four pairs remain within the 200-hectare (500-acre) Lumbini gardens that constitute a popular pilgrimage site and have seen a surge in the built-up area

Lack of funds, cattle ranchers challenge Brazil’s sustainable farmers
In 2005, the Brazilian government created PDS Brasília, a sustainable settlement in the state of Pará. The settlement was designed to encourage 500 families to practice small-scale family farming, while also collectively using a standing forest to harvest its fruits and nuts, Mongabay’s Fernanda Wenzel reported in March. The 19,800-hectare (49,000-acre) settlement was created following the […]
In Cameroon’s forgotten forests, gorillas and chimps hang on
- Many forest reserves in southern Cameroon, despite being highly degraded and fragmented, harbor significant biodiversity.
- A recent study using camera traps in two such forest reserves captured the first evidence of great apes — a gorilla and several chimpanzees — foraging in and navigating the mosaic of fragmented landscapes.
- Some of the videos show apes and humans using the same parts of the forests at different times, highlighting the risk of human-ape conflicts that could impact the already threatened great apes.
- Conservationists say the presence of great apes outside protected areas indicates the need to protect these areas, and that further research is needed to understand how great apes use fragmented landscapes close to human communities.

Indonesia’s deforestation claims under scrutiny over ‘cherry-picked’ data
- Researchers say Indonesia’s claim of a 90% deforestation drop over the past decade is misleading due to cherry-picked data and an extreme baseline year.
- The actual decline is closer to 50-69%, driven by earlier policies and reduced forest availability in many regions.
- Deforestation is rising again, especially in Papua and Sulawesi, fueled by palm oil, pulpwood, and mining expansion.
- Civil society groups are crucial in tracking and exposing forest loss amid conflicting government policies and rising environmental threats.

Gold rush moves closer to Amazon’s second-tallest tree
Illegal gold miners are now operating very close to the second-tallest tree in the Amazon Rainforest, Mongabay’s Fernanda Wenzel reported in April. Six giant trees, including a red angelim (Dinizia excelsa) that stands 85 meters (279 feet) tall, are found inside the Iratapuru River Sustainable Development Reserve in Brazil’s Amapá state. Despite the area’s protected status, […]
How to conserve species in a much hotter world
By 2075, we will be living on a planet that is much hotter, possibly 3-5° Celsius (5.4-9° Fahrenheit) hotter than the preindustrial average. But how can humanity help nature improve its climate resilience in the years to come? Mongabay’s Jeremy Hance found some answers after interviewing several conservationists. “In 50 years, it’s entirely possible that […]
Orangutan habitat under siege as palm oil company clears forest in Borneo
- Indonesian palm oil company PT Equator Sumber Rezeki (ESR), part of First Borneo Group, has begun clearing critical orangutan habitat in West Kalimantan province, threatening high conservation value (HCV) forests and the survival of the critically endangered Bornean orangutan.
- Despite only partial clearing so far, conservationists warn that ESR plans major expansion, risking the loss of up to 10,000 hectares (about 25,000 acres) of forest, and further undermining Indonesia’s biodiversity and climate goals.
- First Borneo Group has a long record of large-scale deforestation through multiple subsidiaries, prompting major palm oil buyers like Nestlé and Musim Mas to suspend or end sourcing from the group, though some companies remain linked via supply chains.
- Environmental groups are calling for an immediate halt to ESR’s land clearing, comprehensive ecological audits, and urgent action from companies still sourcing from First Borneo Group to prevent a potential ecological disaster for orangutans and the region’s forests.

Critically endangered Sumatran elephant found dead near Leuser; cause uncertain
LANGKAT, Indonesia — A critically endangered Sumatran elephant was found dead April 4 on the border of the Gunung Leuser National Park in Sumatra’s Langkat district, officials said. The elephant was male, around 10 years old, and weighed no more than 2 tons. Officials said they believe the individual had been dead for several days […]
Outlook improves for wattled crane in South Africa
In what’s being hailed as a conservation success, the wattled crane has seen its conservation status in South Africa improve from critically endangered to endangered. Globally, the wattled crane (Bugeranus carunculatus) is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, with an estimated population of 6,000 mature individuals in the wild as of a 2018 […]
Dugong numbers plummet amid seagrass decline in Thailand’s Andaman Sea
- Thailand’s dugongs are disappearing fast, reflecting an unfolding crisis in the region’s seagrass ecosystems.
- Seagrass beds on Thailand’s Andaman Sea coast that support one of the world’s most significant populations of dugongs have died off in recent years, creating an increasingly challenging environment for the charismatic marine mammals.
- Scientists point to a combination unsustainable coastal practices and climate change as the main factors driving the decline.
- Government agencies, marine scientists and volunteers are taking emergency steps to save the remaining dugongs, but experts warn their long-term survival in Thailand depends on fixing the root causes of the seagrass loss.

Nepal farmers regret planting government-hyped eucalyptus
In the late 1970s, Nepal launched a reforestation project to restore its massively deforested lands in the southeastern Terai landscape. However, the main tree of choice, eucalyptus, after showing initial signs of success has now proven detrimental to the region’s soil moisture and fertility, Mongabay contributor Mukesh Pokhrel reported in February. To prepare for the […]
Funding freeze threatens global reforestation and restoration efforts
- The sudden halt in U.S. foreign aid has left reforestation and forest restoration projects around the world scrambling for alternative resources, jeopardizing years of progress.
- Without consistent funding, ongoing projects face the threat of scaling back or shutting down entirely, potentially impacting, in the long-term, both the environment and the communities that rely on these initiatives for their livelihoods.
- According to Mongabay’s research, the funding freeze has affected the operations of many nature-based projects worldwide, particularly in biodiversity hotspots and some of the world’s poorest regions.
- Despite the challenges, affected organizations are working tirelessly to diversify their funding sources and fill the gaps left by the U.S. government, including launching online campaigns to request donations and calling the international community to step up.

Ground-level ozone pollution poses growing threat to planetary health
- In the stratosphere, ozone acts as a protective layer. But in the troposphere, at ground level, this colorless gas is incredibly harmful to human health and the environment in ways scientists are still working to fully understand. The problem exists worldwide, but may become especially bad in tropical nations this century.
- Ground-level ozone is a major air pollutant that shortens human lives and kills thousands each year, resulting in major economic impacts. It is formed when methane, nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (released from vehicles, industry, power plants and crops) react in the presence of sunlight.
- Climate change worsens tropospheric ozone, with higher temperatures accelerating the chemical reaction that creates it, and because stalled weather systems (especially heat domes) allow buildup of ozone in stagnant polluted air. Ozone pollution not only impacts urban area, but also rural agricultural areas.
- Ozone impacts on biodiversity are significant and growing — harming pollinators, reducing crop yields and limiting forest growth, with global implications for food security and humanity’s reliance on forests as carbon sinks. Effectively tackling climate change and reducing ozone precursors are major solutions.

New strategy launched to protect Tanzanian biodiversity hotspot
- A conservation strategy for the next 20 years has been launched to protect Tanzania’s most biologically rich landscape.
- The Udzungwa Mountains are home to rare and endemic plants and animals, including a small population of kipunjis, a genus of monkeys only revealed to the world in 2006.
- Sustainable financing is being sought to fund the conservation strategy and boost livelihoods and social well-being in communities surrounding three core protected areas.
- A key part of the strategy will be the rollout of energy-efficient stoves, seen as a priority by local communities who depend on firewood and charcoal.

Kenya’s cities adopt Miyawaki method to restore lost ecological glory
- Due to urbanization and human settlements destroying natural forests, African cities are increasingly experiencing high traffic noise, harmful emissions, and a “concrete jungle” development.
- In Kenya’s capital city, Nairobi, forest cover decreased from 14% in 1976 to 3.3% in 2000. The city’s natural vegetation, too, decreased from 15% in 1979 to 2.7% in 2000.
- Since 2007, a restoration practice known as the Miyawaki method has successfully established mini forests in three areas in the capital, Nairobi, planting over 236,212 seedlings between 2011 and 2020.
- The project has benefited local communities by providing tree seedlings and forest maintenance activities; one resident has provided over 30,000 seedlings to the reforestation company and is currently working on their projects.

Beyond reforestation, let’s try ‘proforestation’
- “Proforestation” describes the process of allowing existing forests to continue growing without human interference as they achieve their full ecological potential for carbon sequestration and biodiversity.
- Old forests sequester a higher amount of carbon than younger ones, with large, old trees containing the most carbon.
- Many species are old forest specialists, relying on ancient forests for survival. Losing these forests may mean their extinction.

Climate change spikes wildfire risk in Sri Lanka
- Almost all forest fire in Sri Lanka is human-caused; the two main forest fire seasons are February to March and July to August.
- Annually, 100-2,500 hectares (247-6,178 acres) of forest resources are damaged due to forest fires in Sri Lanka, and in the past few years, the damage to forest resources by fire has increased and is likely to continue increasing with global warming.
- Usually, wildfires are mainly occurring in forest plantations or grasslands where they do not spread to dense forest, but as of late, fires have begun to reach forest areas.
- Some ecosystems like savanna need fire to sustain them, as seeds in some of the trees need fire to crack their outer layer in order to germinate. But in areas with invasive guinea grass, which burns longer and hotter, large trees are also observed dying.

As apes adapt to human disturbance, their new behaviors also put them at risk: Study
- Worldwide, the most frequent causes of disturbances to ape habitats are land conversion for agriculture or logging, a recent study concludes.
- The study found that the most common ways apes adapted to habitat change included foraging for human crops, changing nesting patterns, and traveling along human-made paths.
- These changes can help apes survive in the short term, but can increase long-term risk, especially when behaviors like crop foraging bring them into conflict with humans.
- While some patterns were observed worldwide, human responses to behaviors like crop foraging varied widely, highlighting the need for local voices and priorities to be a central part of conservation planning.

Bleak future for Karoo succulents as desert expands in South Africa
- Recent population surveys show continued decline in two desert-adapted succulent tree aloe species, with conservationists fearing for the state of an understudied third species.
- A years-long drought has accelerated spreading dust-bowl conditions following decades of mining and heavy grazing, with grave consequences for endemic succulents.
- A conservation triage should prioritize cultivating at-risk species in nurseries and botanical gardens, many of which are unlikely to survive reintroduction into their natural habitats.  

Global outcry as petitioners demand no mining expansion in orangutan habitat
- Nearly 200,000 people have signed a petition urging U.K. multinational Jardine Matheson to halt the expansion of the Martabe gold mine in Indonesia’s Batang Toru Forest, home to the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan.
- Agincourt Resources, a subsidiary of Jardine’s Astra International, plans to clear up to 583 hectares (1,441 acres) of forest for a new mining waste facility, which conservationists warn will push the Tapanuli orangutan closer to extinction and harm other protected species.
- Environmental groups accuse Jardines of misleading sustainability claims and the Indonesian government of failing to enforce conservation laws, despite awarding Agincourt a “green” compliance rating.
- Protesters have demanded Jardines adopt a “no deforestation, no peat, no exploitation” (NDPE) policy for its mining operations and provide clarity on conflicting deforestation figures and the compliance of its expansion plan with its approved permits.

A closer look at the unknown Brazilian fox
CORUMBAÍBA, Brazil — The hoary fox (Lycalopex vetulus) is a small canid found only in Brazil. Although commonly seen running across the open grasslands of the Brazilian Cerrado, surprisingly little is known about the species. Researchers Fernanda Cavalcanti and Frederico Lemos have spent the past two decades working to change that. Their shared passion for […]
As elephant conflict shifts, Nepal’s border village offers clues for coexistence
- Human-elephant conflicts were once concentrated in the border village of Bahundangi in eastern Nepal, but the problem has since spread to other villages further west as a result of rapid urbanization, deforestation and infrastructure expansion that have forced elephants into human settlements.
- Several villagers have been killed in elephant attacks in these villages in Koshi province, leaving local families living in constant fear as they struggle to protect their homes, crops and lives from wild elephants.
- Local authorities have attempted solutions like digging trenches, installing sirens and conducting awareness campaigns, but many measures have proved ineffective or created new problems; limited funding and lack of long-term planning hinder sustainable solutions.
- Conservationists say the template from Bahundangi, the border village that learnt to live with the elephants, could help new conflict areas avoid losses much more swiftly and without wasting resources.

CITES rejects proposed suspension of Cambodian monkey exports
- Cambodian exports of long-tailed macaques will remain legal until November 2025, despite recommendations for suspension due to concerns over poaching and the misrepresentation of wild-caught monkeys as captive-bred.
- Cambodian officials strongly objected to the call for a trade suspension, disputing claims about unrealistic birth rates at breeding facilities and accusing the U.S. wildlife officials of misusing data obtained without their consent during investigations into alleged monkey laundering.
- Japan, China, Canada, the U.S. and other countries that import macaques for use in medical research rejected the suspension, arguing for further review; some expressed confidence in Cambodian compliance, while Canada acknowledged the importance of the trade to its research industry.
- Conservation groups expressed disappointment, highlighting the ongoing threats to wild macaque populations, including poaching, habitat loss and zoonotic risks, and warning that the decision enables unsustainable trade practices in the face of mounting evidence of misconduct.

Study says land restoration worldwide can be funded with tiny fraction of global GDP
- A new study reveals that implementing global land restoration pledges across 115 nations would cost between $311 billion and $2.1 trillion, representing only 0.04-0.27% of annual global GDP over 10 years.
- The research analyzed 243 restoration projects worldwide, finding that costs vary significantly by method: from $185 per hectare ($75 per acre) for forest management, to more than $3,000 per hectare ($1,200 per acre) for silvopasture systems.
- While nearly half of all global restoration commitments are concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa, this region would need to spend 3.7% of its annual GDP to fulfill its pledges, highlighting the need for international financial support.
- The study’s cost estimates focus primarily on direct implementation costs and exclude important factors like monitoring and opportunity costs, suggesting actual restoration expenses could be higher than projected.

Surge in legal land clearing pushes up Indonesia deforestation rate in 2024
- Indonesia’s deforestation increased in 2024 to its highest level since 2021, with forest area four times the size of Jakarta lost; 97% of this occurred within legal concessions, highlighting a shift from illegal to legal deforestation.
- More than half of the forest loss affected critical habitats for threatened species like orangutans, tigers and elephants, particularly in Borneo and Sumatra.
- Key industries driving deforestation include palm oil, pulpwood, and nickel mining, with significant deforestation in Kalimantan, Sumatra and Papua; a new pulp mill in Kalimantan in particular may be driving aggressive land clearing.
- Despite an existing moratorium on new forest-clearance permits, there’s no protection for forests within existing concessions, allowing continued deforestation, and spurring calls for stronger policies to safeguard remaining natural forests.

Better government policies could help as migratory birds lose habitat in Bangladesh
- Recent studies indicate a steady decline in the number of migratory water birds in Bangladesh over the last few years.
- Researchers said the key threats to migratory birds include habitat loss, cattle grazing in bird habitats, domestic duck farming and conservation mismanagement.
- They underscore the need for a coordinated effort among livestock, agriculture and environment ministries.

Study highlights effects of habitat fragmentation on Sri Lankan specialist birds
- A research study focusing on the endemic brown-capped babbler (Pellorneum fuscocapillus) and Tickell’s blue flycatcher (Cyornis tickelliae) shows that forest specialist birds fail to return to disturbed lands, and even forest generalists tend to avoid these areas, causing delays in their return.
- Researchers employed a method called “experimental translocation” to understand how species interact with new environments by releasing the birds at various distances in different habitats, monitoring whether the birds returned to their original locations.
- A global review by the same researchers identifies 32 instances in which the experimental translocation method was used to study birds worldwide. The Sri Lankan experiment is the first of its kind in South Asia.
- The research highlights that even highly mobile creatures like birds are affected by forest fragmentation, underscoring that the impact can be even worse for less mobile creatures.

Underwater citizen science reveals the specter of ghost fishing in Thailand
- Teams of scientists and hobbyist scuba divers have assessed the extent of discarded fishing gear on Thailand’s marine wildlife, finding it poses a pervasive threat to a huge range of species.
- Discarded or “ghost” fishing gear comprises 10% of all marine plastic debris in the ocean, persisting for decades and passively catching and killing species from sea snails to whale sharks.
- Thailand is famed for its recreational diving, and efforts are underway to retrieve ghost gear from the ocean and rescue animals found entangled, as well as to work with fishers to help them recycle their old equipment.
- Experts say preventing gear from entering the ocean in the first place is paramount; solutions must extend beyond cleanup and recycling efforts to encompass policy reform, economic incentives, and improved infrastructure.

Drop in Amazon deforestation confirmed, but degradation soars 497% in 2024
Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon dropped by 7% in 2024 compared to 2023, according to an analysis by Imazon, a Brazil-based organization that uses satellite imagery to monitor changes in the world’s largest rainforest. However, the news was not entirely positive for conservation efforts: forest degradation skyrocketed by 497%, driven primarily by fires that scorched […]
Birdwatchers rally behind endemic hummingbird, spurring conservation movement in Mexico
- In Veracruz, the charismatic Mexican sheartail, one of the 58 hummingbird species in the country, is threatened by habitat loss due to deforestation for agriculture and urbanization.
- Chavarillo, an important spot for migratory birds, located in central Veracruz, has leveraged income gained from birdwatching to create a natural reserve for the Mexican sheartail.
- One local in Chavarillo donated land to establish the Doricha Natural Reserve, which provides the sheartail with much needed habitat and helps promote biodiversity conservation more widely.
- Birdwatchers, local landowners and conservationists have come together here to protect a habitat and ecosystem important for many endemic species.

Survey uncovers ‘wildlife treasure’ in Cambodian park — but also signs of threats
- A survey of a little-known patch of forest on Cambodia’s border with Thailand has uncovered a “treasure of wildlife,” including potentially new-to-science plant species.
- The Samlout Multiple Use Area was established 30 years ago to conserve natural resources while also developing economic activities, but deforestation rates in the region have matched the national average.
- The survey, conducted by Fauna & Flora and commissioned by the Maddox Jolie-Pitt Foundation, found about 140 bird, 30 mammal, 15 bat and 50 orchid species.
- But camera traps used in the survey also recorded the presence of armed humans in the area and evidence of snare traps, prompting calls for improved protection by law enforcement agencies.

Study shows degradation changes a forest’s tree profile and its carbon storage
- In highly deforested landscapes and degraded forests, large-seeded big trees are losing out to opportunistic, fast-growing species, a recent study has found.
- Having examined 1,207 tree species across 271 forest plots in six Brazilian regions in the Amazon Rainforest and Atlantic Forest, the study shows that tree species normally dominating landscapes with a high forest cover seem to be in decline.
- The researchers suggest this is because the relatively large wildlife needed to disperse large seeds disappear early on from human-modified landscapes, allowing trees with smaller seeds, and thus smaller dispersers like birds, to dominate the forestscape.
- As forests become increasingly degraded, they lose their functional characteristics, as soft-wood, fast-growing trees have less ability to store carbon, are less resistant to fire and drought, and generally die younger.

New study assesses threat to wildlife from cacao expansion in Congo Basin
- Wildlife in the heart of the Congo Basin, an area that stretches from western and southern Cameroon to northeastern and eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, are most at risk from the expansion of cacao cultivation, a recent study found.
- Cameroon, the world’s fourth-largest cacao producer, wants to double its output by 2030 — an ambition at odds with the country’s stubbornly low yields, changing climatic conditions, and the demand for “deforestation-free” cocoa from consumer nations.
- “Cameroon has little area available for agricultural expansion outside forests,” Marieke Sassen, a co-author of the new study, told Mongabay.
- Three-quarters of Cameroon’s cocoa is destined for the European Union, which passed a regulation in 2023 to ban imports of cocoa produced on recently deforested or degraded forestland.

Thai farmers demand action to restore ecosystems, compensate for invasive fish
- Citizens rallied in Bangkok this week demanding accountability and action from the government and private corporations following an outbreak of invasive fish that has ravaged Thailand’s freshwater ecosystems and aquaculture industry.
- Blackchin tilapia, an omnivorous species native to West Africa, is highly adaptable, breeds rapidly and is capable of outcompeting native wildlife and commercially farmed species, including shrimp.
- Thailand’s largest agricultural conglomerate has come under scrutiny because it obtained a permit to import the species in 2010, shortly before the first detections in the wild in the same province as its research facility.
- The activists urged the government to eradicate the species, compensate affected farmers and identity the parties responsible for the outbreak.

Indonesian company defies order, plants acacia in orangutan habitat
- The Indonesian company PT Mayawana Persada has shifted focus from clearing peatlands in western Borneo to planting acacia on previously cleared lands in defiance of a government order to restore damaged peatlands.
- The lands are home to the critically endangered Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus), and any habitat loss pushes the animal closer to extinction.
- Mayawana Persada’s concession spans nearly 140,000 hectares (345,900 acres), overlapping with more than 83,000 hectares (205,100 acres) of carbon-rich peatlands and more than 90,000 hectares (222,400 acres) of Bornean orangutan habitat.

India’s latest forest cover report hints at countrywide degradation
The latest forest survey report from India suggests a slight increase in the country’s forest and tree cover in recent years. But experts say the net marginal gain masks considerable declines across many biodiversity-rich forests and mangroves as well as in overall forest quality, reports Mongabay India’s Kundan Pandey. The report, published by the Forest […]
Science brings the bloom of farming to a Brazilian desert
The red landscape and enormous canyons of Gilbués, in Brazil’s Piaui state, are like something out of a science-fiction film. That’s what makes the occasional oasis of green peeping through the raw earth such a surprise, contributor Rafael Martins writes for Mongabay. In his early days in Gilbués, farmer José Rodrigues do Santos had to […]
Brazil natural landscape degradation drives toxic metal buildup in bats
- Bats play a crucial role in tropical regions as pollinators, seed dispersers and agricultural pest controllers. But they are exposed to a wide range of threats, pollution among them.
- Two recent papers show how natural landscape transformation and degradation, due to pasture and crop monoculture creation and mining in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest, can increase bioaccumulation of toxins and heavy metals in bat populations, leading to potential health impacts.
- Over time, this toxic accumulation could increase the likelihood of local bat extinctions and the loss of vital ecosystem services. The toxic contamination of these landscapes also poses a concern for human health, researchers say.
- These findings are likely applicable to bats living in other highly disturbed tropical habitats around the world, researchers say.

Environmental journalist in Cambodia shot and killed by suspected logger
- Free press advocates are demanding justice for environmental reporter Chhoeung Chheng after he was shot and killed by a suspected illegal logger on the outskirts of a protected area in northern Cambodia.
- Chheng and a colleague were in the region to document illegal forest activities when they encountered the alleged perpetrator on Dec. 4; police arrested the suspect the following day.
- Chheng died in hospital on Dec. 7, making him the latest victim in a broader trend in which covering environmental issues puts journalists in the firing line.
- Advocates say the incident underscores the threats to journalists seeking to cover issues such as logging amid increasing climate-related catastrophes across Asia, and have called on governments like Cambodia’s to ensure journalists can freely and safely report on those issues.

Land use change impacting seven planetary boundaries, solutions urgent, say scientists
- A new scientific report lays bare the stark impacts of land-system change and land degradation on planetary health, while also offering solutions to these problems. The report was published on the eve of the 16th session of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, running Dec. 2-13 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
- Seven of nine planetary boundaries are now adversely impacted by unsustainable land use and other land practices, the report finds. Six of those boundaries are already transgressed, having moved beyond their safe operating space for humanity and into the high-risk zone.
- Scientists warn that the seriously degraded land use boundary, interacting with the other transgressed planetary boundaries, could result in a domino-effect that may rapidly push Earth systems past dangerous and irreversible tipping points, threatening life as we know it.
- Unsustainable agricultural practices are a leading driver of land use degradation globally, responsible for vast amounts of greenhouse gas emissions, the majority of deforestation and freshwater use. Urgent measures are needed to restore ecosystems, shift to sustainable agriculture, and prevent further degradation.

Nepal’s rhino translocations to continue amid concerns over effectiveness
- Nepal’s government will continue the translocation of greater one-horned rhinos within Chitwan National Park to address overpopulation in the western sector, despite opposition from local tourism entrepreneurs citing potential economic impacts.
- The translocation aims to ensure a sustainable and evenly distributed rhino population, mitigate non-poaching-related deaths, and reduce risks from flooding and poaching in the western region, officials say.
- Tourism entrepreneurs in the western sector, however, argue that the relocation lacks adequate research, will harm local tourism-dependent economies, and say the western region remains the most suitable habitat for rhinos.

New transmission lines cut a Cambodian rainforest sanctuary in half
- Satellite imagery, drone photography and testimony from residents indicate that work has begun on electricity transmission lines that will cut through the heart of Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary in order to connect Cambodia’s energy grid with that of Laos.
- A 5.8-kilometer-long (3.6-mile) strip of land has already been cleared inside Prey Lang, indicating that plans are moving forward to run the transmission lines 65 km (40 mi) through the sanctuary.
- Conservationists, and even the former environment minister, recommended alternate routes avoiding the core of the forest, leading one expert to question whether the lines have been deliberately sited to facilitate access by timber traffickers and land investors.

Overuse of antibiotics in Bangladesh aquaculture raises health concerns
- A recent study in Bangladesh reveals high rates of antibiotic resistance in pabda fish (Ompok pabda) bred by farmers through aquaculture.
- Consumption of antibiotic-resistant pabda fish may lead to the development of antibiotic resistance in humans as it exposes the food chain to multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacteria.
- Pabda aquaculture in Bangladesh produces around 20,000 metric tons annually, some of which is exported.
- Researchers are advocating educating farmers on the correct usage of antibiotics with the intervention of fisheries experts.

Indigenous guardians embark on a sacred pact to protect the lowland tapir in Colombia
- An Indigenous-led citizen conservation project in the community of Musuiuiai in Putumayo, Colombia, aims to obtain data on the lowland tapir’s presence and understand the environmental factors affecting the species.
- According to spiritual beliefs, a divination from an elder in the 1990s pushed the community to move to a high-priority region for tapir conservation. Beliefs in the mammal’s sacred status supports conservation efforts.
- The lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris) is listed as vulnerable to extinction on the IUCN Red List; in Colombia, it’s threatened by habitat loss and hunting.
- Using a biocultural approach to conservation, Musuiuiai was named an Indigenous and Community Conserved Area (ICCA), whose members now hope to reduce tapir hunting in neighboring tribes through outreach and collaboration.

A Ramsar site in Bangladesh fast loses its fish diversity amid government inaction
- Tanguar Haor, Bangladesh’s second largest Ramsar site and one of the country’s most important habitats of breeding fish, has been losing its fish diversity.
- A recent study found that the number of available fish species is now below 100 while, just two decades ago, the figure was recorded to be 141.
- Experts blame anthropogenic factors, including overfishing and habitat destruction, as the causes of declining diversity.
- However, authorities are ignoring the rising urgency for conservation and are instead celebrating the “increased fish production in the wetland.”

Study shows, via clouded leopards, how to better protect forests
- New research from Borneo suggests we could improve the efficacy of protected areas by better selecting where to locate them.
- A more “assertive” approach to protected area placement that prioritizes protection of high-biodiversity forest areas facing imminent development pressure could significantly improve conservation outcomes for key forest-dependent species, the study says.
- Improving protected area design and management is vital as the urgency of environmental action builds, especially in regions facing escalating development threats, such as Borneo.
- As in many parts of the world, Borneo’s existing network of protected areas are largely located in rugged and remote places that are safeguarded mainly by their inaccessibility to development, rather than by strategic conservation planning.

Canopy bridges serve a lifeline for Sumatra’s tree-dwelling primates
- An NGO is working with local authorities in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province to build canopy bridges for primates to safely cross roads that fragment their forest habitats.
- Pakpak Bharat district has seen rapid growth of new roads to improve communities’ access to schools and hospitals, with the trade-off being that many of these roads disrupt wildlife connectivity.
- The bridges, designed to meet the needs of different species, have been used by various wildlife, though not yet the critically endangered orangutans that the designers had in mind, and are monitored regularly through camera traps and maintenance checks.
- Conservationists highlight the bridges’ role in preventing inbreeding among isolated populations and sustaining the ecosystem’s biodiversity, with hopes to expand the initiative across Sumatra.

NGOs ask to include Brazilian Cerrado in the EUDR at next review
- About 74% of the Brazilian Cerrado falls outside the scope of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
- Unless illegalities are found, such as breaches to national law, commodities from areas of the Cerrado that are excluded from the EUDR will be able to enter the EU.
- Deforestation rates in the Cerrado increased by 43% in 2023, with the greatest destruction concentrated in Brazil’s state of Bahia, where almost a quarter of its original 9 million hectares (22 million acres) of vegetation have been lost since 1985.
- NGOs are calling on EU authorities to review and expand the regulation at its one-year review period. However, the European Commission recently proposed a 12-month delay in the implementation of the EUDR, which could affect the date of the review.

Community-led wetland restoration may hold key to Harare’s water crisis
- In Zimbabwe’s biodiverse but fast-developing capital city of Harare, a small community has formed a wetland restoration project, known as Conservation of Monavale Vlei, to protect biodiversity and prevent degradation.
- The Monavale wetlands are under threat in part due to environmental problems caused by development, inadequate infrastructure and poor waste management.
- Over the years, the city’s water tables have been falling, as Harare extracts groundwater faster than the aquifers are replenished to meet the demands of its growing population. This issue combined with drought results in a serious water crisis.
- By replicating the Monavale Vlei model, which supports rich biodiversity, residents and experts said the city could benefit from the many ecosystem services the project provides, including water storage, groundwater recharge and water purification.

Combined effects of human activities increase risk to ecosystem services
- A global analysis finds that exposure to multiple human-caused stressors is reducing the ability of ecosystems to provide ecosystem services. However, precisely how these myriad human-induced environmental changes interact to disrupt ecosystems and alter these vital services is poorly understood.
- Researchers analyzed more than 1,000 experiments that measured the response of ecosystems to one, two or three human-caused environmental stressors. The scientists found that the ability of ecosystems to maintain their current function declines as the number of stressors they are exposed to increases.
- The scientists also analyzed data from a long-term experiment on the effect of four simultaneous environmental stressors on plant productivity. This single study showed that ecosystem services’ resistance to change gradually declines with long-term exposure to multiple environmental stressors.
- The new study sheds light on a crucial unanswered environmental science question: How do interactions between multiple planetary boundary transgressions accelerate the collapse of key Earth system processes that keep the planet habitable?

A nesting haven for sea turtles in Suriname is fading away
- Braamspunt, a crucial sea turtle nesting beach in Suriname, is facing rapid erosion and could soon disappear as climate change impacts and sand mining eat away at it.
- The beach is one of only two major nesting sites for sea turtles in the country, and its imminent loss threatens in particular the survival of leatherback turtles; 90% of the vulnerable species’ local population nests here.
- Mining of sand as a construction material has significantly contributed to the degradation of Braamspunt, impacting not only the local sea turtle population and the broader coastal ecosystem but also the coastal defense of the capital, Paramaribo, against rising sea levels.
- Braamspunt is also subjected to a natural process of drift — the beach once lay farther west, and was moved to its present location by currents — but this process will end if there’s no more sand to move.

Cambodian fishers-turned-citizen scientists monitor marine mammal deaths
- In Cambodia, the NGO Khmer Ocean Life has trained residents of coastal fishing communities about threats to marine mammals so they can participate in a citizen scientist network aimed at tracking bycatch and strandings.
- At least 10 species of marine mammals are commonly found in Cambodia, including dugongs (Dugong dugon), Indo-Pacific finless porpoises (Neophocaena phocaenoides), Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins (Sousa chinensis) and endangered Irrawaddy dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris); all of these species face an array of threats, including coastal development and unsustainable fishing practices.
- Bycatch is the biggest threat facing marine mammals globally, according Sarah Tubbs, Khmer Ocean Life’s co-founder and co-director, and coastal marine mammals face greater threats due to their proximity to fishing activities.
- Currently, data on marine mammal bycatch and strandings are lacking in Cambodia; the citizen scientist network will provide real-time insights into where bycatch mitigation efforts are most needed.

High CO2 levels are greening the world’s drylands, but is that good news?
The increased concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere since pre-industrial times isn’t just driving climate change — it’s also making much of the world’s drylands greener with increased plant growth. This is known as the CO2 fertilization effect, and politicians sometimes cite it to rhetorically downplay the negative global impacts of climate change, saying it’s […]
Highways prevent pumas from reclaiming their eastern U.S. range: Study
Pumas are unlikely to recolonize much of their historical range in the eastern U.S., a new study finds. It’s not a lack of habitat or food keeping out the pumas, also known as cougars or mountain lions. It’s the highways. Historically, pumas (Puma concolor) ranged coast to coast across nearly all of the Americas, stretching […]
Government inaction leaves Nepal without strategy to tackle invasive species
- A 2016 study ranks Nepal fourth globally in vulnerability to invasive species threats, particularly in agriculture.
- Yet despite drafting a management strategy to deal with the issue seven years ago, Nepal has still not finalized and implemented it.
- The country has identified 182 alien flowering plant species, with 27 considered invasive, affecting forests, agriculture and wildlife habitats.
- Experts stress the importance of swift action, noting that the window of opportunity to effectively manage invasive species is small.

50 years of data show that Madagascar’s mangroves are making a comeback
- A new analysis of satellite imagery dating as far back as 1972 reveals that mangroves in Madagascar are rebounding after decades of deforestation.
- The island’s total mangrove cover is down 8% compared with 1972, but a closer look at the data shows that the rate of loss has been declining and even reversed in the last decade.
- Between 2009 and 2019, Madagascar’s mangrove cover increased by 5%, with mangrove forests expanding even more in protected areas — showing that conservation efforts are working.
- Researchers say that mangroves still face many threats from climate change, deforestation and mining, and that continued engagement with coastal communities is critical to empower those communities to protect the local mangroves that they depend on.

Indonesia palm oil lobby pushes 1 million hectares of new Sulawesi plantations
- A state-owned palm oil company and an industry association have begun early work to push a vast new plantation strategy in Sulawesi, one of Indonesia’s largest islands.
- The proposal includes aspirations for production of a form of environmentally friendly fertilizer that the signatories to a document signed in May hope will enable producers to apply for climate finance incentives, despite the deforestation implied in the plan.
- Civil society groups told Mongabay Indonesia the fragile ecosystems in Sulawesi, which are already threatened by the region’s minerals boom for nickel, could not endure further shifts in land use, which would also further erode Indonesia’s ability to meet its international climate commitments.

Indonesia, EU reconcile forest data ahead of new rules on deforestation-free trade
- The Indonesian government and its European Union counterparts are ironing out differences in their forest and commodity supply chain data ahead of a looming deadline that could shut Indonesian commodities out of the EU market.
- Under the EU’s Deforestation Regulation, commodities associated with deforestation will be barred as of next year from entering the EU market; Indonesia is a major producer of four of the seven listed commodities: palm oil, coffee, cocoa and rubber.
- To be allowed to export these commodities to the EU, producers and traders must be able to show that they weren’t sourced from land that was deforested to grow them, but the forest maps used by Indonesia and the EU have several differences that need to be reconciled.
- The EU ambassador to Indonesia says his side is working with local authorities to resolve the matter, which he attributes to the differing definition of “forest” as used by the European and Indonesian authorities.

Birdsong rings out once again in Togo’s sacred forest of Titiyo
- Logging for firewood, charcoal and timber for construction almost wiped out the sacred forest of Titiyo in northern Togo.
- The degradation of the forest had a major impact on wildlife and the surrounding population.
- But since 2015, Sylvain Tchoou Akati, a native of the area, has led the restoration of this forest, and is today bringing his model of community-led conservation to other areas.

On heavily dammed Mekong, tracking study tries to find where the fish are going
- Despite the huge environmental and economic importance of migratory fish in the Mekong River, there’s been little empirical data documenting where and how fish travel within the Lower Mekong Basin.
- For a recent study, researchers teamed up with fishers in Laos to tag hundreds of fish with transponders before releasing them to continue their migrations.
- The study found that these fish travel hundreds of miles along the river, including through several active and planned hydropower projects in Laos.
- It also found that at least a portion of the fish were able to traverse a fish ladder on an existing dam.

Where Javan leopards thrive, so do other wildlife, study shows
- Where Javan leopards thrive, the diversity and abundance of other wildlife species is also enhanced, a new study shows.
- Researchers used camera traps across Java from 2020 to 2022 to identify the richness of animal life in areas with more leopards.
- Many of these species, such as barking deer and wild boar, are leopard prey, while others, such as dhole wild dogs and Javan rhinos, aren’t.
- The study highlights the importance of targeted conservation strategies that also include protecting these other species and restoring habitats, to support the endangered Javan leopards and their ecosystems.

In a desertscape in Brazil, science brings farms to bountiful life
- Located in the south of Brazil’s Piauí state, the municipality of Gilbués is one of four zones in the country currently experiencing desertification.
- The affected area covers 805 km2 (311 mi2) of degraded Caatinga dry forest that’s home to some 149,000 people.
- In 2006, a pioneering federal program experimented with various ways to control soil degradation and recuperate degraded areas of desertified land in Gilbués, making farming possible, even profitable, here.
- The program ended in 2016 for uncertain reasons, but the legacy of transforming the earth continues among the farmers in Gilbués, which today is one of Piauí’s top corn-producing municipalities.

In Peru, conservationists and archaeologists unite to save a threatened gecko
- The Lima leaf-toed gecko (Phyllodactylus sentosus) today occurs mostly in archaeological sites in Peru’s capital, where it has become critically endangered.
- A unique cross-disciplinary conservation project, has brought together biologists and archaeologists since 2018 to save the species from extinction.
- The project involves in-situ and ex-situ conservation, environmental education and, soon, plans to translocate individuals between the archaeological sites to boost genetic diversity.

Frog ‘saunas’ may help threatened frogs fight off deadly fungus
- Researchers have developed simple, sun-heated shelters that allow frogs to raise their body temperatures and fight off a deadly fungal disease called chytridiomycosis.
- The study focused on the green and golden bell frog in Australia, a threatened species, showing that frogs given access to these warm shelters cleared infections faster and developed resistance to future infections.
- This innovative approach could provide a valuable, low-cost tool for protecting various amphibian species threatened by the fungal disease, which has devastated amphibian populations worldwide.
- The research comes at a critical time, as a recent study found that two in five amphibian species are now threatened with extinction, with climate change becoming a primary threat.

Study finds best plants for bee health and conservation in North America
- A new study analyzed pollen from 57 North American plant species, identifying those most nutritionally beneficial for bees, which could inform conservation efforts and wildflower restoration projects.
- Based on their findings, the researchers recommend emphasizing roses (Rosa sp.), clovers (Trifolium sp.), red raspberry (Rubus idaeus), tall buttercup (Ranunculus acris), and Tara vine (Actinidia arguta) in wildflower restoration projects, citing their ideal protein-to-lipid ratios in pollen for wild bee nutrition.
- The research found that bees require a diverse diet from multiple plant sources to obtain a balanced intake of fatty acids and essential amino acids, as no single plant species provides the optimal nutrition.
- With many bee species facing significant threats, the researchers say they hope these findings can inform conservation efforts from policy changes to individual actions like planting native flowers and reducing pesticide use.

Hydropower dams further undermine REDD+ efforts in Cambodia
- Five hydropower dams are currently being built in the Cardamom Mountains with reservoirs set to collectively span more than 15,000 hectares (37,065 acres) across protected forests.
- Three of these new dams encroach on forests where REDD+ projects are currently operating, pitting “green” energy infrastructure against conservation goals.
- Residents living nearby one of the dam sites fear that history may repeat as hydropower dams have typically been used to illegally extract valuable timber.

In Brazil, conservationists try to save one of the world’s most endangered cats
- Muñoa’s Pampas cat, a small wild feline, is endemic to the Pampas grasslands that sprawl over southern Brazil, Uruguay and northeastern Argentina.
- With fewer than 100 individuals left in the wild, experts call Muñoa’s pampas cat one of the most endangered felines in the world and warn it go extinct within 10 years as its natural habitat is cleared for cropland.
- Conservation plans to save the species include switching from monocultures to extensive ranching that preserves the natural grasslands, creating a captive-breeding program, and developing a trinational conservation agreement.
- Recent floods in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, where many Muñoa’s Pampas cat sightings have been recorded, have currently halted all local conservation efforts, putting the future of this feline at risk.

Can Vietnam’s forests survive the spread of acacia and eucalyptus plantations? (commentary)
- The large-scale planting of acacia and eucalyptus monoculture plantations in Vietnam raises concerns about their long-term environmental impact on soil health and biodiversity.
- This aggressive expansion also leads to fierce competition for land, often displacing local communities with limited resources.
- “Fostering a spirit of cooperation between companies and farmers is essential to ensure that the Vietnamese forestry industry thrives while promoting the livelihoods of both parties,” a new op-ed states.
- This post is a commentary, the views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.

To wipe or to wash? That is the question
- Toilet paper is seen as a vital commodity by many people around the world, but only about 30% of the world uses it, with the rest relying on water and soap to keep clean.
- The way we source and produce toilet paper has a large environmental footprint, so should toilet paper users follow the majority of the world and ditch the paper?
- Consumed is a video series by Mongabay that explores the environmental impacts of products we use in our daily lives.

Elusive jaguarundi inspires biologists to share data across Latin America
- The jaguarundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi) is a little-known small felid with a range extending from northern Argentina to Mexico. The last confirmed sighting in the United States was in 1986.
- H. yagouaroundi is found in a variety of habitats, but is thought to occupy mostly rugged areas with good shrub cover, including near agricultural lands. Unlike most other felids, the jaguarundi is active during the day, which can easily bring it into conflict with farmers who don’t appreciate its habit of raiding chicken coops.
- Like most small, noncharismatic cat species, there’s little funding to learn more about the jaguarundi. But researchers are developing new tools, for example pooling sparse “bycatch” data gathered by many biologists from camera traps in widely scattered places and modeling it to predict habitat use and population size.
- An ongoing IUCN jaguarundi assessment is using a Google Forms questionnaire to reach out widely to researchers, governments and NGOs, while also using easily shared social media tools. A detailed understanding of jaguarundi behavior is needed to assure it is conserved both inside and outside protected areas.

Illegal fishing and land grabs push Cambodian coastal communities to the brink
KOH KONG, Cambodia — Join Mongabay staff writer Gerry Flynn as he embarks on a crucial investigation along Cambodia’s coast, uncovering the effects of illegal fishing and unchecked coastal development on local communities. In recent years, fish stocks in Cambodian waters have plummeted, leading to a dramatic decline in income for small-scale fishers. The primary culprits? […]
Small-scale fishers lose out to trawlers in race to catch Cambodia’s last fish
- On Cambodia’s coast, fish catches have dropped precipitously in recent years, and so have small-scale fishers’ incomes.
- Small-scale fishers say commercial trawlers have been illegally entering their fishing grounds, scraping the sea clean of life and, with it, their community’s ability to survive.
- Although fishers often blame foreign vessels, satellite data show Cambodian-, Thai- and Vietnamese-flagged trawlers making frequent illegal incursions into Cambodia’s protected waters, community fisheries or shallow inshore waters legally reserved for small-scale fishers.
- This is the first part of a Mongabay series about challenges faced by Cambodia’s small-scale fishers along the coast.

Mysterious, at risk, understudied flat-headed cat lacks conservation focus
- Little is known about the elusive flat-headed cat, a cryptic Southeast Asian felid that’s found in Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo and southern Thailand.
- This cat is endangered due to its habitat being converted to agricultural lands (including oil palm plantations), pollution and hunting. The small felid confounds researchers who struggle to capture it on camera traps, leaving huge knowledge gaps about its distribution and ecology.
- But collaring of the cat and tailored research is helping fill data gaps, with conservationists now planning range-wide targeted surveys and tagging efforts. Innovative research techniques, such as eDNA, could shed further light on populations, but these methods face their own implementation challenges.
- Protecting the flat-headed cat in the face of multiple threats requires more targeted research, much better funding, and specific targeted conservation action that is currently lacking.

On World Otter Day, an uphill struggle for these creatures in Nepal
- Severe degradation of Nepal’s rivers due to overexploitation has negatively impacted otters and other aquatic species.
- Dumping of raw sewage and industrial waste, leaching of agricultural pesticides, and rapid urbanization and infrastructure developments are undermining otter habitats across the country.
- The widespread damming of rivers coupled with unsustainable fishing practices have also reduced food sources for Nepal’s otters.
- The country is home to two, possibly three, otter species, but conservationists say funding and attention for the welfare of these animals tend to be overshadowed by that for Nepal’s higher-profile wildlife, such as tigers and rhinos.

All conservation is local: Interview with Angolan conservationist Kerllen Costa
- Kerllen Costa is the manager for a project run by the Kissama Foundation to protect Afromontane forests on Mount Moco, Angola’s highest mountain.
- Costa says he approaches conservation by looking at how communities already manage their landscapes and resources, and trying to introduce measures that recognize and enhance those systems.
- He says building on traditional ecological knowledge can help to sustain landscapes and the communities and wildlife they support, even in the absence of formally recognized protected areas.

Tracing Africa’s ‘fading biological fingerprints’ in Angola’s threatened forests
- Angola’s Afromontane forests are considered to be the country’s most threatened habitat type due to logging, wood harvesting and fire.
- Experts say the forests are relics that harbor “fading biological fingerprints” from a previous epoch.
- It’s not just species living in the closed-canopy forests that could be threatened by the loss of this ecosystem, but those that live alongside them.
- They include the Huambo cisticola, a species now known to be unique to Angola that lives in the ecotone, or transition zone, between forest patches and surrounding grasslands.

A forest restoration project brings birdsong back to Angola’s highest mountain
- Fires and unsustainable wood harvesting have depleted the Afromontane forests on Mount Moco, Angola’s highest mountain.
- The forests are home to a diverse variety of birds, some found only in Angola.
- Since 2010, a conservation project has sought to regrow some of the forest patches and to protect them from wildfires.
- The work is promoting bird conservation, but also benefiting the local human community by ensuring a reliable flow of freshwater out of the forest.

Saving Asia’s fishing cat means protecting threatened wetland habitat
- Fishing cats are uniquely adapted to life in wetlands, possessing a double-layered coat that serves as a water barrier and insulation, partially webbed feet, ears that plug when submerged, and a curious call reminiscent of a duck.
- Spread across Asia, this small wild cat species faces myriad threats, including habitat loss, hunting and retaliatory killings, road kill, and more. Considered vulnerable across its range, the felid is also elusive and underresearched, with many knowledge gaps about its distribution and ecology.
- Conservationists are working across its range to raise the profile of this wildcat, reduce threats and understand the species. Linking its protection to equally threatened wetlands is vital, they say. Initiatives such as the Fishing Cat Project in India have achieved success in making this cat the face of these habitats.
- Multiple conservation and research projects operate in Asia under the banner of the Fishing Cat Conservation Alliance, a cooperative model that provides funding lifelines and enables international collaboration to protect this small cat.

Borneo and Sumatra megaprojects are carving up clouded leopard forests
- Massive infrastructure projects currently underway on the Southeast Asian islands of Borneo and Sumatra are set to severely erode forest connectivity across key habitats of the Sunda clouded leopard.
- Two major highway networks and the relocation of Indonesia’s capital city to Borneo will further fragment the domain of the arboreal predator that has already experienced steep population declines in recent decades due to the expansion of oil palm and poaching.
- Experts say the findings will help to target conservation actions, but they add that road design standards and development planning processes remain woefully inadequate in the region.
- The authors call for improved development strategies that seriously consider sustainability and include data-based environmental assessments and mitigation measures, such as wildlife crossings and avoidance of sensitive ecosystems.

Indonesian capital project finally gets guidelines to avoid harm to biodiversity
- Beset by criticism over its environmental and social impacts, the controversial project of building Indonesia’s new capital city in the Bornean jungle has finally come out with guidelines for biodiversity management.
- The country’s president has hailed the Nusantara project as a “green forest city,” but just 16% of its total area is currently intact rainforest.
- The new biodiversity master plan outlines a four-point mitigation policy of avoiding harm, minimizing any inevitable impacts, restoring damaged landscapes, and compensating for residual impacts.
- The master plan considered input from experts, but several didn’t make it into the final document, including a call for the mitigation policy to extend to a wider area beyond the Nusantara site.

Protected areas bear the brunt as forest loss continues across Cambodia
- In 2023, Cambodia lost forest cover the size of the city of Los Angeles, or 121,000 hectares (300,000 acres), according to new data published by the University of Maryland.
- The majority of this loss occurred inside protected areas, with the beleaguered Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary recording the highest rate of forest loss in what was one of its worst years on record.
- A leading conservation activist says illegal logging inside protected areas is driven in part by demand for luxury timber exports, “but the authorities don’t seem to care about protecting these forests.”
- Despite the worrying trend highlighted by the data, the Cambodian government has set an ambitious target of increasing the country’s forest cover to 60% by 2050.

On the trail of Borneo’s bay cat, one of the world’s most mysterious felines
- The bay cat, named for its brownish-red coat, is arguably the most elusive of all the world’s wildcats. And among the most endangered.
- The bay cat is the only feline endemic to Borneo. Researchers — some of whom have never seen the cat in the wild — say it is potentially threatened by habitat loss and killings by locals, with accidental snaring another possible major cause of loss.
- But the biggest threat may be ignorance. In order to better protect this species, researchers urgently need to figure out: Why is it so rare? And why is it vanishing?
- Jim Sanderson, the world’s leading expert on wildcats, suggests research on the bay cat should focus on why it’s so uncommon, what is causing its decline, and how to reduce those threats. Then conservationists can make a viable plan to protect it.

Unseen and unregulated: ‘Ghost’ roads carve up Asia-Pacific tropical forests
- A new study indicates that significant networks of informal, unmapped and unregulated roads sprawl into forest-rich regions of Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
- Slipping beneath the purview of environmental governance, construction of these “ghost roads” typically precede sharp spikes in deforestation and represent blind spots in zoning and law enforcement, the study says.
- The authors underscore that the relentless proliferation of ghost roads ranks among the gravest of threats facing the world’s remaining tropical forests.
- The findings bolster a growing momentum toward the development of AI-based road-mapping systems to help conservation biologists and resource managers better keep track of informal and illegal road networks and curb associated deforestation rates.

As a megaport rises in Cameroon, a delicate coastal ecosystem ebbs
- The deepwater port at Kribi, Cameroon, is a massive project, begun in 2011 and slated for completion in 2040.
- It aims to decongest the existing port at Douala and become a trade hub for all Central African countries.
- The port is located just a few kilometers from Cameroon’s only marine protected area, home to green, olive ridley and hawksbill turtles.
- While aiming to improve the country’s economy, the port has generated unintended environmental consequences, intensifying coastal erosion, increasing human pressure and pollution, and endangering marine life and local fishers’ livelihoods.

Tropical forest loss puts 2030 zero-deforestation target further out of reach
- The overall rate of primary forest loss across the tropics remained stubbornly high in 2023, putting the world well off track from its net-zero deforestation target by 2030, according to a new report from the World Resources Institute.
- The few bright spots were Brazil and Colombia, where changes in political leadership helped drive down deforestation rates in the Amazon.
- Elsewhere, however, several countries hit record-high rates of forest loss, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Bolivia and Laos, driven largely by agriculture, mining and fires.
- The report authors call for “bold global mechanisms and unique local initiatives … to achieve enduring reductions in deforestation across all tropical front countries.”

Tanzania’s ‘mountain of millipedes’ yields six new species
- Scientists have recently described six new species of millipedes found in Tanzania’s Udzungwa Mountains.
- The six were among thousands of specimens collected by researchers studying forest ecology there and in the nearby Magombera Nature Reserve.
- Magombera was damaged by commercial logging in the 1970s-80s, and affected areas have been overrun by woody vines known as lianas.
- But teams working on the ground think that millipede diversity and abundance in liana thickets is equal to that of undisturbed forests, suggesting they may be dynamic places poised for forest regeneration with minimal human intervention.

Toilet paper: Environmentally impactful, but alternatives are rolling out
- While toilet paper use is ubiquitous in China, North America, parts of the EU and Australia, its environmental impact is rarely discussed. Environmentalists recently began urging people to be more aware of the real price paid for each roll — especially for luxury soft, extra-absorbent TP made from virgin tree pulp.
- Though not the global primary source of tissue pulp, large tracts of old-growth forest in Canada and Indonesia are being felled today for paper and tissue products, impacting biodiversity and Indigenous communities. Eucalyptus plantations to provide pulp for TP are mostly ecological deserts, and put a strain on water supplies.
- The environmental impacts of toilet paper occur all along its supply chain. Making TP is an energy- and water-intensive process, and also requires toxic PFAS and other chemicals. Upon disposal, toilet paper can become an insoluble pollutant that resists wastewater treatment and adds bulk and chemicals to sewage sludge.
- Many large tissue makers are investing in improved technologies to lighten this impact. But emerging markets in the developing world, beyond the reach of environmental watchdogs, are raising alarms. Bidets, recycled paper, bamboo, sugarcane and other alternative pulp sources offer more environmentally friendly options.

New ecoregion proposed for Southern Africa’s threatened ‘sky islands’
- A group of scientists is proposing the designation of a new African “ecoregion” consisting of an “inland archipelago” of 30 isolated mountains, some harboring animals and plants found nowhere else on Earth.
- The South East Africa Montane Archipelago straddles southern Malawi and northern Mozambique.
- This geographical isolation has fueled the evolution of separate species within the forests that grow on them, and those forests are now severely threatened by charcoal production and agriculture.
- It’s hoped the designation of a new ecoregion encompassing these mountains will promote nature conservation on a landscape-wide scale.

Rewilding Ireland: Healing from a history of deforestation, one tree at a time
- Eoghan Daltun has spent the past 14 years successfully rewilding 29 hectares (73 acres) of farmland on the Beara Peninsula in southwestern Ireland.
- Ireland is one of the most ecologically denuded countries in the world, only possessing about 11% forest cover but on this episode of the Mongabay Newscast, co-host Rachel Donald speaks with Daltun about how he came to accomplish his rewilding feat simply by letting nature take its course and erecting a good fence, which has rapidly led to the regeneration of native forest, wildflowers and fauna.
- They also discuss the historical drivers of ecological devastation that have led to the classic, tree-less Irish landscape, from ancient times to imperial colonization and the advent of modern farming, and what the potential of rewilding is to change that and boost biodiversity.

In Cambodia, an official’s cashew factory churns out timber from a protected forest
- A senior Cambodian official notorious for illegal logging appears to be carving out a vast swath of forest in what’s supposed to be a protected area in the country’s north.
- Satellite imagery suggests some 3,100 hectares (7,700 acres) of protected forest could be lost in a concession that activists and anonymous officials say has been awarded to a company led by Ouk Kimsan.
- Kimsan, who’s also the deputy governor of Preah Vihear province, denied owning a concession inside Beng Per Wildlife Sanctuary — despite his company stating the opposite on its website.
- Community activists, who manage a slice of the protected area, say their complaints about illegal logging have been ignored by the provincial government, and blame a culture of corruption.

Reforestation of Indonesia’s new capital city stumped by haphazard planting
- Less than a tenth of the reforestation target for Indonesia’s new capital city, Nusantara, has been achieved to date, planners say.
- The main obstacles that experts have identified include a preference for nonnative tree species, poor planting practices and monitoring, and a general misapplication of reforestation principles.
- Officials have acknowledged that progress is off-target, but note that the government is joined by the private sector and NGOs in carrying out tree-planting efforts.
- They also say a master plan is in the works to better guide these efforts, as Indonesia prepares to inaugurate its “green forest city” later this year.

Cambodia sea turtle nests spark hope amid coastal development & species decline
- Conservationists in Cambodia have found nine sea turtle nests on a remote island off the country’s southwest coast, sparking hopes for the critically endangered hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) and endangered green turtle (Chelonia mydas).
- It’s the first time sea turtle nests have been spotted in the country in a decade of species decline.
- Two nests have been excavated to assess hatching success; conservationists estimate the nests could hold as many as 1,000 eggs.
- Globally, sea turtle populations are declining, largely due to hunting for food and the animals’ shells, used in jewelry; other threats to sea turtles include tourism development, pollution and climate change.

Forest diversity is key to Southeast Asia’s climate adaptability, study shows
- A new fossil study indicates that Southeast Asia’s forests were more resilient to past climate change than previously thought.
- In contrast to the theory that a vast savanna corridor expanded across Southeast Asia during the peak of the last glaciation, the researchers found evidence that a mosaic of forests in fact persisted across much of the region.
- The findings emphasize the importance of protecting connected networks of a wide range of forest types to afford the region its best chances of adapting to projected climate change.
- In addition to ecological implications, the findings provide insight to theories of how humans historically migrated across and shaped the region’s ecosystems.

Conservationists aim to save South America’s super tiny wild cat, the guina
- The Americas’ smallest wild cat, the guina (Leopardus guigna), is superbly adapted to its home range in Chile and Argentina. But the region is severely affected by deforestation and increasing human population, putting the cat’s future at risk.
- The increase in people in the guina’s habitat has particularly severe consequences, including roads, fences, fires, cattle and, especially, attacks by dogs. The cats are also hunted by people due to their reputation as chicken killers.
- Conservation experts and authorities agree that solutions to save the guina must include local people. They have turned their attention to the people living outside protected areas to help conserve one of South America’s most endangered cats.
- New, groundbreaking environmental legislation in Chile hopefully will also help the cause of the guina and other species impacted by deforestation.

Illegal gold mining threatens Indus River water and biodiversity in Pakistan (commentary)
- The Indus River in Pakistan is being extensively disturbed by unregulated mining of the river’s bed (‘placer mining’) for gold.
- Numerous operations employing an estimated 1,200 heavy machines dig daily into the riverbed and dump buckets of sediment and rocks into screening devices, destroying habitat and muddying the water flowing downstream.
- “It is crucial to the development for the region’s economy and environmental preservation efforts to regulate placer gold blocks along the Indus River,” a new op-ed argues.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.

Camera-traps help identify conservation needs of Thailand’s coastal otters
- Otters are sometimes described as the “tigers of the mangrove” in Southeast Asia, where they’re well-known to display extraordinary resilience and adaptability to human activity and urbanization.
- A new camera-trap study now highlights the importance of expanses of natural habitat, such as coastal forests and wetlands, for two species of otter living along southern Thailand’s increasingly modified coasts.
- The research team found that while otters are able to live within human-modified landscapes, tracts of natural habitat offer them vital refugia from a slew of threats, such as road collisions, prey depletion due to pollution of watercourses, and conflict with fish and shrimp farmers.
- The authors used their findings to create maps that indicate where conservationists and wildlife departments should prioritize management and monitoring for these vital top wetland predators.

Nature-based recovery needed for Ukraine’s damaged protected areas (analysis)
- A group of ecologists has published the first interim analysis of the impacts of Russia’s invasion on Ukraine’s protected areas, which has been an environmental disaster.
- Conservationists and international policy makers must reckon with the damages from this invasion and support Ukraine in a nature-positive post-war recovery.
- This article is an analysis. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

New dams in Cambodia pit ‘green’ hydropower against REDD+ project
- The recent approval of two hydropower dams in Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains could undermine a REDD+ carbon project in the area.
- The Southern Cardamom REDD+ Project relies on keeping the forests in this region standing — a goal researchers say is “completely incompatible” with the forest clearing and flooding necessitated by the new dams.
- The lack of transparency inherent in both the carbon market and the Cambodian government means that the fate of the Cardamoms remains unclear for now.

‘Immense body of knowledge’ at stake in Cambodia’s Prey Lang as deforestation soars
- Researchers have launched a new book that catalogs hundreds of plant species from Cambodia’s Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary that have known medicinal uses.
- The book draws on the knowledge of Indigenous communities who have found a use for these plants over the course of generations, and whose livelihoods and cultures are closely intertwined with the fate of these species.
- The book also serves to highlight the imperiled situation of Prey Lang and its native species as deforestation by politically linked timber-trafficking networks continues to destroy vast swaths of this ostensibly protected area.
- “If the current trends of deforestation continue,” the authors warn, “an immense body of knowledge about nature will be lost, reducing the resilience and adaptability of future generations.”

Shining a spotlight on the wide-roaming sand cat ‘king of the desert’
- The sand cat (Felis margarita) is a small, elusive wildcat exquisitely adapted to thrive in the deserts of northern Africa, Southwest and Central Asia — some of the hottest, driest habitat on the planet. These felids are near-impossible to see in the daytime and difficult to track at night. As a result, little is known about the species.
- Despite being challenged by limited resources, two European experts have repeatedly traveled to southern Morocco to study the sand cat. Their efforts, along with the rest of the Sand Cat Sahara Team, have led to the gathering of scientifically robust data that is lifting the lid on the secretive life of this tiny felid.
- The sand cat’s status is listed by the IUCN as “least concern” because there is little evidence to indicate its numbers are declining. But data across regions remain scant. New findings from southern Moroccan sand cat study sites beg for this conclusion to be reassessed, with possibly fewer sand cats existing than past estimates indicate.
- Tracking the sand cat’s changing conservation status is important because that data can indicate changes and trends in the ecologically sensitive environments in which they live. In addition, how they adapt, or fail to adapt, to climate change can give us clues to the resilience of species facing today’s extremes, especially desertification.

How scientists and a community are bringing a Bornean river corridor back to life
- Decades of deforestation to make way for oil palm monoculture have transformed the Kinabatangan River floodplain in east Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, dividing wildlife populations and confining many of the region’s most iconic species to small fragments of forest that cling on along the river.
- Local communities and conservation initiatives are working together to restore and reconnect pockets of remaining habitat along the river to preserve the vital wildlife corridor, but restoration in the unpredictable and often-waterlogged floodplain is notoriously difficult.
- One such initiative, Regrow Borneo, is facing the challenge by leveraging the expertise of scientists and local knowledge of community members who have been planting forests along the Kinabatangan for decades.
- They say that by focusing their approach on a model that benefits both people and wildlife, they hope their program inspires others to shift away from simply planting numbers of trees toward restoring forests where they’re most needed, including in areas that present challenging conditions.

Vizzuality data set aims to give companies full view of supply chain impacts
- Sustainability technology company Vizzuality has published an open-source data set that can help companies evaluate how much their products are contributing to ecological degradation and accelerating climate change.
- The data set is also available through LandGriffon, an environmental risk management software.
- The software maps supply chains and calculates the impacts of several environmental indicators, including deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions, loss of natural ecosystems, and biodiversity loss resulting from agricultural production.

New platform offers toolkit for companies to prove their eco claims
- As governments around the world consider new regulations that would require corporations to track their impacts on biodiversity, a new platform called NatureHelm provides companies and individual landowners with a tool to track indicators of ecosystem health.
- The tool analyzes various databases and scientific papers to find relevant local biodiversity targets and automatically pulls in data from remote tools, such as camera traps, to track them.
- NatureHelm also provides consulting to help companies choose the best tools to track biodiversity targets, and produces annual reports that allow companies to show how different metrics change over time and in response to conservation actions.

As U.S. insurers stop covering prescribed burns, states and communities step up
- Prescribed fires are a positive land management method, but when the flames occasionally escape control, the resulting damage to land and private property also hurts this conservation tool’s reputation.
- U.S. insurance companies are thus charging increasingly unaffordable premiums for coverage of this activity or are dropping the service altogether in the wake of some particularly large recent accidents.
- As a result, many small conservation groups and private businesses are getting out of the habit of using fire to improve grassland health, boost wildlife habitat, and decrease likelihood of catastrophic wildfires.
- California is bridging this gap with a new state program that insures the activity, while prescribed fire associations, where residents and firefighters cooperate to carry out burns on private land, are increasingly popping up in communities.

Hunters & habitat loss are key threats to red serow populations in Bangladesh
- The red serow population (Capricornis rubidus, a type of goat-antelope) has rapidly declined in Bangladesh due to hunting for meat and habitat loss; 50% of the animals’ habitat has been severely degraded over the last 10 years.
- Recent camera-trap surveys find the existence of red serows in Baroiyadhala National Park in Bangladesh.
- Some 22 cameras captured images of red serows, creating hope for its conservation, but the cameras also captured pictures of roaming armed hunters.
- Experts suggest taking conservation measures in the rocky mountain areas of Mirsharai, Sitakunda and Hazarikhil in Chattogram to revive the population of wild goats.

Calls grow to repurpose land squandered in Cambodia’s concession policy
- The mismanagement of large swaths of Cambodia’s land by the country’s elites under the policy of economic land concessions has displaced thousands of rural families and accounted for 40% of total deforestation.
- With even the government seeming to acknowledge the ineffectiveness of ELCs as an economic driver, calls are growing to return the land to dispossessed communities or repurpose them in other ways.
- One expert says the role of local communities will be central to the success of any reformation of the ELC system and will need to be carefully considered to avoid the pitfalls of the old system.
- Another proposes giving land currently owned by nonperforming ELCs to agricultural cooperatives managed by communities, placing more negotiating power in the hands of farmers rather than concessionaires.

Conservationists look to defy gloomy outlook for Borneo’s sun bears
- Sun bears are keystone species, helping sustain healthy tropical forests. Yet they’re facing relentless challenges to their survival from deforestation, habitat degradation, poaching and indiscriminate snaring; fewer than 10,000 are thought to remain across the species’ entire global range.
- A bear rehabilitation program in Malaysian Borneo cares for 44 sun bears rescued from captivity and the pet trade and has been releasing bears back into the wild since 2015. But with threats in the wild continuing unabated, success has been mixed.
- A recent study indicates that as few as half of the released bears are still alive, demonstrating that rehabilitation alone will never be enough to tackle the enormous threats and conservation issues facing the bears in the wild.
- Preventing bears from being poached from the wild in the first place should be the top priority, experts say, calling for a holistic approach centered on livelihood support for local communities through ecotourism to encourage lifestyles that don’t involve setting snares that can kill bears.

Report alleges APP continues deforestation 10 years after pledge to stop
- A new Greenpeace report alleges that pulp and paper giant APP continues to clear forests and develop peatlands 10 years after adopting its landmark 2013 pledge to stop destroying natural forests for its plantations.
- The report identifies 75,000 hectares (185,300 acres) of deforestation in APP supplier concessions or companies connected to APP between February 2013 and 2022 — an area the size of New York City.
- APP has also changed the start date of its no-deforestation policy from 2013 to 2020, which would allow the company at some point in the future to accept new suppliers that deforested between 2013 and 2020.
- APP denies allegations of continued deforestation and says its suppliers have ceased forest conversions since 2013; the company also says it has committed to peatland restoration.

Meet Japan’s Iriomote and Tsushima cats: Ambassadors for island conservation
- Two rare subspecies of leopard cat, the Iriomote cat and Tsushima cat, can be found only on the Japanese islands they’re named after. With populations hovering around 100 individuals each, the cats are the focus of Ministry of the Environment-led conservation measures.
- The Iriomote cat has adapted to its isolated ecosystem by developing a more diverse diet than other felids. Following its well-publicized discovery in the 1960s, the cat has become an enduringly popular symbol of the island’s nature, and locals eagerly assist in conservation efforts.
- The Tsushima cat has faced habitat degradation caused by deforestation, canal construction and, most recently, ravenous deer. As the islands’ human population declines, local farmers are working to preserve the wet rice fields that help support the cat population.
- On both Iriomote and Tsushima, roadkill accidents are a major threat to the low wildcat populations. Conservation centers on the islands aim to raise driver awareness by providing crowdsourced info on cat sightings, posting cautionary signs at cat crossing hotspots, and educating locals and tourists.

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