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Uncertainty about weakening Atlantic currents isn’t a reason to wait but to act (commentary)
- The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is the system of ocean currents that mediates weather on both sides of the Atlantic, and research suggests it’s shifting due to climate change in ways that threaten marine ecosystems, wildlife, agriculture and more.
- Though no one can yet prove how it’s changing and how soon, the latest research on the AMOC should be understood as a warning sign that the potential outcomes could be even more severe than projected, a new op-ed argues.
- “Discussions about AMOC weakening should not be confined to maps of temperature and rainfall. They should also be about biodiversity, fisheries, and the resilience of ocean ecosystems already under strain,” the author writes.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
How we tracked China’s deep-sea mining fleet
- In March, Mongabay’s Elizabeth Claire Alberts and CNN International’s Kara Fox co-published an investigation into China’s deep-sea mining fleet’s ambitions and the alleged military dual uses of its oceanographic research ships. This project was supported by the Pulitzer Center, where Alberts was a 2024-2025 Ocean Reporting Network fellow.
- A key finding was that eight Chinese ships involved in deep-sea mining research only spent about 6% of their sea time over the last five years in internationally designated seabed mining areas, while spending the rest of the time elsewhere, including areas identified by Western experts as strategically important for military reasons.
- The investigation illustrates that the nascent deep-sea mining industry not only poses potential environmental risks, but also presents geopolitical implications.
- This article explains how Alberts and Fox worked together to undertake this investigation, which has drawn international attention and was cited or republished by outlets including The New York Times, Inkstick Media and Island Business.
IMF lending programs linked with deforestation should be rethought (commentary)
- The IMF provides financial assistance to countries to balance their books but recent research by the co-authors of a new commentary shows this support comes at an environmental cost: an increase in deforestation.
- The co-authors reveal countries experience 9.2% higher annual tree cover loss during years in which they are under such programs, which is an unnecessary cost; and thus, the IMF should consider how to fix this issue while it’s currently reviewing the design of its lending programs, they argue.
- As the IMF rethinks its lending approach, these groundbreaking new findings underscore the need to deepen understanding of the impacts of forest and biodiversity loss on economic systems, the co-authors write.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of Mongabay.
Risk of saltwater intrusion into coastal groundwater spans the globe: Study
- Coastal sites throughout the world are seeing notable declines in groundwater levels, putting them at risk of saltwater intrusion, according to a new study.
- About half of drinking water and a quarter of irrigation water comes from groundwater, so this trend threatens a vital source of freshwater for humanity.
- The study authors found that more than 10% of monitored locations showed a significant years-long decline in groundwater levels, indicating a susceptibility to saltwater intrusion, which can render water unusable.
- Many large-scale studies on groundwater and saltwater intrusion are model-based, but this one analyzed data from wells across much of the world.
How much suffering do invasive species cause? Researchers are measuring that
- Researchers have developed a new framework for measuring the suffering caused by invasive species, which they hope will complement the existing global standard for assessing these species’ impact on native biodiversity.
- Initial case studies from around the world assessed by the Animal Welfare Impact Classification for Invasion Science (AWICIS) suggest that the suffering caused by invasive ants and flies has been systematically overlooked. Focusing on welfare impacts also challenges conservationists to consider how management might harm invasives themselves.
- Results from AWICIS were, however, skewed by a relative lack of research describing invasive welfare impacts in lower-income countries. Its authors hope AWICIS’ adoption will encourage conservationists to record suffering more regularly and systematically.
Most wildlife AI focuses on the ground. This model looks up in the trees
- Scientists have developed a new artificial intelligence model that can detect and identify tree-dwelling species.
- TropiCam-AI can recognize 84 taxa, including 63 species, with the tool showing an accuracy of 95% with the majority of the taxa.
- AI is widely used to automate the detection of animals from camera-trap data sets that can run into millions of images.
- However, the existing AI models developed for this purpose focus primarily on ground-dwelling animals, with tree-dwelling species largely overlooked.
A ‘symphony’ of wildlife suggests carbon financing is working in Sierra Leone
- A study conducted in Sierra Leone’s Gola Rainforest National Park found that the United Nations Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) financing program, set up to ensure that forests sequester carbon, also confers some benefits to the park’s animal biodiversity.
- Compared to a neighboring protected area without REDD+ funding and a bordering community-owned agroforestry area, the national park had higher soundscape saturation, a proxy for biodiversity. However, the authors also found that the agroforestry area had a higher diversity of insects than the two other study areas.
- The study emphasizes that carbon financing programs can provide benefits outside of storing carbon, but experts also highlight that it shows that on-the-ground monitoring can be cheaply, effectively added to programs like REDD+ to help better conserve forests as whole ecosystems.
Asia’s overlooked leopard cat
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. Asia’s mainland leopard cat is easy to overlook. It’s small, nocturnal, and often mistaken for a domestic cat or a leopard cub. On paper, it appears secure. The species ranges from India to the Russian Far East, and […]
West Asia conflict brings Norwegian marine research vessel back to Sri Lanka
- The West Asia conflict unexpectedly redirected Norway’s state-of-the-arts Fridtjof Nansen research vessel to Sri Lanka after a planned survey in Oman was disrupted.
- The month-long expedition surveyed Sri Lanka’s marine ecosystems, fish stocks biodiversity and ocean conditions using advanced acoustic and oceanographic methods.
- Scientists documented around 800 species, including about 125 that may be new records from Sri Lankan waters, along with a few species that could be new to science, pending further detailed analysis of the collected specimens.
- The survey revived a previously cancelled mission due to approval delays and offered Sri Lankan researchers some rare hands-on training aboard the United Nations-flagged research vessel.
Slow lorises struggle to survive in the wild after captivity
The wild can be a “death trap” for rescued slow lorises, one of the world’s most trafficked primates, according to a recent study, reports Mongabay’s Carolyn Cowan. Researchers followed the fate of nine confiscated Bengal slow lorises (Nycticebus bengalensis) released into Lawachara National Park in Bangladesh. Six months later, only two individuals were surviving; several […]
Amazon resilient to fire, but diversity loss still a threat, study finds
- A two-decade study conducted in the southeastern Brazilian Amazon found that while degraded forests show high ecological resilience and no sign of transitioning to savanna, species diversity at forest edges halved.
- Repeated disturbances are replacing fire-resistant specialist trees with fast-growing, generalist species, which have repercussions for the biome’s biodiversity.
- Although researchers say the forest’s response is a sign of hope, they warn that the new ecosystems that emerge from that forest recovery process can be vulnerable to new climate disturbances.
Communities say sacred groves are shrinking in India’s eastern ghats
Sacred groves in the Indian state of Odisha continue to be protected now, as they have for hundreds of years because of cultural and spiritual values associated with them, a recent study has found. However, the forests are decreasing in size, nearly all residents interviewed by researchers said. India is estimated to have roughly 100,000 […]
An Australian icon, the platypus is struggling — and scientists still lack answers
- Australia’s iconic platypus is under threat as climate change hits the country hard. Intense heat and longer droughts are parching waterways that platypuses live in; wildfires are more frequent and heavy rainfall events inundate their burrows.
- Platypuses are elusive animals, primarily active at dawn and dusk, making them difficult to locate and count, which hinders conservation efforts. Researchers are working to improve platypus population data.
- Without comprehensive information on their whereabouts, conservationists can’t intervene early in natural disasters to save platypuses.
- Australia’s intense three-year drought and the following 2019-2020 “Black Summer” bushfires led to new ways to manage wild platypus populations during natural disasters. Now, a new framework outlines ways to save populations in crisis: whether to help animals in situ or deciding to move them.
‘We’ve got bats’: The community bringing New Zealand’s pekapeka into the spotlight
- Aotearoa New Zealand’s only native land mammals are three bat species — one of which is likely extinct and the other two headed in the same direction due to habitat loss and other threats.
- A community-led bat research group, one of the first in the country, is working to help save the New Zealand long-tailed bat (Chalinolobus tuberculatus) by conducting surveys for bats in and around Franklin county, near Auckland.
- Their research project, called Finding Franklin Bats (FFB), is also aiming to spread local awareness of New Zealand’s bats and their plight by working with landowners and community members.
- Over the past three years, volunteer numbers have swelled from 50 to more than 180, and in 2026 FFB received enough funding to employ seven people, six of them members of local Indigenous communities.
Study gathers over 4,000 photos to find Bolivia’s rarest Amazonian dog
- A study conducted for more than 20 years with camera-trap surveys in different parts of the Bolivian Amazon has recorded 594 independent events for the short-eared dog in more than 4,600 images.
- This species, popularly known in Bolivia as the ghost dog, is one of the least-known canids in the world. Its survival depends highly on the quality of its natural habitat, according to experts.
- In the Bolivian forests, it can generally be found in protected areas or Indigenous territories, which scientists say underscores the importance of these kinds of areas for biodiversity conservation.
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 […]
At world’s largest shark conference, scientists warn of a grim outlook across the board
- Hundreds of researchers and conservationists met in Colombo from May 4-8 for Sharks International, held once every four years.
- Major topics at the conference included the trade in shark and ray meat, reducing shark bycatch, and the use of new technologies in conservation.
- Participants also highlighted innovative programs that encourage community-based conservation, and grappled with the contentious topic of closing fisheries to aid recovery of threatened species.
‘Time stamps’ in shrubs show when beavers began invading Canadian Arctic
Beavers are expanding their range into Canada’s western Arctic, and a recent study has reconstructed when these ecosystem engineers first became active in the area — sometime around 2008. Historically, North American beavers (Castor canadensis) have been associated with boreal and temperate waterways. However, they’re increasingly being observed moving northward in the Arctic tundra. This […]
From caws to code: AI helps decrypt animal communication
- Scientists are increasingly using artificial intelligence models to decode the communications of other species.
- The Earth Species Project has built a generalizable model that could be used across species; the team also works with scientists around the world to develop custom models for specific species.
- In northern Spain, ESP’s AI tools are helping scientists understand how a population of cooperative-breeding crows communicate with one another.
- The technology is also being deployed to understand how orcas communicate with each other, and how underwater noise affects their communication.
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, […]
Long dubbed a ‘climate refuge,’ warming Tasmanian forests need our help
- Tasmania has long been considered a global “climate refuge,” where cool, ocean-influenced conditions allow species like the giant freshwater crayfish to persist as mainland Australia warms.
- But new research shows that the world’s climate refuges are not immune to threats: shifting rainfall, warming waters, sediment runoff, land-use change and other impacts are eroding the ecological conditions that sustain numerous species.
- In Tasmania, emerging pressures are impacting the island’s biodiversity, ranging from warming and sedimentation in forest streams affecting sensitive crayfish habitat, to declining oxygen levels putting the endemic Maugean skate at risk.
- Scientists say protecting climate refuges now requires active coordinated management between federal, state and local partners, with multimillion-dollar investments in watershed restoration and ongoing conservation efforts.
Africa’s amphibians are overlooked in conservation planning, experts warn
Herpetologists are calling for greater inclusion of amphibians in African conservation planning, in a recent letter published in the journal Science. Africa is home to roughly 1,170 known species of amphibians, 99% of which are endemic. Some 37% of the amphibians are recognized as threatened with extinction. The researchers note that amphibians — frogs, salamanders […]
Asia’s mainland leopard cat is abundant but still cloaked in mystery
- Widespread, adaptable, and classified globally as a species of “least concern” on the IUCN Red List, the mainland leopard cat can be found across much of Asia. However, research on the species remains relatively limited.
- Despite its global status, local populations face serious threats — including habitat loss, hunting, vehicle collisions, and genetic isolation — and in some cases are considered locally critically endangered. Global assessments can mask these regional declines due to how conservation status is assessed.
- Researchers highlight knowledge gaps caused by underfunding, language and geopolitical barriers, along with unshared data. They stress that more focused studies, genetic research, and conservation initiatives that involve local communities are essential to protecting this ecologically important species.
Hundreds of Khulan return to Eastern Mongolia after 65-year absence
The Asiatic wild ass, or khulan, is reestablishing itself in eastern Mongolia for the first time in more than six decades, according to a recent study. It found hundreds of these wide-roaming herbivores have successfully crossed through a gap along the perimeter of the otherwise fenced-off Trans-Mongolian Railway, a barrier that kept them restricted to […]
From Africa to Central Asia, the European roller’s migration builds relationships
- The European roller breeds in open woodlands across Europe and Central Asia and migrates as far as 10,000 kilometers to Africa each year.
- Since 2024, a nascent project of BirdLife South has been investigating the birds’ migration routes and stopover sites.
- The European Roller Monitoring Project aims to identify valuable or vulnerable habitat and build the international relationships that can support the protection of this and other species.
In Mozambique, four isolated mountains yield four new chameleon species
Scientists have identified four new-to-science species of chameleons inhabiting four distinct, isolated mountains in northern Mozambique. These mountains — Namuli, Inago, Chiperone, and Ribáuè —are granite inselbergs rising sharply from the arid savanna. They act as “sky islands” or ecological oases that have allowed unique species to evolve in isolation for millions of years. The […]
African elephant genomes reveal ancient mixing — and modern pressures
A continent-wide genomic study of both savanna and forest elephants in Africa has found that African elephants once roamed widely, both species exchanging genes throughout their range. However, as humans decimated elephant populations for their ivory and fragmented their habitats with farms and urban development, the effects of these disturbances appeared in the genomic patterns […]
Deforestation and warming could push Amazon to tipping point by 2040s: Study
- Deforestation of 22-28% of the Amazon Rainforest, coupled with 1.5-1.9°C of global warming, could trigger a widespread shift of the Amazon Rainforest to degraded forest and savanna grassland ecosystems, a new study warns.
- This looming Amazon threshold modeled by researchers could be reached as early as the 2040s. Hitting this rainforest loss/global temperature threshold, or tipping point, could ultimately impact more than 70% of the Amazon Basin within decades, resulting in release of large amounts of carbon stored in forest and soils.
- Roughly 17-18% of the Amazon has already been deforested, and global temperatures are expected to rise to 1.5°C above preindustrial levels annually as early as 2030.
- Experts underline that the new findings reinforce the urgent need to halt Amazon deforestation, restore significant amounts of rainforest and drastically slash carbon emissions.
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, […]
Rethinking conservation through elephants’ sense of time and memory
Historically, conservation has mostly focused on numbers like population and habitat size. However, in the mid-2000s, scientists started to investigate animal emotions, even trauma, when considering conservation success. In a recent Mongabay podcast, Khatijah Rahmat, a geographer at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, shared her research examining how elephants perceive and […]
Study finds 40% of soil-dependent species threatened or data deficient
Researchers have for the first time assessed the extinction risk of soil-dependent animals, invertebrates and fungi. They found that some 40% of these species are either threatened or data deficient on the IUCN Red List, according to a recent study. Soil hosts nearly 60% of life on Earth. These species are key for biogeochemical cycles, […]
A 10-year whale shark satellite study helps create new protected area in Indonesia
- Fishers and scientists joined together in Indonesia for a 10-year study to protect whale sharks (Rhincodon typus).
- The bagan fishers’ unique relationship with the endangered whale sharks enabled scientists to satellite tag the fish.
- The data from the decade-long study revealed previously unknown migration routes, feeding grounds and a whale shark nursery.
- The data will be used to help create a marine protected area designed for whale sharks.
Study finds microplastics in tadpoles in the Amazon for the first time
Researchers have recorded microplastics in frog tadpoles and their pond habitats in the wild in the Amazon for the first time, according to a new study. This confirms widespread microplastic contamination in the Amazon Rainforest, the researchers say. Previous studies from the region have found microplastic contamination in fish, invertebrates, soil and water samples. […]
Can listening to a forest reveal whether it is ecologically healthy?
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. Researchers have been using sound to study ecosystems for years. A study from ETH Zürich uses it to examine Costa Rica’s payment for ecosystem services program, reports Mongabay’s Abhishyant Kidangoor. Giacomo Delgado, a doctoral researcher, compares the method […]
Unusual ant interaction hints at mutualistic ‘cleaning’ system
Some coral reef ecosystems famously have “cleaning stations,” where fish line up to be cleaned by other species of fish and shrimp. Entomologist Mark Moffet recently published observations of what appears to be a similar relationship in ants. In the Chiricahua Mountains of the U.S. state of Arizona, Moffet, from the National Museum of Natural […]
World’s largest shark conference is set to begin in Sri Lanka next week
- When Colombo hosts Sharks International 2026 from May 4-8, it will be the first time a global shark and ray science conference is convened in Asia, drawing global attention to the region’s fisheries and biodiversity challenges.
- The conference will bring together leading global experts, policymakers and fisheries managers to strengthen the links between science, policy and practice, particularly in regions where shark fisheries are both economically important and ecologically under pressure.
- Key discussions will revolve around methods to bridge persistent gaps between shark conservation policy and on-the-water reality, and how regulations exist in formal frameworks but fail to translate into consistent awareness and action, compliance and enforcement.
- More than one-third of shark and ray species are now threatened with extinction globally, driven by overfishing, bycatch and international demand, making improved fisheries governance and enforcement a central focus of the 2026 meeting.
Saline intrusion in Mekong Delta leaves farmers and scientists at odds
- Vietnam’s Mekong Delta is increasingly facing saltwater intrusion, as sea levels rise, land subsides and the river’s natural cycles are disrupted by dams and irrigation infrastructure.
- A growing scientific consensus says Vietnam must learn to adapt to salt water rather than trying to engineer its way out of the problem; this perspective was officially integrated into Vietnam’s public policy with the 2017 Resolution 120.
- In practice, however, hard infrastructure like sluice gates are popular at the local level and continue to be built.
- Progress implementing Resolution 120 has also slowed due to 2025 administrative reforms that restructured ministries and re-drew provincial boundaries in the delta.
Cocaine exposure drives salmon to alter movements
Young Atlantic salmon exposed to cocaine and its breakdown product, benzoylecgonine, swim farther and more widely in the wild, a new study shows. This behavioral change can put them in risky situations, researchers say. “[T]he effects of illicit drug pollution on aquatic wildlife is not just a laboratory finding — it can measurably alter wildlife […]
Marine resource conflicts in Africa revolve mostly around access: Study
- A new study identified more than 1,000 conflicts in Africa over an 11-year period and found that nearly 75% were disputes over access to spaces and resources.
- The study calls for more participatory and transparent governance to reduce conflicts, warning that without such reforms, conflicts could derail African policymakers’ sustainability and equity goals.
- The analysis, based on media reports and academic articles, found that the underlying drivers of the conflicts, some more direct than others, included illegal fishing, changes in distribution of benefits, weak governance and resource degradation caused by human activity.
One of the world’s largest deep-sea coral reefs discovered off Argentina
- Scientists have discovered what may be one of the world’s largest cold-water coral reef systems, located about 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) deep in Argentina’s territorial waters, with much of it remaining unmapped.
- The reef, dominated by the rare coral species Bathelia candida, hosts a surprisingly rich ecosystem, including dozens of deep-sea species new to science.
- Researchers found signs of human impact, including fishing debris and possible trawling damage, and worry the reef area might also be targeted for oil and gas exploration.
- The researchers are testing restoration techniques, including the installation of 3D-printed “artificial corals,” which they hope will encourage the rapid growth of new corals.
Novel DNA research shows massive native ant decline over hundreds of years in Fiji
Scientists conducting a DNA analysis of ant specimens collected from across the Fiji islands in the Pacific have been able to reconstruct how entire ant populations rose and fell over thousands of years. The findings, based on specimens held at museums, showed that nearly 80% of the archipelago’s 88 endemic ant species have been declining […]
India has a wealth of bats, but our knowledge of them is poor: Report
India is home to 135 known bat species, but their natural history and ecology remain poorly understood, according to the first nationwide assessment of the country’s bats. The report, developed by 36 experts from 27 institutions in India, was released by the nonprofit organizations Bat Conservation International (BCI) and the Nature Conservation Foundation. “Bats […]
On World Tapir Day, data gaps cloud future of Malaysia’s tapirs
Asia’s only tapir species still remains understudied in Malaysia, researchers at the Wildlife Conservation Society say. Recent findings from Thailand suggest that some forest complexes there may hold more Malay, or Asian tapirs (Tapirus indicus) than previously estimated. However, across the border in Malaysia, experts warn that the endangered species faces an uncertain future, complicated […]
Rare, high-altitude jaguar sighting in Honduras raises hope for conservation
- For the first time in a decade, camera traps set up high in the Sierra del Merendón mountain range in Honduras captured images of a male jaguar.
- The cat was documented at an altitude of 2,200 meters (about 7,200 feet), much higher than their normal range. Jaguars typically live below 1,000 m (3,300 ft).
- These mountains can act as a high-elevation corridor for animals to move between landscapes in Honduras, Guatemala and beyond.
- Jaguars, like all big cats, continue to lose habitat and are targeted by poachers. But this cat moving back into its former territory shows that conservation efforts, such as anti-poaching patrols, land protection and the introduction of prey species, may be working.
Offshore wind’s clean energy potential remains largely untapped, say experts
- Offshore wind has enormous clean energy potential across the globe. Though the sector has expanded in recent years that potential remains largely untapped.
- Today, China and European nations lead the way in developing offshore wind farms, with the U.S. hampered by the Trump administration, and other nations just beginning to tap into the potential of marine wind.
- Currently, about 80 gigawatts of power is generated by existing marine wind farms. According to some estimates, more than 2,000 GW of offshore wind is needed to meet climate goals, requiring a huge expansion including in deeper waters using floating platforms.
Researchers say remote Lake Superior island’s wolves are thriving as packs prey on moose
Wolves on a remote island in Lake Superior appear to be thriving, but they’re making deep dents in the moose population that they rely on as a leading food source, according to a report released Monday. Isle Royale is a 134,000-acre (54,200-hectare) national park in far western Lake Superior between Grand Marais, Minnesota, and Thunder Bay, […]
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.
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.
Scientists forecast wildfire risk for species survival under climate change
A new study warns climate change could increase the global area susceptible to wildfires in the future, putting many more species at risk than today. Previous research has shown that climate change is increasing the risk of wildfires as precipitation patterns change and vegetation becomes drier in parts of the world. Researchers have now projected […]
Elephants adjust what they eat in altered habitats, signaling growing pressure
Asian elephants are adapting to rapidly changing landscapes by diversifying their diets — a sign of resilience, but also a warning about the pressures reshaping their habitats, according to a recent study from Malaysia. Researchers collected feces from wild Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) across two distinct landscapes in Peninsular Malaysia: one with primary and secondary […]
Study finds bottom trawling nets 3,000 marine fish species, including threatened ones
How many marine fish species do bottom trawls catch? Researchers now have a list, and it’s long, running to some 3,000 species, according to a recent study. Bottom trawling is a commercially popular, and controversial, fishing method in which boats drag weighted nets along the seafloor. Usually they target commercially valuable marine life at the […]
Push for solar park in Sri Lanka’s elephant terrain raises concern
- A state-approved solar energy park in Hambantota in southern Sri Lanka is being developed on the edge of a managed elephant range, or MER, with some land clearances overlapping with elephant ranges.
- Local communities are protesting the clearing of shrub forests, which are key elephant habitats, a disruption of which can result in the fragmentation of traditional elephant corridors and intensify human-elephant conflict, driving the animals toward villages and farms.
- Conservationists call for adherence to the original MER boundaries, noting that unclear procedures for land-use approval, de-listing and boundary revisions are impacting the intended conservation framework.
- While renewable energy expansion is critical for Sri Lanka’s energy security and to reach its climate goals by reducing fossil fuel dependence, the Hambantota solar push highlights growing tension between clean energy development and biodiversity protection in Sri Lanka.
Translucent microsnail discovered in Cambodia: Photo of the week
In 2024, scientists found a tiny new-to-science translucent microsnail in a cave of Banan Hill, a limestone hill that is part of the karst ecosystem of Battambang province in western Cambodia. The snail is less than 2 millimeters (0.1 inches) wide and long including its shell, about the size of a pinhead. The scientists behind […]
A red flower found nowhere else loses ground as mining expands in Brazil’s Amazon
In Brazil’s eastern Amazon, a bright red flower found nowhere else on Earth is threatened with extinction from expanding iron ore mining, scientists warn. The flowering plant, Ipomoea cavalcantei, known locally as flor-de-Carajás, only grows in cangas, an island-like ecosystem of metal-rich rocky soils and shallow vegetation in the middle of dense rainforest. There are […]
Studying the world’s largest gathering of forest elephants with sound and field observation
- At Dzanga Bai in the Central African Republic—one of the few places where forest elephants gather in large numbers—researchers can observe behaviors that are otherwise difficult to document in dense rainforest.
- Ivonne Kienast leads long-term research combining direct observation with acoustic monitoring, building a detailed record of elephant behavior, social structure, and change over time.
- Her work highlights how sustained presence, local collaboration, and incremental data collection shape understanding of both elephants and the broader forest system they inhabit.
- Kienast spoke with Rhett Ayers Butler, Mongabay founder and CEO, and David Akana, director of Mongabay Africa, over two weeks of conversations in the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of the Congo during March 2026. Her responses have been edited and consolidated.
In Sri Lanka, animals pay the price for overcrowding and speeding jeeps
- Yala National Park in southern Sri Lanka attracted more than 380,000 visitors in the first half of 2025, generating an income of more than $5 million.
- Among the most popular national parks, overcrowding at Yala Block I is a recurring problem, intensified since the social media boom, conservationists say.
- Most leopards at Block I have become acclimatized to humans and safari jeeps, creating more interest among visitors.
- Despite regular training programs, speeding jeeps have become a serious challenge to animals there, and authorities now plan to limit the number of jeeps and open other blocks to reduce the pressure on Block I.
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.
Americas flyways atlas maps the routes of 89 at-risk migratory bird species
- A newly released “Atlas for the Americas Flyways” tracks the high concentrations of 89 migratory bird species that are at risk of major population decline throughout the western hemisphere. It identifies their breeding grounds, wintering areas and stopover locations.
- This marks the first time these hemispheric migratory routes have been mapped in such extreme detail. Hyper-specific location data aim to provide policymakers, conservationists and others with the necessary tools to make informed decisions about protecting migratory bird species all along their flyways.
- The atlas highlights migratory connectivity — identifying key locations in North, Central and South America. Maintaining the environmental integrity of these places is critical to supporting migratory species and includes many tropical hotspots such as Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula and the Pantanal wetland in Brazil and Paraguay.
- The atlas will also be of use to researchers trying to understand why a species’ population is declining. It can also help planners mitigate perilous threats by providing geographical data as to where, and where not, to build infrastructure.
Listening to forests reveals signs of recovery beyond tree cover
- Scientists have deployed acoustic monitoring techniques to measure the success of a forest protection mechanism in Costa Rica.
- Using more than 16,000 hours of audio data, scientists found that the payments for ecosystem services (PES) initiative in Costa Rica has helped recover biodiversity in naturally regenerated forests.
- On comparing the soundscapes, scientists found that naturally regenerated forests sound more similar to protected forests than to pastures.
From carp to hippos, 43% of large freshwater animal species spread far beyond native ranges
From fish and turtles, to hippos and crocodiles, about 43% of all known large freshwater animal species have been deliberately introduced into ecosystems outside their native ranges, a recent study finds. Most species were introduced to boost fisheries, food security or tourism, but many have had unintended consequences for local wildlife, habitats and people. Fengzhi […]
‘Rediscovered’ species in Papua spotlight importance of Indigenous knowledge
- Two species of marsupial thought by scientists to be extinct for thousands of years still live in the forests of Indonesian Papua on the island of New Guinea, according to recently published research.
- One of the animals, the ring-tailed glider, is sacred to the Tambrauw people, and it’s part of a newly proposed genus, Tous, borrowing the Tambrauw name for the glider.
- The other animal, a pygmy long-fingered possum, was discovered during a mammal-watching trip on the Bird’s Head Peninsula.
- The research involved substantial collaborations with local communities and Indigenous elders.
George Schaller: The field biologist who helped redefine conservation
- Miriam Horn’s Homesick for a World Unknown traces the life of George B. Schaller, a field biologist whose work reshaped how animals are studied and understood.
- The book portrays a scientist defined by patience, close observation, and a disciplined effort to understand animals on their own terms, even as such an approach ran against prevailing scientific norms.
- Horn presents Schaller’s career across continents as both scientific and practical, showing how his research informed the creation of protected areas while gradually incorporating local knowledge and participation.
- Rather than probing for psychological insight, the biography mirrors its subject’s outward focus, offering a restrained account that raises broader questions about attention, conservation, and what it means to share a world with other species.
Researchers find ‘remarkable’ hot-pink insect in Panama rainforest
In March 2025, biologist Benito Wainwright and his colleagues were searching for katydids — leaf-mimicking insects related to crickets and grasshoppers — in the rainforest of Barro Colorado Island in Panama, when they came across an unexpected sight: a hot-pink katydid individual of the species Arota festae. The researchers captured the katydid and raised her […]
Colombia’s main river redraws the map of little-known night monkeys
- A new study looks at genetic evidence to suggest that Colombia’s Magdalena River, and not the Andean massif, may be the true boundary separating two near-identical species of nocturnal primates.
- Night monkeys from the genus Aotus, the only nocturnal primates in the Americas, have remained largely invisible to both the public and the scientific community, says the study’s main author.
- Experts in the field say this discovery could fundamentally reshape national conservation maps and protection strategies for night monkeys.
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.
Chile’s ancient conifers host underground web of life that sustains forests: Study
- Estimated to be more than 2,400 years old, one alerce tree in Chile’s Alerce Costero National Park hosts about twice as much fungal diversity underground as younger alerce trees, a team of researchers found.
- The scientists found 361 fungal DNA sequences unique to this tree, indicating that older trees harbor a vaster fungal network that benefits other plants on the forest floor.
- Real estate expansion, climate change and infrastructure projects continue to threaten the alerce, which is listed as endangered. Although Chile protects the species, experts say older trees that support complex ecosystems should enjoy higher levels of protection and limited interaction from humans.
A French city cut its marine pollution — and its seagrass bounced back
- Neptune grass is generally regarded as the most ecologically important seagrass and shallow-water habitat in the Mediterranean Sea, where it is endemic. But the species has been in decline for many decades.
- A new study found that following the introduction of stronger environmental regulations and practices in the mid-to-late 1980s, Neptune grass (Posidonia oceanica) repopulated sampled sections of the waters off Marseille, France, over the ensuing four decades at rates that experts called “exceptional” and “remarkable.”
- The lead author said the study shows the value of passive restoration: letting seagrass meadows regrow on their own after removing the human-caused drivers of decline, rather than focusing on replanting or transplanting the species.
Avian bird flu surges in New York urban wildlife, increasing disease concerns
- The H5N1 strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza has spread across the globe, infecting hundreds of birds and mammal species. Few places offer a clearer view of the virus’s spread in urban wildlife than New York state, where the Atlantic Flyway and a layered surveillance system have made the virus easier to track.
- Scientists and local wildlife rehabilitators in New York City have reported a sharp uptick in suspected avian influenza cases this past winter. The current H5N1 strain is unusual not only for its significant impact on migratory birds, but for its ability to jump to a growing number of mammal species.
- H5N1 continues to surface in live animal and poultry markets across New York City, after more than a decade of recurring avian influenza outbreaks. Experts say the crowded, mixed-species conditions in these markets can amplify viral spread and create new opportunities for spillover to other species, potentially including humans.
- If H5N1 can move this readily across species in a city as heavily surveilled and globally connected as New York, experts warn that the risks may be even greater in other urban centers with more migratory wildlife, large live animal markets and weaker surveillance.
Once lost, now found: Five “missing” bird species rediscovered in 2025, offering hope
- Birders in 2025 rediscovered five species of birds that scientists hadn’t documented in the wild for at least 10 years, according to the latest update of the Lost Birds List.
- All of the “found” birds are endemic to islands in Southeast Asia and Oceania.
- Two birds, one considered extinct and one reclassified as a subspecies, were taken off the list in 2025 and another bird, not seen in 94 years, was documented early this year.
- Six new species will be added to the list in 2026, those not documented in the wild for a decade. This puts the list at 120 birds — down from 163 when it started in 2022.
Researchers uncover 10 new moth species and 7 new genera in Hawaiʻi
Researchers in Hawai’i have described 10 new species and seven new genera of moths, highlighting how much remains unknown about the Pacific archipelago’s biodiversity. Hawai’i is home to a large number of endemic species, plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth. Discovery of a new species is so common, “nobody turns their head,” study […]
New species discovered in Cambodia’s rare rocky ecosystems
Scientists have discovered at least 11 new species in the caves and rocky outcroppings of northern Cambodia’s Battambang and Stung Treng provinces. The findings were compiled into a new biodiversity report. Seven new species have already been formally described and another four are in the process. To map the biodiversity in the nation’s karst ecosystems, […]
Working together, Indigenous peoples & researchers describe new Amazonian palm
- Although used for centuries by the Cacua Indigenous people in Colombia, the táam palm was, until recently, unknown to science. During fieldwork in the village of Wacará, two botanists were offered to eat a fruit they had never seen before, so they set out to discover what species it was.
- With help from the Indigenous community, they were able to find the palm and collect samples in line with the Cacua people’s approach to conserving the plant.
- Lab tests showed that táam was a palm species previously unknown to science that researchers named Attalea taam. After the discovery, the botanists returned to the community and started a participatory process to study the palm’s ecology and distribution.
- Several members of the Cacua community co-authored the scientific paper describing the new species. By relying on Indigenous knowledge and mapping, the researchers say they have obtained better results than through using just a Western scientific approach.
‘Ancient’ carbon venting from lakes in the Congo Basin peatlands: Study
- A new study finds that lakes are likely releasing carbon that’s been held in the peatlands of the Congo Basin for thousands of years.
- Scientists know these lakes release carbon dioxide, which until now was thought to result from recently decayed plant matter.
- A team of researchers radiocarbon-dated carbon from water samples to show that some of the CO₂ probably has much older origins, reporting their findings in a new study.
- The authors says more work is needed to understand the implications of this ancient carbon release for carbon dynamics and climate change.
Global warming already impacts daily lives around the globe, study finds
- Recent research finds that limitations to people’s daily lives imposed by climate change are already widespread and likely to continue growing as global temperatures rise. Older people are the most impacted.
- The researchers used a “physiologically grounded” heat model to analyze 75 years of global climate data.
- The global average number of hours per year that people are exposed to heat that severely limits their activity was found to have doubled for younger adults since the 1950s, while for older adults, it went from about 600 hours per year to about 900 hours.
- Parts of Southwest and South Asia, South America and Australia already experience what the study researchers call “extreme livability limitations,” which is even true for younger adults.
Grasslands and wetlands are being lost to agriculture four times faster than forests
Wild ecosystems such as grassland savannas, bush and open wetlands are losing ground worldwide to make way for large pastures and grain fields. A new study found these ecosystems are being converted at a rate four times higher than for forests. Over a 15-year period, from 2005-2020, researchers found that 190 million hectares (470 […]
Local conservationists sustain research on threatened heron amid Myanmar instability
- Community-based surveys in northern Myanmar have documented a small population of white-bellied herons, one of the world’s most threatened bird species.
- Experts say the sightings reaffirm the conflict-torn area’s importance as one of the world’s few remaining strongholds for the critically endangered species.
- Several threats to the birds were identified, including opportunistic hunting using homemade guns, which the researchers plan to mitigate through outreach programs in local communities.
- The surveys were funded by a wider conservation program that aims to boost local capacity for conservation to cover diminished government support and reduced NGO presence amid Myanmar’s political crisis.
Traditional protection proves more successful for clams in American Samoa
- A study found that on the most populated island in American Samoa, traditional village-based protections and remote sites had the highest density of giant clams — outperforming federally designated no-take zones in one case.
- The authors suggest that traditional community stewardship could offer a viable alternative to federal restrictions, especially in areas communities rely on for giant clam harvesting, while respecting traditional management practices.
- The giant clams, which are slow-growing, face threats from habitat degradation, ocean warming, watershed pollution and overharvesting.
- The NOAA National Fisheries Service proposed protections for several giant clam species in 2024 which could lead to a top-down ban on harvesting. Some sources say a blanket ban without including communities in conservation strategies would impact people who rely on harvesting.
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.
Family and friends help sperm whale mother and newborn during birth
With the notable exception of humans, most mammals give birth alone. But in July 2023, researchers in the Caribbean witnessed something extraordinary: sperm whales not only attending a birth but actively helping both mother and newborn. Some of the whales present were not even related to the mother, known as Rounder. “Kinship barriers dissolved,” notes […]
Poop pills and gut microbes: Wildlife microbiome studies aid conservation
- Recent research into the human microbiome is revealing how closely connected it is to our health. Similarly, scientists are exploring how the microbiome in wildlife species can aid conservation efforts.
- Studies show that human action (including climate change and close proximity to people) is altering the microbiomes of multiple wildlife species. The implications of how these changes may be impacting wildlife survival and health remain unclear.
- Researchers are also exploring how supporting a diverse wildlife microbiome can improve animal health in captivity, aid recovery during rehabilitation, and even boost reintroduction success. Microbiome studies are underway on numerous species, ranging from Australian koalas to African meerkats and cheetahs.
- Though still an emerging field, fecal microbiota transplants (FMTs) are just one possible tool that researchers and conservationists are exploring in trials to see how the restoration of a healthy diverse microbiome can support wildlife conservation.
Defying drought and invasives, a feisty Australian marsupial makes a comeback
- Not long ago, Australia’s ampurta, also known as the crest-tailed mulgara, hung on the precipice of extinction. Now, a new study has mapped its dramatic resurgence.
- This small marsupial increased its range by an area the size of Denmark between 2015 and 2021, building on an ongoing re-expansion.
- The ampurta resurged thanks to an introduced disease that drastically reduced the population of nonnative rabbits. That led to a drop in the number of foxes and feral cats that prey on small animals, including ampurtas.
- Despite the good news, Australian scientists have serious concerns about a lack of investment in the ongoing biological control of both rabbits and feral cats.
China’s deep-sea mining fleet may also track US submarines
A Mongabay and CNN investigation found the eight Chinese state-owned ships that conduct deep-sea mining research in China’s mining areas allocated by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) actually spent little time in these exploration areas, while spending much of their remaining time operating in militarily strategic waters. Many of these vessels are linked to the […]
Argentina updates national IUCN mammal list with new focus on non-native species
- The Argentine Society for the Study of Mammals reviews the national IUCN Red List of mammal species the goal of better understanding population trends and threats across the country’s many ecosystems.
- This time around, scientists evaluated 417 mammal species, 22 more than the 395 species evaluated in 2019.
- The increase reflects newly discovered mammals but also taxonomic revisions to mammals that were once grouped together and are now recognized as distinct species.
- For the first time, SAREM also used the environmental impact classification for alien taxa, known as EICAT, to determine how much damage non-native species were doing to biodiversity in the country.
Conservation win as first palm cockatoo chick fledges from artificial hollow in Australia
Conservationists in Australia are celebrating the fledging of a palm cockatoo chick, a species considered endangered in the country. It fledged from an artificial log hollow installed on a tree for breeding cockatoos. The structure is one of 29 such spaces created as part of People For Wildlife’s (PFW) Breeding Habitat Restoration Project, in partnership […]
Songbird trade threatens lesser-known ‘master birds’ with secondary extinctions: Study
- Master birds are used in songbird competitions in Southeast Asia and other parts of the world to “teach” competitors elements of their songs. This trade, largely unknown and under-researched, is pushing some species to the brink of extinction.
- A recent market study investigated the trade in crested jayshrikes, a popular master bird in Indonesia, and discovered rampant trade: This bird was sold openly across the country, despite its protected species status.
- The trade in master birds has driven serious declines of numerous species in the wild, including the Javan green magpie.
- To save these rapidly disappearing birds, the researchers say that stricter law enforcement is urgently needed to shut down illegal markets and stem the trade.
Should potentially harmful chemicals be appraised by class, not one at a time?
- Everyday household items very likely contain synthetic chemicals that were never tested for long-term safety. And even when one chemical is proven harmful, manufacturers often quickly replace it with a similar substitute that in time is often found to be equally dangerous, a cycle scientists call “regrettable substitution” or the “toxic treadmill.”
- In response, some scientists and health advocates are pushing for a “Six Classes” framework that evaluates entire groups of chemicals, or chemically related subgroups, together, flagging them for scrutiny before harm is documented rather than after.
- The framework targets six broad categories of chemicals that share many common traits: PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), flame retardants, phthalates and bisphenols, antimicrobials, certain solvents, and certain metals.
- The chemical industry argues that grouping diverse chemicals oversimplifies the science and isn’t a workable system, but proponents say the framework is not meant to result in blanket bans but to create a more effective screening tool that better protects consumers.
A bonobo named Kanzi could play pretend, challenging ideas about animal imaginations
- Kanzi, a language-trained bonobo, identified and tracked pretend objects across tea party-like experiments, marking the first controlled demonstration of imagination in a nonhuman animal
- In three experiments, Kanzi repeatedly pointed to the correct location of imaginary juice and grapes, and chose real juice over pretend juice, showing that he understood the difference between real and imaginary objects.
- This study suggests that the cognitive capacity for imagination may date back 6 to 9 million years to the common ancestor of humans and great apes, though some researchers question whether simpler explanations could account for Kanzi’s responses.
- Kanzi died in March 2025 at age 44, but researchers hope to explore whether other apes, including those without extensive human language training, share this capacity.
Two marsupials thought extinct for 6,000 years found alive in Indonesian Papua
Two species of marsupials thought to have been extinct for the past 6,000 years have been found very much alive on the island of New Guinea. The two Lazarus species, named after a biblical figure who was said to have risen from the dead, were recently described from rainforests in the Bird’s Head Peninsula on […]
Beyond the screen: DCEFF
Documentary films have the power to shape how we understand nature. They offer a deeper look into the planet’s challenges, bringing people together through shared experiences and inspiring action. As a media partner for the 2026 Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital (DCEFF), Mongabay is featuring exclusive insights into some of this year’s standout […]
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 […]
In search of the tiny toad that stopped a dam
Arvoreznha, Brazil — Meet the admirable red-belly toad — a tiny amphibian found nowhere else on Earth but a small forest patch in southern Brazil. Don’t let its size fool you. In 2014, it made history by halting the construction of a hydroelectric dam that would have wiped out its only home. With just over […]
Indigenous knowledge confirms what scientists observe: Large birds are disappearing
Many Indigenous peoples and local communities live in close contact with nature and learn to identify the wildlife around them from an early age. New research published in the International Journal of Conservation draws on that knowledge to better understand a scientifically documented trend: large bird populations are shrinking. Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares, an ethnobotanist with the […]
Disastrous floods in Colombia reignite debate over hydroelectric dam
- In early February, severe flooding across the Colombian department of Córdoba affected 24 municipalities and displaced tens of thousands of people across the region.
- The heavy rainfalls occurring during the dry season have been linked to increasing temperatures and stronger coastal winds, which have amplified the impacts of a cold front in the Caribbean region. As official efforts to clean up the flooded areas fall short, locals worry that mosquito-borne diseases like dengue might spread.
- The flooding has reopened debate over Urrá, a large hydroelectric dam on the Sinú River. The project has been the subject of Indigenous resistance for decades, and some locals, experts and politicians blame it for intensifying recent flooding.
Marine biologist Edie Widder chases bioluminescence in new ‘Life Illuminated’ film
- The new documentary “A Life Illuminated” traces the career arc of U.S. marine biologist Edie Widder, an expert on bioluminescence who’s made headlines for decades.
- The film documents her team’s attempt to capture a remarkable deep-water phenomenon called “flashback” on camera. (Spoiler alert.)
- Bioluminescence serves a variety of functions for deep-sea creatures, and flashback may originate from bioluminescent bacteria on drifting organic matter, Widder said.
- “A Life Illuminated” will make its Washington, D.C., premiere on Mar. 19, the first night of the D.C. Environmental Film Festival, where Mongabay is a media partner.
Rush to put AI data centers in space poses poorly understood dangers
- Recently announced plans by companies and nations to send AI data centers into space come as experts warn of a perilous situation developing in Earth orbit as thousands of new satellites are launched, orbit the planet, risk collision, and burn up on reentry.
- Concerns are that the booming numbers of satellites could incur an as yet undefined toll on Earth’s environment — with potential pollution impacts on the atmosphere, ozone layer and even terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.
- Lack of regulation of space activity is a major challenge as researchers work to understand potential impacts of launching and decommissioning satellites.
- Though arguments are made that AI data centers in space could relieve environmental pressures on Earth, there are multiple trade-offs to consider, experts say. Researchers underline the need to embrace the precautionary principle and define possible hazards before satellites multiply further.
Scientists use rapid 3D scanning to create a digital library of 800 ant species
Scientists have designed a new technique using robotics to rapidly generate high-resolution, three-dimensional images of ants. Antscan is the world’s first digitized library of nearly 800 ant species belonging to 212 genera from around the globe. They used microtomography, a technique akin to human CT scans, to capture images of internal ant organs with X-rays. […]
Promising breakthrough creates plastics that self-deconstruct on cue: Study
- Plastic pollution is an evolving global environmental crisis. More than 90% of all plastics manufactured end up polluting the environment, where they can harm ecosystems and impact human health. This “take-make-waste” linear manufacturing model stands in contrast to the circularity of natural systems.
- Inspired by the natural, timely breakdown of organic materials like proteins and DNA, chemists at Rutgers University in the U.S. have now modified existing plastics so that they can be programmed to break down into their molecular components at the end of a specific period of time, or in response to a trigger, such as sunlight.
- Historically, plastics manufacturers have faced a trade-off between material strength and degradability, but this innovation could offer the best of both worlds: plastics that retain their strength and durability for exactly as long as their use requires, and then automatically self-deconstruct for disposal or reuse.
- Global plastics treaty talks remain in limbo, but if a final accord places cradle-to-grave responsibility for plastics on manufacturers, then they would have a financial incentive to invest in self-deconstructing technologies, even though such techniques would likely be more costly than current manufacturing methods.
Indigenous knowledge helps guide conservation of Australia’s endangered northern quoll
- A new study from northern Australia has highlighted the importance of Indigenous cultural and ecological knowledge (ICEK) in conservation efforts of the northern quoll (Dasyurus hallucatus), an endangered carnivorous marsupial.
- This study, published in Wildlife Research, was led by the Martu people, whose lands lie in the state of Western Australia.
- The study finds that cultural knowledge has helped provide a historical baseline for the northern quoll in areas that were previously undocumented by Western science.
- By integrating cultural knowledge with contemporary conservation strategies, the study shows that culturally and ecologically informed approaches can be developed to conserve northern quoll populations on Martu lands, ensuring the resilience of both the species and the landscapes they inhabit.
Study maps tree-planting risks and rewards for climate and biodiversity
- Afforestation and reforestation (AR) have emerged as key climate change mitigation strategies.
- Forestation can be a benefit for biodiversity, but poorly planned projects can do more harm than good.
- A recent study offers a new way of gauging the potential of AR to achieve both carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation, across different biomes.
- The study finds that some biomes have higher potential than others for AR, but considerable variation exists within biomes. The researchers caution that careful planning is needed.
The Cerrado is threatened but crucial for Brazil’s biodiversity & water security (commentary)
- The Cerrado is a massive and biodiverse ecodomain that also plays an important role in carbon storage and water cycling, making it a crucial asset for Brazil.
- Yet more than 55% of the Cerrado’s native vegetation has been lost since the 1970s, and less than 3% is under full protection, far below what is needed to maintain biodiversity and ecological processes.
- Biodiversity loss advances silently, with species disappearing before they are even formally described by science, as several co-authors of a new review article explain.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of Mongabay.
The rate of global warming is accelerating, study finds
Earth has been steadily warming since the start of the Industrial Revolution, when humans began emitting greenhouse gases at scale. And while the rate of warming has been largely constant for the past half-century, a recent study finds it has accelerated over the last decade — an alarming trend for Earth systems, biodiversity and human […]
Climate or biodiversity? Global study maps out forestation’s dilemma
- A new study maps areas designated for potential carbon dioxide removal projects, such as planting forests or bioenergy crops, that might conflict with biodiversity hotspots.
- Such climate strategies could harm species if they change existing ecosystems or use too much land.
- The study points to the importance of more careful site selection for these projects.
- The authors of the study also note the importance of reducing humanity’s CO2 emissions, rather than relying solely on removing CO2 from the atmosphere later on.
Beetle known for ravaging mango trees now killing baobabs, study finds
- Researchers say baobabs face a potential new threat from the mango stem borer, a beetle long known to devastate other trees.
- The warning comes from research in Oman, where scientists found the pest had killed six baobabs and severely infested a dozen more in a small valley population.
- Authorities there are fighting the infestation with pesticides, light traps and manual removal of larvae from the trees.
- Scientists note that similar infestations have not yet been recorded in other countries where baobabs grow.
Birds are changing — and Indigenous memory is the longest record we have
- A global study drawing on Indigenous and local knowledge across three continents finds that bird communities have shifted toward smaller-bodied species over the past 80 years, suggesting a substantial loss of larger birds even in places with little formal monitoring.
- Traditional ecological knowledge, built through daily interaction with landscapes over generations, can reveal long-term environmental changes that scientific datasets — often only decades deep — fail to capture.
- Because larger species tend to be more vulnerable to habitat fragmentation and environmental stress, a shift toward smaller birds may signal deeper ecological restructuring rather than a simple decline in numbers.
- Integrating lived experience with scientific methods offers a fuller picture of environmental change, highlighting that some of the earliest warnings come from people who depend most directly on the natural world.
Climate change drives uneven shifts in tree diversity across Amazon and Andes
- A team of researchers looked at changes in tree richness across the lowland and montane forests of the Andes and Amazon over the last four decades.
- While their results didn’t show an overall shift in any one direction, they found that tree richness changed significantly across the six subregions: forests in the central Andes, Guyana Shield and central-eastern Amazon have been losing species, while the northern Andes and western Amazon showed increased tree richness.
- Changes in the seasonality of precipitation, total rainfall, temperature, as well as the degree of forest fragmentation are key drivers for tree richness: forests that warmed more since 1971 lost species faster than those moderately warming; but regionally, precipitation plays a bigger role than temperature in richness changes.
- Forests with a higher number of trees and landscape integrity gain species, so limiting deforestation across the Andes–Amazon ecosystems can protect tree richness, in particular the northern Andes, which could serve as a key refuge for species that can no longer survive the warming Amazon.
Out of captivity, into conflict: slow lorises struggle to survive after release
- A study in Bangladesh found that seven of nine rescued Bengal slow lorises died within six months of release, showing that rewilding trafficked animals can become a “death trap” if habitat and social conditions aren’t right.
- Most of the dead lorises bore venomous bite wounds from their wild counterparts, indicating that releasing highly territorial animals into already occupied forests can trigger lethal fights.
- The two that survived established larger home ranges, while those kept longer in captivity fared worse, underscoring the need for careful site selection, population surveys, and evidence-based release protocols.
- Experts say that rescue and release only address the symptoms of illegal wildlife trafficking, and that curbing poaching and habitat loss is essential to prevent further harm to both individuals and wild populations.
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.
In Thailand, old camera-trap photos shed new light on Asian tapirs
- Archived camera-trap data from southern Thailand’s Khlong Saeng–Khao Sok Forest Complex identified at least 43 individual Asian tapirs, suggesting the area may be a key refuge for the endangered species.
- Researchers used “bycatch” images from camera traps originally set to photograph bears to estimate tapir density at 6-10 individuals per 100 square kilometers, showing existing data can help monitor elusive species.
- Modeling suggests the forest complex could hold up to 436 mature tapirs, far higher than previous estimates for Thailand and Myanmar combined, though researchers warn the figure may overestimate actual numbers.
- Despite the promising findings, Asian tapirs face ongoing threats from habitat loss and snaring, and experts say protecting intact forest strongholds is vital for the species’ survival.
It’s electric: Scientists develop cheap way to keep sharks off fishing hooks
- Unintentional catch is a major reason that more than a hundred shark species are threatened with extinction.
- A new study found that creating a small electric field around fishing hooks using zinc and graphite is enough to keep many sharks away.
- Researchers have for decades tried to take advantage of sharks’ electrosensitivity to develop devices to keep them off fishing hooks. The authors of the new study chose zinc and graphite because they’re nonmagnetic, cheap and readily available materials.
- The lead author and two former students are pursuing commercial applications for the new method.
New study assesses geoengineering marine ecosystem risks, knowledge gaps
- A new review study examines the current research regarding the risks that various geoengineering approaches pose to marine ecosystems.
- The study looked particularly at a range of marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) methods, along with solar radiation modification (SRM) technologies, and found that some approaches carry fewer risks than others.
- Electrochemical ocean alkalinity enhancement and anoxic storage of terrestrial biomass in the deep ocean (utilizing crop waste, for example) carry fewer risks to marine ecosystems than some carbon dioxide removal methods, such as those that would add nutrients to seawater to promote major plankton growth.
- However, better models, increased field testing, and better geoengineering regulatory oversight are needed to fully assess potential geoengineering marine ecosystem impacts, especially if commercialization proceeds. Public fears over field testing also need to be allayed.
Study refutes claim that Indonesia’s legal turtle trade supports livelihoods
- Tens of thousands of freshwater turtles and tortoises are legally harvested each year in Indonesia for their meat and exported primarily to China, while many species teeter on the brink of extinction.
- Although this turtle trade is thought to provide livelihoods for harvesters, a study finds that with current market prices, it only supports a few hundred people nationwide with a barely sustainable minimum wage income.
- A big proportion of the trade must be illegal to keep it profitable, researchers say. They question whether it should be permitted at all, given that many targeted species are threatened with extinction.
- To prevent illegal trade, conservationists urge Indonesian authorities to enforce harvest quotas, ban the trade of threatened species and provide alternative livelihoods for harvesters to save the country’s chelonians.
Mapping underground fungal networks: Interview with SPUN’s Toby Kiers
- Mycorrhizal fungi are found in every soil system on Earth, and have symbiotic relationships with the plants whose roots they live on.
- They receive carbon dioxide from plants in exchange for nutrients, making them major carbon repositories and an important tool for carbon sequestration.
- The Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN) is deploying a wide range of technologies, from remote sensing to imaging robots, to map these crucial underground networks.
- “We think of these networks as one of Earth’s circulatory systems, but people are not paying attention,” SPUN co-founder Toby Kiers tells Mongabay in an interview.
Rodent burrows offer unusual sanctuary to Africa’s smallest wildcat
- New research shows female black-footed cats rely heavily on abandoned springhare burrows to shelter themselves and raise their kittens, using a constantly shifting network of underground dens to survive Southern Africa’s harsh, semiarid landscape.
- Mothers rotate frequently among multiple dens — sometimes almost daily once kittens begin to move — a strategy likely aimed at avoiding predators and minimizing scent trails.
- Despite weighing as little as 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds), black-footed cats are among the most active and efficient hunters of any feline, ranging over large territories at night and retreating underground by day.
- With low reproductive rates, disease pressure and a population of around 10,000, the species’ survival depends on protecting both springhares and the working landscapes of livestock farms, where burrow loss, overgrazing and predator control can indirectly threaten the cats.
Risk-taking comes earlier in chimpanzees than in humans, study finds
- A study found that chimpanzees tend to take more physical risks as infants and young animals rather than as adolescents, like humans.
- The researchers hypothesize that the level of care humans provide may cut down on the risks young children might otherwise take.
- The team tracked how often 119 chimps dropped or leaped through the forests without holding onto any branches at Uganda’s Ngogo Chimpanzee Project, and analyzed the results according to the animals’ ages.
- Infant and young chimpanzees were more likely to launch themselves through the trees than adolescents or adults, despite the risk of injury.
Seagrass restoration in Malaysia finds multi-species approach boosts recovery
- Seagrass restoration is increasingly recognized as crucial for addressing the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.
- However, much remains unknown about the most effective techniques, especially in tropical ecosystems where long-term projects struggle for funding.
- A decade-long seagrass recovery program in Peninsular Malaysia has achieved high survival rates at a site heavily impacted by coastal development, raising hopes that degraded meadows can be revitalized.
- The study also identified several factors that can increase success, including: knowledge of the biology of local seagrass species, adapting methods to suit local environmental and physical conditions, and properly addressing the original drivers of decline.
Conservation programs must embrace causal evidence when evaluating impact (commentary)
- A couple of seminal studies published almost 20 years ago found that conservationists needed to start examining whether their actions were actually causing the desired effects.
- Assessing conservation projects through a causal lens takes more effort but can ultimately be a big piece of the puzzle that helps practitioners identify cause-and-effect relationships between various factors.
- “What’s needed now is making causal evaluation standard practice rather than the exception. With biodiversity in crisis, we can’t afford to keep guessing whether our actions work,” a new op-ed argues.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
African wild dogs break the carnivore rule in Botswana
For the first time, “hyper-carnivorous” African wild dogs have been recorded eating fruit, a behavior so far documented only in a small part of Botswana’s wildlife-rich Okavango Delta. The wild dogs were seen picking up jackalberries, the fruit of the African ebony tree (Diospyros mespiliformis), with their teeth and swallowing them almost whole. Jackalberries […]
‘Blew us away’: Researchers find nitrogen boost spurs faster tropical forest growth
- A new study in Panama finds that nitrogen availability limits forest growth in the early stages of regeneration.
- Nitrogen addition to newly cleared land and 10-year-old forests substantially boosted regeneration, though adding nutrients to older forests did not have the same effect
- The study also found that phosphorus availability did not limit forest growth at any stage of forest maturity.
- The researchers recommend ensuring nitrogen-fixing species are included during reforestation.
Cameroon cookstove project looks to slow forest loss
- The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) hopes new cookstoves that require less wood than traditional varieties will slow forest loss in Cameroon.
- Mongabay visited one of the villages where CIFOR’s project is taking place to talk to people who are involved in it.
- Long-term success rates for similar projects in Africa have often been low.
- CIFOR wants to break that trend by encouraging people to adopt the new cookstoves and keep using them.
More than 87m people impacted by climate-related disasters in 2025
In 2025, more than 200 climate-related disasters affected more than 87.8 million people worldwide, according to preliminary figures from the International Disaster Database analyzed by Mongabay. The disasters include flash floods, landslides, severe storms, wildfires and droughts. Drought and food insecurity impacted the largest number of people. In Syria, which faced its worst drought in […]
Study ties same-sex behavior in primates to ecological and social pressures
- A recent study into same-sex behavior in primates finds that social organization and ecological factors, including climatic conditions, influence this behavior.
- In gorilla groups, same-sex relations can help strengthen social bonds, study lead author Chloë Coxshall told Mongabay, reducing competition and facilitating access to mates and resources.
- Gorilla groups typically consist of a dominant adult male, several adult females, and their offspring. If the dominant male has the exclusive right to mate with all females of the same group, sometimes this polygamy pushes the females to leave this family to look for other females with whom they develop intimate relationships, Malagasy primatologist Jonah Henri Ratsimbazafy said.
- Same-sex behavior doesn’t appear to have the same place in the lives of different primate species or even at various times for the same population, the study suggests. So species-specific research is needed, according to the study authors.
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.
Earth Rover Program seeks to track the world’s soil health
- Leveraging tools from seismology — the study of earthquakes and the inside of our planet — the Earth Rover Program aims to provide critical data on the health of soil.
- Humans, and terrestrial life in general, depend on the soil for nourishment.
- Yet, in many parts of the world, soils are degraded, worn out and eroding away.
- The recently founded program involves the development of inexpensive technology that farmers and scientists alike can use to better understand soil health and what can be done to improve it.
Too many African plants fall into the IUCN’s ‘not evaluated’ trap (commentary)
- Of the approximately 350,000 vascular plant species in the world, only about 18% have been assessed by the IUCN Red List, and the situation is starker still if one looks at just tropical African species.
- Further, IUCN’s “not evaluated” category simply means a species has not yet been assessed against Red List criteria, and in practice, African conservationists often meet a more confusing reality: Many species are not on the global Red List at all but are still informally talked about as if they are NE.
- “Here’s a constructive way forward via “Red List + Reality” decision rules…A stronger system could combine global assessments with local intelligence,” a new commentary suggests.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
How many insects does California have? We’re getting closer to an answer
California’s insects are as outsized as the state itself. Between its redwood forests and desert basins may live 60,000, perhaps even 100,000 species — though no one truly knows. That uncertainty drives the California Insect Barcode Initiative, an audacious attempt to document every insect in the state through DNA sequencing. Leading the effort is Austin […]
Hidden heroes: Australian tree bark microbes consume greenhouse & toxic gases
- A new study carried out in Australia finds that the bark of common tree species holds diverse microbial communities, with trillions of microbes living on every tree.
- The research determined that many of these microbial species specialize in metabolizing methane, hydrogen, carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
- Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, while hydrogen and carbon monoxide are considered indirect greenhouse gases. Carbon monoxide and VOCs are also both hazardous to human health.
- The study found that tree bark microbes play a significant, previously unknown role in atmospheric gas cycling, potentially boosting estimations of the climate benefits offered by global forests. Learning which tree species boast the best microbes for curbing climate change and pollution could better inform reforestation strategies.
Nitrogen may turbocharge regrowth in young tropical forest trees
New research finds that tropical forests can grow significantly faster and sequester more climate-warming carbon dioxide when additional nitrogen is available in the soil. “With this information we can prioritise management and conservation practices to maximise forest regrowth,” Kelly Anderson, a research scientist at Missouri Botanical Garden in the U.S., told Mongabay by email. Anderson […]
A novel sanctuary in Antarctica is preserving ice samples from rapidly melting glaciers
ROME (AP) — Scientists in Antarctica on Wednesday inaugurated the first global repository of mountain ice cores, preserving the history of the Earth’s atmosphere in a frozen vault for future generations to study as global warming melts glaciers around the world. An ice core is something of an atmospheric time capsule, containing information about the Earth’s past […]
Greenland sharks retain functional vision despite extreme longevity
Greenland sharks are the longest-living vertebrate known to science, topping out at more than 400 years old, and scientists have largely believed they were nearly blind. But new research suggests they actually can see, and, remarkably, maintain their vision for more than a century. Greenland sharks (Somniosus microcephalus) mostly live in the cold waters of […]
Study tracks fishing boats to see how heat waves affect fish distribution
- A new study suggests an early way to detect ecological shifts during marine heat waves: Use fishing vessel tracking data.
- The study found that tracking data could provide early detection of extreme northward and inshore shifts in albacore tuna and Pacific bluefin tuna distribution in response to heat waves and showed when such shifts weren’t happening despite high sea surface temperatures.
- The authors position fishers as “apex predators” and build on research that finds that predators are good ecosystem sentinels.
Myanmar’s botanical data gaps risk its unique flora, collaborations could help, study says
- Home to snowcapped mountains, drought-prone savannas and tropical rainforests, Myanmar hosts tremendous botanical diversity among its richly varied habitats.
- There are 864 known plant species that are found only in the conflict-torn country, yet critical knowledge gaps remain.
- Researchers recently compiled what is known about Myanmar’s flora, identifying key research gaps and priority areas where conservation efforts for plants are most urgently needed.
- They urge collaborative and systematic action to fill in data gaps and protect floristically diverse areas and avoid irreversible species losses.
Methane chasers: Hunting a climate-changing gas seeping from Earth’s seafloor
- Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that can pack more than 25 times the global warming punch of carbon dioxide, and atmospheric methane emissions have been growing significantly since 2007. So it’s vital that humanity knows how and where methane emissions are coming from, including the world’s oceans.
- Scientists first raised the alarm over methane releases from shallow waters in the Arctic Ocean between 2008 and 2010. But recently, they were surprised to discover new releases in shallow waters off Antarctica. Researchers continue spotting additional seafloor seeps there and elsewhere, as methane bubbles escape seafloor sediments.
- In shallow waters, methane bubbles that break the ocean’s surface add greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, but to learn how much climate risk these bubbles pose, scientists first have to find them. The hunt for methane bubbles requires everything from underwater microphones and sonar maps to scuba divers and submersibles.
- Methane seeps are more than a potential climate change threat. They also form the basis of unique chemosynthetic ecosystems that influence the deep sea and may hold clues about the origin of life. Finding and studying those seeps present fascinating challenges, requiring ingenuity and creative thinking by researchers.
5 unexpected animal behaviors we learned about in 2025
Every year, researchers and people out in nature capture some aspect of animal behavior that’s unusual or unexpected in some way, changing how we understand the natural world. Here are five such examples that Mongabay reported on in 2025: Massive fish aggregation seen climbing waterfalls in Brazil For the first time, scientists observed a “massive […]
How are California’s birds faring amid ever more frequent wildfires?
- Long-term research in California shows that many bird populations increase after wildfires and can remain more abundant in burned areas for decades, especially following moderate fires.
- Although some bird species are adapted to fire and benefit from low to moderately severe blazes, megafires in California are becoming more frequent.
- Megafires, scientists say, are unlikely to benefit most bird species and harm those that depend on old-growth forests.
- Wildfire smoke poses a serious threat to birds’ health, with evidence linking heavy exposure to particulate matter in smoke to reduced activity, weight loss and, possibly, increased mortality.
Ditches on peatland oil palm plantations are an overlooked source of methane: Study
- Ditches that drain peatlands for agriculture are significant but often-overlooked sources of greenhouse gases, including methane, according to a recent study.
- Methane doesn’t last as long as CO2 in the atmosphere, but it is many times more potent in warming the climate.
- The researchers analyzed emissions from ditches on two oil palm plantations in Malaysian Borneo and found that the ditches play an outsize role in the overall carbon emissions from converted peatlands.
- Their findings underscore the need to account for emissions from these ditches to better understand the implications of draining peatlands.
Sri Lanka looks to build disaster-resilient housing after devastating cyclone
- More than 1,200 landslides were recorded in two provinces in Sri Lanka following Cyclone Ditwah in late November, resulting in crisis evacuations to safeguard vulnerable populations.
- Most of the disaster-impacted people continue to live in high-risk regions due to the lack of alternative housing.
- The country’s mandated institution for landslide risk management, the National Building and Research Organisation (NBRO), says it’s working on the first national building code to establish minimum standards for the design, construction and maintenance of hazard-resilient housing.
- Following the significant loss of lives and homes in the recent disaster, the NBRO is also introducing specific types of housing models suitable for flat and sloped terrains.
How ‘Adventure Scientists’ provide pioneering data for conservation
Gregg Treinish didn’t start out as an outdoor enthusiast, but found solace and purpose in nature during his youth. After years of enjoying the outdoors, he was left feeling a need to give something back to the world. He found fulfillment by using his passion for outdoor adventures to gather critical data that researchers need […]
As Cyclone Ditwah battered land, Sri Lanka’s oceans absorbed a silent shock
- Following the tropical Cyclone Ditwah, unusual sea-foam appeared along parts of Sri Lanka’s northern coast, a natural phenomenon caused by storm-driven turbulence and organic compounds released by plankton, not marine pollution, scientists say.
- Extreme rainfall from Ditwah released an extraordinary volume of freshwater into the ocean, and researchers estimate that nearly 10% of Sri Lanka’s average annual rainfall was received in a single day and rapidly drained to sea through the island’s river network.
- Flood-driven sediments and sudden changes in salinity may stress coral reefs and coastal ecosystems, but Sri Lanka lacks systematic sediment monitoring at river mouths, leaving scientists with limited data on downstream impacts.
- The floods also swept plastics, debris and nutrients into coastal waters, potentially intensifying plankton blooms and fish aggregations while increasing the risk of algal blooms, oxygen depletion and long-term marine pollution.
New miniature bright-orange toadlet found in southern Brazil and named after Lula
In a small stretch of the Atlantic Forest in southern Brazil lives a bright-orange species of frog that’s new to science, researchers report in a recent study. The miniature amphibian measures just over a centimeter long, less than half an inch, or the length of an average fingernail. The team has named the toadlet Brachycephalus […]
Tanzania’s tree-climbing hyraxes have adapted to life without trees
Despite their name, tree hyraxes — small, furry, nocturnal African mammals — don’t always live in trees. In Tanzania’s Pare mountains, near the border with Kenya, they’ve adapted to life on steep rocky outcrops as forests disappeared over the centuries, a recent study has found. Eastern tree hyraxes (Dendrohyrax validus) are known to inhabit the […]
How Southern African farmers & elephants can both adapt to coexist
- In Southern Africa, people live alongside elephants, but not always peacefully.
- The growing reports of human-elephant conflict have triggered calls for elephant culls in some countries, like Zimbabwe.
- But conservation groups are working hard to promote coexistence, using technology that can warn farmers about approaching elephants or link farmers to more lucrative markets to offset the cost of living with one of Africa’s most charismatic mammals.
- In all of this, adaptation is the key: Farmers are adapting the way they farm, while elephants are learning to move at night and stick to specific routes through populated areas to avoid conflict.
When abandoned conservation projects are counted as progress, what are we protecting? (commentary)
- An issue that receives little attention from conservationists and funders is the quiet abandonment of conservation projects after their high-profile launches.
- New evidence suggests that over one-third of conservation initiatives are abandoned within a few years of launch; if these eventual failures are not reported, they tend to be assumed to remain active.
- “Conservation must be reframed as a long-term commitment. Until the community confronts the uncomfortable truth that starting new projects holds no value unless existing ones are sustained, billions of dollars will continue to be spent on initiatives that provide the illusion of progress while nature continues its decline,” a new op-ed argues.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
Marine heat waves and raw sewage combine to put human health at risk
- Climate change is fueling an increasing number of marine heat waves across the globe.
- When this intensifying heat is coupled with pollution — especially sewage, nitrogen fertilizer agricultural runoff, wildfire soot and possibly plastics — waterborne bacterial pathogens can multiply, raising human health concerns.
- These connections are exemplified in the escalating spread of Vibrio, a group of naturally occurring bacteria whose numbers are multiplying and undergoing global distribution shifts due to complex relationships between marine heat waves and pollution.
- Vibrio infections can range in severity but can result in sickness and death. One notorious Vibrio species is known as the flesh-eating bacteria; another causes cholera.
Earth’s freshwater fish face harsh new climate challenges, researchers warn
- Climate change is rapidly altering freshwater ecosystems — raising temperatures, altering flood pulses and oxygen levels — and driving complex, region-specific changes in how fish grow, migrate and survive.
- Long-term U.S. data show sharp declines in cold-water fish as streams and lakes warm, while warm-water species gain only slightly. Some cold-adapted species are now disappearing as deep waters cease being a cold refuge.
- From Africa to the Arctic, impacts are emerging, including stronger lake stratification, declining fisheries and rivers turning orange as thawing permafrost releases toxic metals. Declining freshwater fisheries increasingly put food security at risk, especially affecting diets and health in traditional and Indigenous communities.
- Scientists say management and conservation techniques rooted in past conditions no longer work. New approaches must anticipate shifting baselines as climate change rapidly accelerates.
New study points to private land as key to Atlantic Forest recovery
- A new study shows that restored private lands in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest achieved up to 20% more forest cover than unrestored neighboring private lands.
- With 75% of the Atlantic Forest in private hands and a 6.2-million-hectare (15.3-million-acre) deficit of native vegetation, according to the law, private landowners are key to recovery.
- Over the past decade, forest gains and losses in the Atlantic Forest have essentially stagnated; but last year, half of all deforestation hit mature forests over 40 years old, threatening biodiversity and carbon stocks.
Noisy traffic is making Galápagos’ yellow warblers angry
A recent study found that birds that live closer to roads display more aggression than birds of the same species that live farther away from noisy vehicles, Mongabay’s Spoorthy Raman reported. Researchers looked at the behavioral differences of male Galápagos yellow warblers (Setophaga petechia aureola) on two islands of the Galápagos, an Ecuadorian archipelago in […]
Study finds more ‘laggards’ than ‘leaders’ among high seas fisheries managers
- A new paper suggests that regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) haven’t done a very good job setting up systems to conserve fish stocks and broader ecosystems.
- The paper questions RFMOs’ readiness for a coming new era of marine governance, with the high seas treaty set to take effect in January.
- The authors rated 16 RFMOs based on 100 management-related questions, such as “Are there consequences for violations of conservation measures …?” and used the answers to help identify “leaders” and “laggards.” The average rating was 45.5 out of 100.
- They also determined that on average, more than half of RFMOs’ target stocks are overexploited or collapsed, reinforcing previous research.
Africa’s wildlife has lost a third of its ‘ecological power,’ study says
- A recent study quantifies the impact of biodiversity loss on ecological functions by tracking energy flows within them. It found that declines in birds and small mammals have led to a significant erosion of ecological functions in sub-Saharan Africa.
- The study crunched data on nearly 3,000 bird and mammal species found in the region, which performed 23 key ecosystem functions, ranging from pollination to nutrient disposal.
- In the paper, the researchers group animals according to the ecological roles they play. By taking into account species present in an area, their abundance, body sizes, diets, and metabolic rates, they turn the animal’s food consumption into a measure of energy flow.
- The analysis found that the “ecological power” of wild mammals and birds weakened drastically, by about 60%, in areas converted to agricultural land; however, in well-managed protected areas, ecological functions are almost 90% intact.
Corridors, not culls, offer solution to Southern Africa’s growing elephant population
- Elephant populations in Southern Africa are stable or growing, but the space available for them is not.
- Often, elephant populations are constrained, increasing their impact on the environment or surrounding communities, and triggering calls for controversial solutions, like culls or contraception.
- But studies in a region that hosts 50% of Africa’s remaining savanna elephants (Loxodonta africana) show how the animals make use of wildlife corridors to move between protected areas and neighboring countries.
- Encouraging elephants to migrate can help relieve overpopulation in some areas, but any corridor invariably intersects with human communities, making it both vital ecological infrastructure and a social challenge.
Choosing coexistence over conflict: How some California ranchers are adapting to wolves
- California’s expanding gray wolf numbers — a conservation success for an endangered species — have worried ranchers in recent years as wolf-related livestock kills mount.
- Some ranchers are adapting to the changing landscape, using short-term nonlethal deterrents, some of which are funded by a state compensation program.
- A few ranchers are exploring long-term approaches, such as changing their ranching practices and training their cattle to keep them safe from wolves.
- While change is hard, ranchers acknowledge that learning to live with the new predator is the only way forward, and it pays to find ways to do so.
Reforestation and wild pig decline spark surge in miniature deer in Singapore
- Once thought extinct in Singapore, a little-known species of miniature deer has reemerged in unprecedented numbers on a small island reserve in the Johor Strait.
- Researchers documented the greater mouse-deer thriving on Pulau Ubin at the highest population density recorded anywhere in the species’ range.
- The team put the surge down to increased availability of prime habitat following a decade of forest restoration, as well as reduced competition for food after the collapse of the island’s wild pig population due to African swine fever.
- Experts say the dramatic “ecological cascade” underscores the need for long-term, ecosystem-wide monitoring throughout Southeast Asia, particularly at sites impacted by sudden shifts triggered by disease.
Botswana’s elephant hunting quota threatens to wipe out mature bulls: Report
The reintroduction of elephant trophy hunting in Botswana in 2019, following a five-year moratorium, is likely severely depleting the number of large, older bulls, according to a recent report. This has put the country’s elephant population at risk and induced behavioral changes in the mammals, researchers say. Since 2019, Botswana has permitted roughly 400 elephants […]
Warmer climate triggers pest infestations in Bangladesh, India tea estates
- A warmer climate triggers pest infestations across tropical tea estates in Bangladesh and India.
- Since traditional pesticides fail in pest control, the producers experience significant losses in terms of production as well as earning.
- Experts recommend comprehensive solutions with integrated pest management and improvement of soil health.
Turning adventure into data
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. Gregg Treinish’s turning point came somewhere between mountain ranges and moral unease. Years of wandering through wilderness had left him restless. “I was spending years in the wilderness, doing long expeditions, and I began to feel selfish for […]
In wake of Cyclone Ditwah, Sri Lanka faces continuing disaster risks
- The devastating Cyclone Ditwah has left a trail of destruction over 25 districts in Sri Lanka and killed 474 people; among the hardest-hit are those inhabiting low-lying coastal areas and the tea growing Central Highlands.
- Increasing vulnerability to extreme weather events among littoral populations is exacerbated by high population density, experts say.
- More than one-third of the Sri Lankan population, or more than 4.5 million people, live along the coastline and population density is projected to reach 134 people per square kilometer by 2050.
- Nearly 34% of the island population lives in high-risk landslide-prone areas of the country, making the island’s central hills highly susceptible to disaster impacts.
Can two Amazons survive? Invisible e-waste is poisoning the world
- E-waste, which refers to discarded electrical or electronic devices, is the fastest growing domestic waste stream in the world, and it is highly toxic, threatening public health. Much of this e-waste, largely produced by rich countries, is dumped in poor countries, with Asia and Africa major destinations.
- Because poor countries mostly lack the highly sophisticated equipment and processes needed to dismantle and recycle these complex composite products safely, unskilled scrap workers, including children, plunder them for resalable components, often with a disastrous impact on their health and the environment.
- Increasingly, the torrent of discarded cell phones and obsolete computers is greatly exacerbated by invisible e-waste: a vast, varied plethora of microchip-containing products, ranging from vaping devices to e-readers, toys, smoke detectors, e-tire pressure gauges and chip-containing shoes and apparel.
- Invisible e-waste greatly adds to developing world recycling challenges. The U.N. Environment Programme warns that “the increasing proliferation of technological devices has skyrocketed the amount of electronic waste worldwide” with nations now facing “an environmental challenge of enormous dimensions.”
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.
Peru’s Río Abiseo park yields new marsupial, hinting at more undiscovered species
- Brazilian researcher Silvia Pavan organized an expedition to a remote protected area in the Peruvian Amazon to search for a species of squirrel last observed 30 years ago.
- During the expedition, the team discovered a new species of mouse opossum, a type of marsupial, which they named Marmosa chachapoya.
- This new species is distinguished by its reddish-brown fur, yellow-grayish belly, and long, narrow face.
- The eastern Andes of Peru is notable for its high endemism, but remains largely understudied, researchers say.
SE Asia forest carbon projects sidelining social, biodiversity benefits, study finds
- Across Southeast Asia, forest carbon projects intended to offset greenhouse gas emissions are falling short on social justice safeguards, according to recent research.
- The study identifies weak governance, land tenure conflicts, corruption and fragmented policies as contributing to the shortcomings.
- Well-managed forest carbon initiatives have an important role to play in global efforts to reduce emissions, the researchers say, but they must center the rights of traditional custodians of forests.
- Against the backdrop of global democratic backsliding, experts urge greater scrutiny of project accountability to uphold social and environmental standards within the carbon sector.
The valuable peatlands of Peru’s Pastaza River Fan: one of the world’s largest carbon reservoirs
- In Peru’s Datem del Marañón province, local communities are combining ancestral knowledge with scientific expertise to protect the peatlands that thrive in this part of the Amazon.
- Peatlands cover only 3% of Earth’s surface, yet can store up to five times more carbon dioxide per hectare than other tropical ecosystems.
- Although research on Peru’s peatlands remains limited, their importance lies in both their role in mitigating climate change and their socioeconomic value for local communities.
- The area that’s the focus of scientists’ research and local communities’ conservation work is part of the Pastaza River Fan, Peru’s largest wetland and the third-deepest peatland in the world.
Small grants can empower the next generation of conservationists
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. Paul Barnes, who leads the Zoological Society of London’s EDGE of Existence program, has spent the past few years listening to the frustrations of early-career conservationists. The stories are rarely about fieldwork itself. They’re about making rent, juggling […]
First state-authorized killings mark escalation in California’s management of wolves
- California’s wildlife department killed four gray wolves in the Sierra Valley in late October, in a dramatic escalation of tactics to address growing predation of cattle by the canids and despite protection under state and federal endangered species laws.
- The department says the wolves killed at least 88 cattle in Sierra and Plumas counties and continued to target livestock despite months of nonlethal deterrents deployed to drive them away.
- The state employed lethal action despite its compensation program, which pays ranchers for cattle killed by wolves, and additional federal subsidies paid to the livestock industry at large.
- The state wildlife agency confirmed a new pack –– the Grizzly pack–– earlier this week with two adults and a pup. Though the state’s wolf population remains small and vulnerable, ranchers are increasingly concerned about livestock deaths.
Indian megacities are sinking putting thousands of buildings at risk: Study
Parts of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Bengaluru, India’s largest cities, are slowly sinking, mainly due to overextraction of groundwater, according to a recent study, reports Mongabay India’s Manish Chandra Mishra. Researchers used eight years of satellite radar data and found that 878 square kilometers (339 square miles) of land across the five megacities show […]
Saving forests won’t be enough if fossil fuels beneath them are still extracted, experts warn
- A new analysis finds that tropical forests in 68 countries sit atop fossil fuel deposits that, if extracted, would emit 317 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases — more than the remaining 1.5°C (2.7°F) carbon budget — revealing a major blind spot in global climate policy.
- Because Brazil’s proposed Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) focuses only on stopping deforestation, researchers warn it risks missing far larger emissions from potential oil, gas and coal extraction under protected forests.
- India, China and Indonesia hold the largest fossil reserves beneath forests, with Indonesia facing acute trade-offs as most of its coal lies under forest areas where mining threatens biodiversity and Indigenous communities, including rhino habitats in Borneo.
- Experts say that compensating countries for leaving fossil fuels unextracted — through mechanisms like debt swaps or climate finance — could unlock massive climate benefits, but fossil fuel phaseout remains excluded from TFFF negotiations despite growing calls to include it.
Island-confined reptiles face high extinction risk, but low research interest
Reptile species found only on islands are significantly more vulnerable to extinction than their mainland counterparts, yet remain vastly overlooked by researchers, according to a recent study. “Reptiles, partly due to their ability to endure long periods without food or water, are particularly effective island colonizers,” Ricardo Rocha, study co-author and an associate professor at […]
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.
Chronic diseases prevalent across animals, but understudied: Study
From obesity in cats and dogs and osteoarthritis in pigs, to cancer in whales and high blood glucose in racoons, chronic diseases are increasingly becoming a concern across the animal world, a recent study finds. Most of these ailments can be traced back to human-driven changes, the author says. Antonia Mataragka, the study’s author from […]
‘Forever chemical’ contamination could undermine sea otters’ fragile recovery in Canada
- Sea otters living along the coastline of Canada’s British Columbia province are exposed — and absorb — forever chemicals, a new study shows.
- Each of the 11 sea otters tested carried residues PFAS chemicals, with concentrations higher for those living near dense human populations or shipping lanes.
- The Canadian government released an assessment earlier this year recommending that PFAS be classed as toxic and is moving toward adopting tighter rules for these chemicals. Environmentalists support the initiative.
In Thailand, a cheap bottle crate hack gives tree saplings a fighting chance
- A recent study in Thailand finds that raising native tree seedlings inside repurposed bottle crates improves performance compared to standard methods in community-run nurseries.
- Saplings grown in bottle crates had better root formation and superior growth when planted out in a deforested site, thanks to better air circulation for the roots.
- Crating the saplings also saved on labor costs, which more than offset the cost of purchasing the crates.
- Adoption of the new method could improve the quality of saplings grown in community nurseries, a benefit for reforestation projects where sapling survival is key to success.
Game of tiny thrones: Parasitic ants grab power by turning workers against their queen
Queens of some ant species have evolved an unusually hostile mode for colony takeover: they infiltrate colonies of other ant species and manipulate the worker ants into killing their own queen — their mother — then accepting the intruding queen as their new leader, according to a recent study. In the world of ants, where […]
Pioneering primatologist in Madagascar shares decades of conservation wisdom
Patricia Wright, a pioneering primatologist who established the Centre ValBio research station in Madagascar, began her work there in 1986. As the person who first described the golden bamboo lemur (Hapalemur aureus) to Western science, her contributions led to the creation of Ranomafana National Park, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. She joins the Mongabay […]
Trade in marine fish for aquariums includes threatened species, lacks oversight: Study
- A new study of major U.S.-based online retailers of marine fish bound for aquariums found that nearly 90% of traded species are sourced exclusively from the wild, including a number of threatened species, and that the trade is poorly tracked.
- The study raises concerns about the ecological impact of the trade on marine ecosystems, including around coral reefs, in countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines, where the fish are caught.
- Experts called for more work to develop sustainable fisheries and aquaculture in coastal communities in the Global South, and for building consumer awareness and establishing eco-certification schemes.
Top ethnobotanist Mark Plotkin’s COP30 reflections on Amazon conservation (analysis)
- The global battle to mitigate climate change cannot be won in the Amazon, but it can certainly be lost there, writes top ethnobotanist Mark Plotkin in a new analysis for Mongabay. Though he’s well-known for investigating traditional uses of plants in the region, he’s also a keen observer of and advocate for Indigenous communities and conservation there.
- Compared to the 1970s, he writes, the Amazon enjoys far greater formal protection, understanding and attention, while advances in technology and ethnobotany have revealed new insights into tropical biodiversity, and Indigenous communities — long the guardians and stewards of this ecosystem — are increasingly recognized as central partners in conservation, and their shamans employ hallucinogens like biological scalpels to diagnose, treat and sometimes cure ailments, a technology that is increasingly and ever more widely appreciated.
- “The challenge now is to ensure that the forces of protection outpace the forces of destruction, which, of course, is one of the ultimate goals of the COP30 meeting in Belém,” he writes.
- This article is an analysis. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
Newly described ‘lucifer’ bee found visiting critically endangered plant in Australia
In 2019, researcher Kit Prendergast was surveying the insects visiting an incredibly rare plant in the Bremer Ranges of Western Australia when a bee grabbed her attention. Prendergast and her colleague dug deeper and found that the native bee, now named Megachile lucifer, is a new-to-science species, according to a recent study. The species name […]
Iguanas on Mexico’s Clarion Island likely native, not introduced by people: Study
Researchers have long speculated that humans introduced spiny-tailed iguanas to Mexico’s remote Clarion Island about 50 years ago. However, a recent study suggests the Clarion iguanas are likely native to the island, arriving long before human colonization of the Americas. Clarion Island is the westernmost and oldest of a small group of islands in Mexico’s […]
Turning outdoor exploration into environmental discovery: Gregg Treinish and the rise of Adventure Scientists
- Gregg Treinish, founder of Adventure Scientists, has built a global network of trained volunteers who collect high-quality environmental data for researchers, agencies, and conservationists. His organization bridges the worlds of outdoor adventure and scientific rigor.
- From microplastics and illegal timber to biodiversity mapping, Adventure Scientists’ projects have filled crucial data gaps and influenced policy, research, and corporate practices around the world.
- In California, Treinish’s team is partnering with the California All-Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (CalATBI) to help catalog the state’s immense diversity through thousands of insect and soil eDNA samples collected by volunteers.
- Treinish spoke with Mongabay founder and CEO Rhett Ayers Butler in October 2025 about scaling trust-based citizen science, the value of human observation in nature, and why adventure remains a powerful gateway to environmental action.
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.
Europe’s under-pressure bats face ‘astonishing’ threat: Ambush by rats
Researchers have captured video of an unexpected predator at two bat hibernation sites in northern Germany: invasive brown rats that lie in wait to intercept the bats mid-flight. Invasive rodents are known predators of native animals on islands, including bats. However, this is likely the first time invasive brown rats (Rattus norvegicus) have been recorded […]
Vietnam’s protected areas fall short of safeguarding most bats, study finds
- Bats play crucial roles in biodiverse ecosystems the world over, yet they’re often overlooked in conservation planning.
- New research from Vietnam indicates the existing network of protected areas fails to adequately safeguard the small flying mammals, risking continued population declines.
- The study identifies priority areas where Vietnam’s efforts to expand its protected area network would most benefit bats in the central highlands, the western central coast and the northwest regions.
- Experts say a lot could be achieved for bats in Southeast Asia by ending the illegal wildlife trade, particularly the “frivolous” international ornamental bat trade.
Report identifies 10 emerging tech solutions to enhance planetary health
- A recent report underlines 10 emerging technologies offering potential to accelerate climate action, restore ecosystems, and drive sustainable innovation within safe planetary boundaries. These technologies include AI-supported Earth observation, automated food waste upcycling, green concrete and more.
- Innovative AI improvements in Earth observations (EO) can better identify and track human-caused environmental impacts and offer improved early warning alerts for planetary boundary overshoot. Such systems use AI-powered analytics to synthesize satellite, drone and ground-based data for near-real-time results.
- Artificial intelligence and automation can also work in tandem to manage citywide food waste programs, ensuring that food scraps are diverted from landfills or incineration, decreasing carbon emissions and reducing waste.
- Another tech solution is green concrete which could not only reduce emissions from traditional cement production, but when incorporated into infrastructure construction, can offer a permanent storage place for captured CO2.
India’s Ganga River drying at unprecedented levels
The Ganga River, which sustains the lives of at least 600 million people, is facing its worst dry spell and lowest streamflow in 1,300 years, according to a recent study, reports Mongabay India’s Simrin Sirur. Researchers extrapolated the Ganga’s water levels going back to the year 700 C.E. using a combination of paleoclimatic and historical […]
In Mauritius, an NGO is tracking the sex life of corals to save them
- Mauritius will soon be home to one of the largest projects in the Western Indian Ocean aimed at restoring corals through sexual propagation.
- The scientific research for the Odysseo coral restoration initiative is led by U.S.-based nonprofit Secore, which has also worked in the Caribbean Sea and reported success in breeding heat-tolerant corals.
- The initiative aligns with a recent policy push by the Mauritian government to promote coral restoration through sexual propagation as opposed to through asexual methods.
- However, this method of coral restoration is in its nascency in this region, and Secore is currently focused on gathering knowledge that will help it choose species to breed, donor sites to collect sperm and egg cells, and transplanting sites for newly grown coral.
With ‘terrifying’ trade in African hornbills, scientists call for increased protection
- With an alarming rise in the international trade of African hornbills, wild populations are plummeting. As key seed dispersers, their demise also threatens the survival of the forests they inhabit.
- According to recent studies, the United States is a major market for African hornbills, with more than 2,500 individuals or their parts imported into the country between 1999 and 2024. Another 500 were traded online from 2010 to 2024.
- Although the drivers of the trade are unknown, West and Central Africa are trade hotspots, with Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo being the main source countries.
- The international trade in African hornbills is currently unregulated, unlike that of their Asian counterparts. But a proposal to control this trade is on the agenda at the upcoming CITES meeting, which conservationists say is the first step to rein in unsustainable trade.
Potential wind slowdown threatens renewable energy and fuels heat domes
Climate change may be causing long-term global wind speeds to slow down, a shift that will likely lead to a dangerous rise in local temperatures, worsening air pollution and disruption to renewable energy systems, Mongabay writer Sean Mowbray reported. A warming atmosphere is likely weakening the forces that govern wind speeds, leading to more frequent […]
Study reveals overlooked cultural threat to wildcats across Africa
- The role that cultural demand plays in driving hunting and trade of many species of wildcats is poorly understood.
- Research commissioned by the wildcat conservation NGO Panthera found widespread use across Africa by traditional leaders, healers and participants in cultural ceremonies. Leopards were the most commonly identified species, followed by lions, servals and cheetahs.
- The researchers say recognizing the cultural contexts in which carnivores are used can help conservationists design interventions that are culturally sensitive and locally relevant.
Negro River study finds genetic damage in fish after oil spill
- Scientists assessed harmful effects on Amazonian fish after a barge capsized in 2013 with approximately 60,000 liters of petroleum asphalt cement in Manaus.
- Although the concentration of the contaminant decreased with rising water levels, the fish continued to exhibit effects of exposure three months after the accident, including DNA damage and neurotoxicity.
- The Negro River’s waters are rich in dissolved organic matter, which may increase the toxicity of the chemical compound.
- This research adds to other studies that attest to the harmful effects of oil on vertebrates, aquatic insects and plants in the Amazon, given the pressure for greater exploration in the region.
Scientists describe new-to-science mouse opossum from Peruvian Andes
Scientists have described a new species of mouse opossum discovered in 2018 in the cloud forests of the Peruvian Andes, 2,664 meters (8,740 feet) above sea level. The find was reported by Mongabay Latam staff writer Yvette Sierra Praeli. The new marsupial is named Marmosa chachapoya after the ancient Chachapoya people who once lived in […]
New cluster of Tapanuli orangutans discovered in Sumatra peat swamp
- Researchers have confirmed that the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan, previously thought to live only in Sumatra’s Batang Toru forest, also inhabits a peat swamp forest 32 kilometers (20 miles) away in the Lumut Maju village forest.
- DNA analysis of fecal samples verified the Lumut Maju apes as Tapanuli orangutans, marking the first confirmed record of the species outside Batang Toru.
- The discovery highlights the conservation value of nonprotected peat swamps, which are rapidly being cleared for oil palm plantations, threatening the orangutans’ survival.
- Conservationists warn that the isolated Lumut Maju population, likely fewer than 100 individuals, may not be viable long term unless habitat protection or relocation strategies are implemented.
Vast freshwater reserves found beneath Atlantic seafloor
Scientists recently discovered vast freshwater reservoirs beneath the Atlantic seafloor, stretching off the U.S. East Coast from the states of New Jersey to Maine. The find was “a beautiful scientific accident,” Brandon Dugan, a professor of geophysics at the Colorado School of Mines, U.S., and co-chief scientist on the expedition, told Mongabay in a video […]
‘Alarming’ levels of toxins found in free-range eggs near dumpsites globally
- A recent review paper identifies toxic chemicals, including dioxin, in free-range eggs on five continents — likely the result of nearby open burning and incineration of plastic and e-waste containing legacy and banned chemicals, as well as unregulated toxins.
- Researchers tested eggs produced near e-waste sites, dumpsites, and waste incinerators and found high levels of globally banned flame retardant chemicals, including brominated dioxins which are toxic and pose a serious risk to human health and the environment.
- Experts note that while some brominated flame retardants (BFRs) are regulated and banned, others haven’t been. Critics also note that the chemical industry often replaces individual banned chemicals with other unregulated but still potentially toxic chemicals in the same family, a process known as “regrettable substitutions.”
- Experts are calling for stronger regulation to prevent release of known toxins, not by banning one chemical at a time, but by addressing entire classes of chemicals. But a just completed UN Stockholm Convention meeting deferred listing and monitoring brominated and mixed brominated-chlorinated dioxins.
Biodiversity loss due to land use change could be highly underestimated: Study
- New research carried out in Colombia by the University of Cambridge suggests that local surveys assessing the effect of land clearances on biodiversity may be underestimating the impact by as much as 60%.
- To fully understand the effects of clearing forests for pastureland, much surveys of a much larger scale are required to reflect the different levels of biodiversity in regions and habitats and their resilience to change.
- More accurate species surveys, the authors say, could also support future programs such as biodiversity offsetting schemes as well as influencing farming policies.
World’s 1,500th known bat species confirmed from Equatorial Guinea
From Bioko Island in Equatorial Guinea, researchers have described what is officially recognized as the 1,500th bat species known to science, according to a recent study. The newly described bat is a species of pipistrelle, a group of tiny insect-eating bats, and scientists have named it Pipistrellus etula, with etula meaning “island” or “nation” in […]
Tanzanian conservationists mourn death of plant expert Aloyce Mwakisoma
- Aloyce Mwakisoma, a renowned plant expert from Tanzania’s Udzungwa Mountains, was struck and killed by a bus on Oct. 6 near the village of Sanje.
- Mwakisoma, who was born and raised in the Udzungwas, had an encyclopedic knowledge of the plants and animals found in his home in the Eastern Arc.
- His colleagues recognized him as one of the many local experts whose indigenous knowledge powerfully informs the description and protection of the continent’s biodiversity.
First oarfish sighting in Sri Lanka highlights citizen science in marine protection
- Scientists have documented the first-ever record of an oarfish (Regalecus russellii) in Sri Lanka, a 2.6-meter (8.5-foot) specimen caught off the country’s western coast.
- The find expands the known distribution of oarfish into the Indian Ocean, offering a new baseline for studying this rarely seen deep-sea species.
- Meanwhile, another oarfish was recorded in India’s Tamil Nadu this year, while within 20 days, three oarfish have been recorded from Australia and New Zealand, puzzling naturalists.
- The importance of promoting citizen science and raising awareness among fishers is needed.
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.
Big Oil isn’t part of the clean energy push, despite its claims, study shows
A new study that mapped the portfolios of the world’s 250 biggest oil and gas companies found their deployment of renewable energy is paltry: they’re responsible for just 1.42% of the global renewable energy capacity in operation. Despite announcing ambitious plans to embrace renewables, a mere 0.1% of the primary energy they produce comes from […]
Study busts big bad myth that wolves are growing fearless of humans
- As wolves return to parts of their historical ranges in Europe and North America, there’s growing concern that the predators are becoming less fearful of people.
- But a recent study from Poland shows that wolves still fully fear people, a finding that extends to other top predators and wildlife elsewhere around the world, where the fear of humans is “ingrained.”
- In May, wolves were moved to a lesser protected status in the EU, partly based on the argument that the canids are becoming fearless of humans.
- However, the study’s authors say that safety from wolves requires behavioral change on the part of humans, including keeping food and livestock secure and away from the canids.
Research aims to link Hansen’s disease & illegal armadillo hunting in Brazil
- There are more cases of Hansen’s disease reported in Brazil than any other nation besides India. Even though the disease is highly prevalent, scientists are developing new studies to map out its occurrence with greater precision.
- One of the main objectives of the new studies is to prove that Hansen’s disease is zoonotic and can be transmitted to humans who illegally hunt wild armadillos and handle their meat for consumption.
- A study carried out by Brazilian researchers and published in May revealed a strong association in Brazil between direct contact with armadillos and a high risk of contracting Hansen’s disease.
- The study led to a new multinational project financed by the Leprosy Research Initiative in the Netherlands. It also emphasizes the role that conservation plays in containing the dissemination of zoonotic diseases and calls for new environmental and sanitation policies in Brazil.
In Panama, poison dart frog move brings hope amid amphibians’ fight with fungus
- Twelve pairs of poison dart frogs were recently translocated in Panama in a bid to strengthen the species’ chances of survival and provide answers over a deadly fungal disease threatening amphibians worldwide.
- The effort hopes to boost the population of these frogs, which play a vital role in forest ecosystems and whose toxins could be important for human medicinal use.
- The amphibian chytrid fungus has affected hundreds of species of amphibians over the last decades, leading to the extinction in the wild of 90 species, estimates say.
- Apart from the fungal disease, amphibians are also at risk because of habitat loss driven by urban development and agriculture, experts warn.
Amazon Rainforest hits record carbon emissions from 2024 forest fires
In 2024, the Amazon Rainforest underwent its most devastating forest fire season in more than two decades. According to a new study by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, the fire-driven forest degradation released an estimated 791 million metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2024, a sevenfold increase compared with the previous two years. The […]
Marine life are thriving on Nazi missile debris in the Baltic Sea: Study
As Germany demilitarized after World War II, it dumped massive amounts of its leftover munitions into the Baltic Sea. A recent study has found that some of those submerged weapons, which are still releasing toxic compounds, now host more marine organisms than the sediments around them. In October 2024, researchers used a remotely operated vehicle […]
Scientists rethink Serengeti migration numbers with satellite, AI tools
- An AI-powered satellite survey has found that the number of wildebeests migrating across Kenya and Tanzania annually might be less than half of the million-plus figure that’s widely touted.
- The authors of the study said their findings underscore the need to calibrate the findings from different surveying methods in order to accurately estimate wildebeest numbers.
- The wildebeest migration is one of the largest mammal migrations in the world, with the animals migrating 800 kilometers (500 miles) in search of better grass.
- Estimating accurate numbers of migrating wildebeests is essential to keep track of the population in the face of habitat loss and increased human presence.
Study warns up to a quarter of Philippine vertebrates risk extinction
- A new study warns that 15-23% of the Philippines’ 1,294 terrestrial vertebrates face extinction, with amphibians and mammals at highest risk.
- Endemic species are most vulnerable, yet many lesser-known taxa like flying foxes, Cebu flowerpeckers and island frogs receive little research or funding compared to charismatic species such as the Philippine eagle and tamaraw dwarf buffalo.
- Habitat loss, overhunting and the wildlife trade remain the leading threats, while research gaps and bureaucratic hurdles hinder effective conservation planning.
- Experts say the findings should guide the updated Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, prioritizing poorly studied species and high-risk sites not yet covered by protected areas.
There’s far less land available for reforestation than we think, study finds
- In recent years, policymakers have made pledges for huge tree-planting projects a cornerstone for meeting national carbon reduction goals, while doing little to seriously cut fossil fuel emissions. But a new study shows the carbon sequestration estimates made for those forestation projects may be wildly optimistic.
- The new research determined that land found suitable for forestation in past studies — an area about the size of India — shrank by as much as two-thirds when adverse impacts on biodiversity, food security and water resources were taken into account.
- When the new study figured in environmental and social constraints, the potential for existing tree-planting pledges to store a promised 40 gigatons of carbon by 2050, was reduced to just 12.5 gigatons — a significant sum, but far from what’s needed to offset continued fossil fuel use.
- The new study urges policymakers to be more pragmatic in their planting strategies, and prioritize lands best slated for permanent reforestation. Other researchers urge decision-makers to put more effort and money into protecting already existing biodiverse forests, which hold high carbon storage potential.
Urban appetite for lemur meat piles pressure on iconic primates
- Thousands of threatened lemurs are killed by specialist hunters every year to feed a lucrative urban market for their meat in cities across Madagascar.
- While rural subsistence hunting is seasonal and opportunistic, the year-round urban luxury trade for lemur meat threatens large-bodied species, including during key reproductive periods.
- Primatologists recently issued a statement calling for strategies aimed at different actors involved in lemur meat hunting, including stricter gun regulations and enforcement directed at the urban trade, and the development of economic alternatives for rural subsistence hunters.
Climate change puts pressure on reindeer populations, both wild & domestic herds
- In Finland’s Arctic, unpredictable weather events pose a threat to reindeer herding, a traditional livelihood for the Indigenous Sámi people.
- Due to climate impacts, the global reindeer population could decline by more than 50% by 2100, with the steepest declines expected in North America, at 84%, and population increases predicted in northern Asia, according to a study.
- The impacts of climate change also affect semidomestic reindeer herds, according to researchers, and additional pressures, such as logging old-growth forests and expanding extractive activities on grazing lands, shrink their access to food sources.
- Sustainable land management, such as protecting ecological corridors and old-growth forests, plays a vital role in maintaining reindeer populations and preserving migration routes, one author says.
Jaguar in Brazil swims 2.3 km in longest recorded distance for the species
Biologists in Brazil have documented a jaguar swimming an estimated 2.3 kilometers, or 1.4 miles, across an artificial reservoir in the Cerrado savanna, the longest confirmed swim by the species to date. The previous scientific record, published in 1932, was of a jaguar swimming 200 m (660 ft). “We knew that jaguars might have this […]
First review of Amazon plastic pollution finds widespread contamination
Plastic pollution is widespread across the Amazon Rainforest’s rivers, plants and animals, according to a recent study. Previous research suggests up to 10% of total plastics in the ocean arrive there via the vast network of waterways that’s the Amazon Basin. To understand how and where plastic pollution is present within the basin itself, researchers […]
The fate of flying rivers could decide Amazon ‘tipping point,’ report says
- The Amazon’s “tipping point” refers to the transition of the rainforest into a drier, savanna ecosystem. The rainforest’s ecological balance depends on the transport and recycling of moisture, but deforestation has been shown to disrupt the region’s water cycle.
- Moisture moves east to west, from the Atlantic Ocean across the Amazon Basin via what scientists call “aerial” or “flying rivers,” a critical mechanism in the region’s water cycle.
- A new report from Amazon Conservation’s Monitoring of the Andes Amazon Project identified areas of deforestation that disrupt these flying rivers from hundreds of miles away. It also found that not all parts of the Amazon have the same tipping point.
- The researchers stressed the need for regional, transboundary conservation efforts that account for varied threats in different parts of the Amazon.
Long-lost white shark tag traces remarkable journey from South Africa to SE Asia
- The discovery of a satellite tag from a subadult female white shark in Indonesia marks the first recorded connectivity of white shark movement between South Africa and Southeast Asia.
- The white sharks found in South Africa and Australia belong to different genetic pools, which makes the two populations distinct from one another, even though they share the same migratory route.
- The biggest threats facing white sharks in South Africa and Indonesia are unsustainable fishing, where the sharks become both the bycatch and main catch.
- While there are attempts to support local fishers to pioneer shark conservation instead of hunting them, such efforts are thwarted by lack of funding.
Grue jay or Bleen jay? Researchers confirm hybrid between blue and green jays
Researchers have for the first time confirmed that a blue jay and a green jay have mated in the wild to produce a rare hybrid with mixed features. Spotted by a birder named Donna in her backyard in San Antonio in the U.S. state of Texas, this hybrid may have resulted from the two jay […]
Turning camera traps into real-time sentinels: Interview with Conservation X Lab’s Dante Wasmuht
- Wildlife technology nonprofit Conservation X Labs has developed and deployed an AI-powered device to make real-time monitoring of camera-trap images easier and more seamless.
- The Sentinel device can be attached to camera traps and serves as a minicomputer with built-in AI models.
- The device has been deployed around the world, and has found applications in detecting invasive species in New Zealand and in the Florida Everglades.
- While camera traps are widely used in conservation, it’s often a challenge to retrieve the data from remote locations, often leading to a delay in conservation action and management.
Ocean acidification threatens planetary health: Interview with Johan Rockström
- The newly published 2025 Planetary Health Check report confirms transgression of the ocean acidification planetary boundary — the seventh Earth system threshold crossed, putting a “safe operating space for humanity” at risk. Oceans act as a key climate stabilizer, resilience builder and Earth life-support system.
- Marking the launch of the 2025 Planetary Health Check, Mongabay speaks with report co-author and renowned Earth system scientist Johan Rockström about how the transgression of planetary boundaries is eroding environmental justice — the right of every human being to life on a stable, healthy planet.
- Rockström, who led the international team of scientists who originated the 2009 planetary boundary framework, also speaks about the failure to achieve a U.N. plastics treaty in August and the challenge of accomplishing planetwide sustainability in a time of widespread armed conflict and political instability.
- He likewise emphasizes the need to bring the U.S. back to the negotiating table at COP30, the U.N. climate summit scheduled for November, in Belém, Brazil, and addresses the importance of inserting the planetary boundaries framework into those talks.
Global CO2 storage capacity may be drastically overstated, study finds
- The storage available for safe carbon storage could be far lower than current estimates, according to a new study.
- Carbon capture and storage (CCS) has been touted as a viable method for drawing billions of tons of CO2 out of the air, typically securing it in rock formations deep underground.
- However, this new analysis suggests that many locations suitable for carbon storage may also pose risks, such as water contamination or earthquakes.
- That finding led the study authors to conclude that the “prudent” available storage is much less than has been estimated.
Timing, not traits, helps California’s jewelflowers adapt to diverse landscapes
- California’s native jewelflowers, a group of plants that belong to the mustard family, grow in widely diverse landscapes and microclimates across the state. But until now, scientists didn’t understand what allowed their wide distribution.
- To understand this, researchers analyzed information from nearly 2,000 specimens; dug into climate and geological databases; and amassed field observations to understand the climatic conditions that 14 species of jewelflowers need to grow and reproduce.
- Their study found that, despite living in different landscapes, from desert to valleys and mountains, jewelflowers prefer hotter and drier climates, timing their sprouting and flowering accordingly. Even those species growing in colder regions adjust their life cycle to flower later in the summer and seek drought-prone soils.
- The research shows how plants distributed across vast geographies may require specific microclimates and habitats to survive, which are potentially at risk in a warming world.
Most Caribbean coral reefs to stop growing by 2040, study warns
Most coral reefs in the Caribbean could stop growing, and even start eroding away, by 2040 if global warming continues unchecked, a new study finds. Coral reefs, especially those near shores, protect valuable coastlines from flooding during cyclones and storm surges by breaking up wave energy. For the reefs to continue to act as natural […]
Mozambican reserve harbors largest documented breeding population of rare falcon
- A new study estimates Niassa Special Reserve in Mozambique hosts 68–76 breeding pairs of Taita falcons, likely the world’s biggest population of the rare raptor.
- Niassa’s granite inselbergs provide hunting advantages over larger falcons, allowing the Taitas to thrive.
- Woodland clearance, charcoal production, agriculture and domestic fowl could shift the balance in favor of peregrines and lanners, but conservation measures and the resilience of miombo woodlands offer hope.
- Once-healthy populations in South Africa and Zimbabwe have collapsed, underscoring Niassa’s importance for the species’ survival.
No new record low for Arctic sea ice loss in 2025
- Arctic sea ice hit its 2025 summer minimum without setting a record low on Sept. 10, despite a historically low winter maximum earlier in the year.
- Scientists say sea ice loss has slowed over the past 20 years due to natural variability in atmospheric and ocean systems, counterbalancing the impacts from human-caused climate change.
- However, researchers warn that this slowdown likely offers only a temporary reprieve, and that the continued escalation of global warming could cause rapid sea ice loss before 2050.
- The U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center for the first time switched to using Japanese sea ice data after losing access to key U.S. military satellite data, which had allowed for a continuous Arctic sea ice record since 1979.
Warming triggers unprecedented carbon loss from tropical soils, study finds
- Tropical forests exchange more CO2 with the atmosphere than any other terrestrial biome, meaning that even a relatively small shift in the balance of carbon uptake and release there could have a big impact on global climate. Despite this, research on tropical soil responses to warming has lagged behind.
- In a field experiment in Puerto Rico, researchers used infrared heaters to warm understory plants and topsoil by 4° Celsius. Warming significantly increased soil carbon emissions, but terrain also had a major impact: A warmed plot at the top of a slope showed an unprecedented 204% increase in CO2 emissions after one year.
- Carbon emissions from plots lower on the slope increased between 42% and 59% in response to warming — in line with the results from the only other long-term tropical soil warming experiment to date. However, the upper-slope response represents the largest change in any soil warming experiment conducted globally.
- The new study results add to a growing body of evidence that tropical soils are far more sensitive to warming than previously thought. If elevated tropical soil CO2 releases persist in the long term, it could have dire consequences for Earth’s climate. But the soil biome may adjust over time, so future effects remain unclear.
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.
More deforestation leads to a drier dry season, Amazon study finds
- Between 2002 and 2015, forest loss in Brazil’s southern Amazon reduced the amount of rainfall during the dry season by more than 5%, a recent study found.
- Researchers studying how deforestation in the states of Rondônia and Mato Grosso affected the atmospheric water cycle between 2002 and 2015 found that a reduction in forest cover reduced evapotranspiration and disrupted regional atmospheric systems.
- Lower rainfall during the dry season can compromise crops, boost wildfires, and reduce water supplies and river levels, sometimes leaving communities isolated.
An elusive deer species clings to survival in Sri Lanka’s south
- The hog deer (Axis porcinus), Sri Lanka’s most threatened deer species, is classified as critically endangered in the country and survives only in fragmented habitats in the island’s southwest.
- A year-long survey recorded 306 adults and 22 fawns, showing a modest increase in their numbers, but an array of threats continues to put pressure on the species’ survival.
- Conservationists warn against major threats including attacks by feral dogs and water monitors, road accidents and habitat loss, while garbage dumping alters predator dynamics, adding a fresh threat.
- Debate continues over whether Sri Lanka’s hog deer is native or introduced, with fossil evidence hinting at an ancient presence but some theories indicating colonial-era introductions.
Researchers describe three new-to-science snailfish species off California coast
In 2019, researchers surveying the seafloor off the coast of California came upon three unusual species of small fishes with large heads: one with bumpy pink skin, and the other two both black in color. The team collected the fish using underwater research vehicles and later analyzed their DNA and bodies. Their analysis showed that […]
Post-Blob, California’s kelp crisis isn’t going away
- Kelp forests function as major habitat for marine biodiversity, but are in rapid decline worldwide, largely because of climate impacts on the oceans.
- A 2013 marine heat wave known as “the Blob,” combined with the mass die-off of sea stars, caused a 95% loss of Northern California’s kelp forests.
- The loss of sea stars allowed the purple urchins that they thrive on to spread rapidly, converting lush kelp forests into “urchin barrens” in parts of California. There’s been very little recovery since.
- Restoration of kelp forests is extremely difficult and requires far more resources than are currently being committed.
How climate change could affect production of the world’s favorite fruit, the banana
- Bananas make up one of the largest tropical fruit export chains, with 20 million metric tons of bananas exported annually; a whopping 100 billion bananas are eaten globally each year.
- According to a recent study, the area suitable for export banana production in Latin America and the Caribbean could be reduced by 60% due to climate change and other factors, such as population density and distance from ports.
- Research highlights that countries located in the Global South may find it more difficult to adapt to climate change than wealthier countries due to a lack of resources.
- Although the study focuses on large, intensive banana plantations, researchers say small farmers could also be affected by climate change; however, they may be more resilient to climate shocks because they often use a production system that values crop diversity.
Sri Lanka monkey survey sparks skepticism & oddball ideas for deterring crop raiders
- In March, an islandwide five-minute rapid visual census conducted in Sri Lanka estimated populations of crop-damaging wildlife at about 6.5 million monkeys, 2.7 million giant squirrels, and 4.7 million peafowl.
- While the accuracy of the survey has been strongly questioned, there is broad agreement on the urgent need for solutions, as these species cause considerable damage to crops.
- Several solutions have been proposed, one of them is to use predatory scents, particularly leopard urine, as a natural repellent to deter monkeys citing successful use of predator scents like coyote and wolf elsewhere.
- This idea has drawn mixed reactions, with some citing practical challenges in implementation, while others recommend further study and testing of the method to address the problem of crop raiders.
Scientists tap ‘secret’ fresh water under the ocean, raising hopes for a thirsty world
ABOARD LIFTBOAT ROBERT, North Atlantic (AP) — Scientists conducting a first-of-its-kind drilling operation have extracted samples of fresh water hiding in massive reservoirs deep under the ocean. Their consortium of more than a dozen nations sank pipes through the seabed muck off Cape Cod this summer to see how old that water is, what organisms […]
How do we perceive biodiversity? We can see it & hear it
- A recent study shows that people are able to perceive biodiversity through sights and sounds, and those perceptions correlate with the actual biodiversity of a natural place.
- Indigenous community members in the Democratic Republic of Congo share their experiences that affirm what the researchers found.
- The study adds to a growing body of research on biodiversity perception and its connections to human mental health and well-being.
Soil carbon: Crucial ally or potential threat to net-zero commitments?
- Earth’s top 2 meters (6 feet) of soil hold 2.5 trillion metric tons of carbon — more than is held in living vegetation and the atmosphere combined. But soil carbon sinks are under threat — global warming could trigger a positive feedback loop that seriously accelerates soil emissions, just as we take steps to decarbonize society.
- The effects of elevated temperature and atmospheric CO₂ on soil carbon have been factored into climate models. But those models don’t currently capture the true complexity of the soil carbon sink, in part because scientists don’t fully understand the mechanisms that influence soil carbon gains and losses.
- Major knowledge gaps urgently need to be addressed: How are long-term soil carbon stores protected from microbial consumption (and CO₂ release)? And how will global warming alter microbial communities, deep soil carbon, and the climate sensitivity of tropical soils (which store a third of global soil carbon)?
- Improved understanding of soil carbon dynamics could offer an opportunity to better manage agricultural and forest soils for carbon sequestration. With proper management, degraded soils could sequester a billion tons of additional carbon annually, making them a key ally in the fight against climate change.
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.
To save humanity and nature we must tackle wealth inequality, says Cambridge researcher
Wealth inequality is a primary culprit behind the ecological and environmental collapse of societies over the past 12,000 years, which have come to be dominated by a small circle of elites hoarding resources like land, research shows. Today, instead of an isolated collapse, we face a global one, says Luke Kemp, a researcher at the […]
New bat species described from Western Himalayas
Researchers reviewing the diversity of bats in the Western Himalayas in India recently confirmed a new-to-science species from Uttarakhand state. Named the Himalayan long-tailed myotis (Myotis himalaicus) in a new study, the bat boasts a tail nearly as long as its body. Rohit Chakravarty, a bat researcher and conservationist with the nonprofit Nature Conservation Foundation, […]
Scientists decode the unusual silver-blue color of an ancient South African plant
Most plants get their coloration from pigments, but an endangered South African cycad gets its unique silvery-blue hue from wax crystals and an underlying chlorophyll-rich layer, according to a recent study. Researchers say understanding how such layers work could pave the way for creating materials that protect from UV and water exposure. Cycads, sometimes described […]
Data debunks spike in Sri Lanka’s elephant killings, points at media hype
- With 238 elephant deaths reported between January and end of July this year, including several iconic tuskers that were found dead, there is increasing concerns about possible organized crime network behind the elephant killings in Sri Lanka.
- The country’s environment minister has filed a complaint with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and plans are afoot to deploy the Civil Defence Force to combat wildlife crime and support the severely understaffed Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) to address human-elephant conflict.
- Meanwhile, the government’s attempt to distribute more guns among the farming community has angered environmentalists who warn that these guns would increase elephant deaths.
- While various theories are being suggested by some regarding the recent spike in elephant deaths, including ivory poaching, hunting for meat and organized killings, data analysis by Mongabay shows there’s no significant rise, but instead points to a well-meaning media hype, with far greater coverage than before on elephant deaths.
Small islands offer big hope for conservation of endemic species, study shows
- New research in Indonesia shows that small islands, often considered extinction hotspots, can act as crucial refuges for rare mammals like the anoa and babirusa, which face severe threats from deforestation and poaching on larger land masses.
- Genetic analyses of more than 110 individuals revealed that while small-island populations have lower genetic diversity and higher inbreeding, they also carry fewer harmful mutations — likely because long-term isolation allowed natural selection to purge them.
- Smaller islands were also found to host higher-quality, better-protected forest habitats, suggesting that conserving these areas may be more effective than attempting “genetic rescue” by moving animals from mainland populations, which could introduce harmful mutations.
- The study highlights the need to refine taxonomy, prioritize protection of small-island habitats, and integrate these overlooked areas into conservation planning, as they may hold the key to the long-term survival of iconic and endemic small-island mammals.
The slow demise of turtles and tortoises
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. Turtles and tortoises have outlived dinosaurs, endured ice ages, and survived the shuffling of continents. Yet despite their evolutionary stamina, these ancient mariners and land dwellers now find themselves in peril. A sweeping global assessment published in Nature […]
Sharks risk losing their bite as oceans turn acidic: Study
Sharks continually shed and regrow teeth throughout their lives, replacing worn or lost teeth with new ones. That makes them particularly good at catching prey. However, these top marine predators could lose their literal edge as ocean acidification damages their teeth and makes it harder to keep and replace them, a new study says. “Shark […]
Sunscreens protect us but also pose real planetary health concerns
- Sunscreens have become an important part of people’s sun management routine, protecting skin from harmful solar UV radiation. But many of these products contain chemicals that can be harmful to saltwater and freshwater ecosystems, while preliminary findings indicate some ingredients can have health effects.
- Ultraviolet filter chemicals and mineral components found in sunscreens can harm marine species such as corals and help trigger bleaching. In recent years, numerous studies have shown that many of these chemicals persist in the environment and can impact seagrass, fish and other marine life.
- More research is needed to understand the full environmental and health impacts of chemicals used in sunscreens. New formulations using ingredients proven to be safe are required, say analysts, and makers should improve product labelling to better inform consumers, with government regulation potentially necessary.
- Experts also urge caution, noting that while there are environmental concerns surrounding sunscreen chemicals, this should not be understood as a call not to use these products.
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.
Social media post sparks rediscovery of endemic Sri Lanka rainforest plant
- Classified as “extinct in the wild” in Sri Lanka’s 2012 Red List, the endemic rainforest giant known as Pini- Beraliya (Doona ovalifolia) has been rediscovered in several locations, but the first discovery of the plant was triggered by a Facebook post.
- The species was long known only from a single cultivated specimen found at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Peradeniya, which served as a living reference during decades without any wild sightings.
- Conservation efforts now include propagation of hundreds of seedlings at the Endane plant nursery in mid-country and the creation of a community-run nursery in Pimbura in southwestern Sri Lanka, where schoolchildren actively water and monitor these plants in their school premises.
- A recovery plan aims to protect all remaining wild trees, expand ex-situ collections and restore suitable riparian habitats with the help of local guardian groups.
How science links extreme weather disasters to climate change: Interview with WWA’s Clair Barnes
- Scientifically attributing extreme weather events like floods or drought to climate change versus other natural processes or human activities is tricky.
- But since 2014, the World Weather Attribution, an international network of researchers, has pioneered methods that allow them to understand the role of human-induced climate change in current extreme weather events, if at all.
- Mongabay’s Kristine Sabillo recently spoke with WWA researcher and environmental statistician Clair Barnes to learn more about how WWA conducts its rapid analyses.
Climate change tests the resilience of people and desert-adapted wildlife in Namibia
- Since Namibia’s independence in 1990, the country has become a model of wildlife recovery, and is now famed for its free-roaming herds of megafauna and emblematic national parks.
- A key to this recovery is the model of community-based natural resource management, which places much of the responsibility and benefits of wildlife conservation in the hands of rural communities, enabling people to earn income from small-scale hunting and tourism and thus motivating them to conserve wildlife.
- A recent 11-year dry spell has tested the resilience of the model and the people and natural systems that depend on it — but it also serves as an opportunity to build a more climate-resilient future for desert-adapted megafauna in habitats projected to become hotter and drier.
- Namibian conservation experts maintain that the key to wildlife survival is to cement their economic value in policies: if the people in the areas they roam can benefit from wildlife, they will stand a better chance in a more inhospitable future.
Invasive ants get a warm welcome as global temperatures rise: Study
As people move plants, soil and goods around the world, insects including ants often hitch a ride, making themselves at home in new regions. A recent study finds that some of these nonnative ants, currently restricted to warmer indoor environments like buildings or greenhouses, could easily spread outdoors as global temperatures rise, raising concerns for […]
How rain can reveal what lives in rainforest treetops
Perched high above the forest floor, the tropical canopy is a reservoir of biodiversity that has long resisted scrutiny. Its inaccessibility has left many of its inhabitants — orchids, epiphytes, ants, monkeys, frogs — poorly studied and poorly protected. But a new study offers a workaround: let the rain do the climbing. Scientists led by […]
Respite, for now, for bird migration hotspot at heart of Sri Lanka’s wind power dispute
- Amid mounting protests from locals and environmentalists, Sri Lanka’s president has suspended a proposed wind farm in Mannar, in the island’s north for a month, pending a review of ecological concerns.
- Scientists warn additional wind farms in the area could further fragment habitats of the fragile Mannar Island ecosystem, an important stopover point for migratory birds on the Central Asian Flyway.
- The country’s energy minister has referred to Mannar as “stale land,” dismissing its biodiversity value, but environmentalists have countered this with research that shows more than 500 plant and animal species recorded there, including dozens found nowhere else on Earth.
- Activists urge the government to pursue sustainable development that protects Mannar’s globally important ecosystems while expanding clean energy following a balanced development pathway.
Belize project seeks out heat-resilient corals to protect its reefs
- An initiative called the Super Reefs program is setting out to identify the corals in Belize’s waters that have the highest chance of surviving warming waters amid climate change.
- Researchers with the program have discovered that corals that grow in the hottest areas are naturally more heat-resistant.
- Massive starlet coral (Siderastrea siderea) tends to be tolerant of warm water, whereas symmetrical brain coral (Pseudodiploria strigosa) is more sensitive.
- The team plans to use its findings, which are to be published by 2026, to inform the Belize government which coral communities in the country are best suited for protection and restoration.
Whale shark hotspot discovered along the Great Barrier Reef
- Whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) are the largest fish in the world and are endangered but are hard to study because they’re largely solitary creatures that roam great distances.
- There are only about 30 sites worldwide where they’re known to aggregate — and scientists have finally identified one of them along the Great Barrier Reef, a new study reveals.
- It’s the first known aggregation found in eastern Australia and in the entire southwest Pacific Ocean.
- The finding is significant for whale shark research and conservation efforts, experts said.
Are crows really street smart? Science confirms the genius of corvids (commentary)
- Crows and other corvids exhibit remarkable intelligence — including tool use, problem-solving, memory and even social awareness — challenging long-held assumptions that such cognitive abilities are exclusive to humans or primates.
- Scientific research and experiments, some inspired by popular fables about clever crows, show that these birds understand cause and effect, plan for the future, and adapt their behavior based on context, environment and who’s watching.
- Urban crows thrive due to cognitive flexibility, as shown in an ongoing experimental project in India, which highlights their strategic foraging, memory and ability to learn and adapt in human-dominated environments.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
There’s hope for sunflower sea stars, with their killer unmasked and reintroductions pending
- Since 2013, sea star wasting disease, worsened by warming oceans, has wiped out 99% of sunflower sea stars from Washington state to Mexico, collapsing kelp forest ecosystems.
- Researchers from the University of British Columbia and the Hakai Institute in Canada have pinpointed the bacterium Vibrio pectenicida as a key cause of the epidemic, confirming its lethal effects through lab experiments that replicated symptoms seen in the wild.
- A coalition of aquariums, nonprofits, Indigenous groups and government agencies has successfully bred sunflower sea stars in captivity for the first time, experimenting with fresh, frozen and cryopreserved sperm, and raising 72 juveniles in a Monterey facility with plans for controlled releases.
- Guided by the Pycnopodia Recovery Working Group and a 2024-2027 conservation plan, efforts have now turned to breeding, disease research, habitat protection, regulatory engagement and public outreach, with broad community support — including from fishers — for restoring this keystone predator.
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