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Hidden cameras reveal macaws’ secret lives 05 Apr 2026 10:17:07 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/hidden-cameras-reveal-macaws-secret-lives/ author: Sam Lee dc:creator: Romi Castagnino content:encoded: High up in the Amazon canopy, camera traps have recorded the entire breeding cycle of red-and-green macaws in Peru’s Madre de Dios region. Researchers watched these birds team up to defend their nest, raise a chick, and face rivals — all from a single artificial nest box. As natural nesting spaces are lost to logging, this success shows that artificial nests can help protect wildlife, though not all species benefit equally.This article was originally published on Mongabay description: High up in the Amazon canopy, camera traps have recorded the entire breeding cycle of red-and-green macaws in Peru’s Madre de Dios region. Researchers watched these birds team up to defend their nest, raise a chick, and face rivals — all from a single artificial nest box. As natural nesting spaces are lost to logging, […] authors: | ||
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Once lost, now found: Five “missing” bird species rediscovered in 2025, offering hope 04 Apr 2026 14:36:08 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/once-lost-now-found-five-missing-bird-species-rediscovered-in-2025-offering-hope/ author: Sharon Guynup dc:creator: Spoorthy Raman content:encoded: Five “missing” bird species — not seen, heard or documented in the wild for a decade or more — were “found” in 2025, according to the 2026 annual update to the Lost Birds List. It’s a tally of species that haven’t been photographed, recorded or their genetic footprint detected for more than a decade. Another extraordinary rediscovery came earlier this year: A bird “missing” for 94 years was documented in Chad. With the new changes, the overall number of “lost” birds, as defined in a 2022 study, dropped to 120 from the 163 listed when the list was first published in 2022. The list is maintained by the Search for Lost Birds project, a global partnership between the NGOs American Bird Conservancy, Re:wild and BirdLife International. Six species considered lost since 2016 will be added to the list in 2026. Unlike the IUCN Red List, which tracks the extinction risk of species over time through extensive periodic assessments, the “lost species” list flags those that haven’t been documented in a long time — the first signs of trouble before they vanish forever. John Mittermeier, director of the Search for Lost Birds project, called the list an “early warning system” for birds not seen in a while. He said it helps “fill conservation data gaps” before rigorous assessments catch up and spur action to protect species that might “potentially slip between the cracks.” Every year, Mittermeier and his team scour through public birding platforms, such as eBird, iNaturalist, Xeno-Canto and others,…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - 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. authors: | ||
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Researchers uncover 10 new moth species and 7 new genera in Hawaiʻi 04 Apr 2026 01:28:05 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/researchers-uncover-10-new-moth-species-and-7-new-genera-in-hawai%ca%bbi/ author: Karen Coates dc:creator: Bobby Bascomb content:encoded: 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 co-author Daniel Rubinoff, an entomologist with the University of Hawaiʻi, told Mongabay in a video call. He said finding a new genus is considered “kind of interesting, but to find so many really reflects how poorly known Hawaii’s fauna still is.” Genus is a broader grouping than species, so species in different genera typically diverged much earlier in their evolutionary history than species of the same genus. “Hawaiʻi is a world-renowned laboratory for evolution ,” lead author Kyhl Austin of the University of Hawai’i said in a press release. “By identifying these seven new genera, we are showing that these insects crossed thousands of miles of open ocean to reach Hawai’i far more frequently than we ever imagined.” Karl Magnacca, an entomologist with the O‘ahu Army Natural Resources Program, not involved with the study told Mongabay in an email that “this is a really important contribution, as many of our native insect groups haven’t been looked at in around 100 years.” In their search for new moths, researchers examined century-old museum collections and conducted field surveys in remote areas. They combined detailed anatomic examination with high-resolution imaging and genetic testing to reveal a hidden diversity of moths.…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: 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 […] authors: | ||
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Orcas never seen before in Seattle delight whale watchers with a visit 03 Apr 2026 22:26:55 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/orcas-never-seen-before-in-seattle-delight-whale-watchers-with-a-visit/ author: Mongabay Editor dc:creator: Associated Press content:encoded: Seattle (AP) — When tourists travel to Seattle, it’s common to take in the Space Needle and the downtown skyline from Puget Sound. It’s an itinerary that a newly arrived pod of killer whales appears to be following too. Three orcas that had not previously been recorded in the Seattle area have delighted whale watchers with several visits just off downtown this past month. They’ve also cruised by other shorelines in the region. “People … are all very happy to see this,” said Hongming Zheng, who photographs whales in his spare time. It took him 10 hours of driving to find the mysterious pod. “It was epic.” Researchers keep detailed records of killer whales that frequent the Salish Sea, the waters between Washington state and Canada, by identifying their fins and saddle patches — the grayish markings on their sides. So it was a surprise when this pod of three orcas showed up in Vancouver, British Columbia, in March. The three weren’t in any catalogs of local whales. After some digging, researchers located photos of the pod in Alaska waters last year, said Shari Tarantino of the Washington-based Orca Conservancy. The pod includes an adult female and what are believed to be her two offspring, including a large young adult male. They have now been designated as T419, T420 and T421 — the T standing for “transient,” not “tourist.” The visiting orcas have something that local whales don’t: circular scars left by cookie-cutter sharks, which latch on to larger animals and slice a…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: Seattle (AP) — When tourists travel to Seattle, it’s common to take in the Space Needle and the downtown skyline from Puget Sound. It’s an itinerary that a newly arrived pod of killer whales appears to be following too. Three orcas that had not previously been recorded in the Seattle area have delighted whale watchers with several […] authors: | ||
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Kenya to receive 4 mountain bongos from European zoos 03 Apr 2026 20:42:55 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/kenya-to-receive-4-mountain-bongos-from-european-zoos/ author: Bobbybascomb dc:creator: Lynet Otieno content:encoded: The Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy (MKWC) is on track to receive four male mountain bongos from European zoos, a move aimed at helping boost the population of one of Africa’s most endangered antelope. The transfer was led by experts from Chester Zoo, in England, in collaboration with Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums. In a statement sent to Mongabay, the Chester Zoo said its experts spent more than 11 years coordinating a breeding program across European conservation zoos. “The four males now selected – chosen on the basis of age, health and genetics – will be the first to ever be transferred from European zoos to Kenya as part of a rewilding effort.” “Collaborations like this are absolutely essential if we are to prevent this magnificent species disappearing altogether,” Nick Davis, mammals general manager at Chester Zoo and coordinator of the European breeding program, said in a statement. “They demonstrate how modern, science-led zoos play an important role in bringing species back from the brink.” The most recent IUCN assessment in 2016 found the forest-dwelling antelope were critically endangered with just 70-80 adults remaining in the wild at the time, all of them in Kenya. In the last decade, mountain bongos (Tragelaphus eurycerus ssp. isaaci) briefly experienced a surge in the wild population. The Kenyan national wildlife census report states that in 2021, there were roughly 150 wild mountain bongos, but by 2025, there were just 66. Kenyan experts attribute the species’ decline to…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: The Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy (MKWC) is on track to receive four male mountain bongos from European zoos, a move aimed at helping boost the population of one of Africa’s most endangered antelope. The transfer was led by experts from Chester Zoo, in England, in collaboration with Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and the European Association […] authors: | ||
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Canadian muskoxen hit by double punch of novel diseases and climate change 03 Apr 2026 15:24:08 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/canadian-muskoxen-hit-by-double-punch-of-novel-diseases-and-climate-change/ author: Glenn Scherer dc:creator: Ruth Kamnitzer content:encoded: As winter comes to the Canadian Arctic, muskoxen (Ovibos moschatus) abandon the valleys and head to higher ground, where winds sweep away the snow. That’s where we go to find them, Allen Niptanatiak, chairman of the Kugluktuk Hunters and Trappers Organization, tells Mongabay in a video call. The Inuit harvesters focus on culling the younger cows and bulls, leaving the breeding animals alone. It takes a couple hours to skin, butcher and load up the sleds, the older and younger generations working together in -30° Celsius to -35°C (-22° Fahrenheit to -35°F), weather that is “just perfect,” says Niptanatiak, an Inuk hunter and trapper from Nunavut, who is also a retired conservation officer. “Then we eat and have a big meal and just enjoy it and talk and say, ‘Oh, this is a blessing,’” he says. Muskoxen are an integral part of Arctic ecology and, with their thick shaggy coats, are synonymous with the Far North. Nearly driven to extinction by commercial hunting in the early 1900s, surviving in just a few pockets in Canada, they began to recover following a 1917 hunting ban. By the 1990s, the Canadian population was estimated at 108,600. About 70% of the Canadian population was on Victoria and Banks islands, in Canada’s Arctic Archipelago — large islands with a combined area of nearly 290,000 square kilometers (12,000 square miles), about the size of Italy. Niptanatiak lives in Kugluktuk, a small hamlet on the mainland, just across from Victoria Island. Diets vary there, but for…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - New emerging diseases and other threats, including climate change, are upending muskox recovery in parts of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. - An emerging pathogen, dubbed Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae Arctic clone, was linked to widespread muskox mortalities on Victoria and Banks islands from 2009-14. Another outbreak was identified on Ellesmere Island in 2021. - Brucellosis, a zoonotic disease, is now appearing in muskoxen on Victoria Island and parts of the mainland, with rates increasing since 2015. - These emerging diseases were identified, researched and tracked via an innovative community-based wildlife health surveillance program that teams up Inuit hunters and trappers, scientists and government agencies. Muskoxen are a key food source for many Inuit communities and play a vital role in Arctic ecology. Their loss could put food security and Indigenous culture at risk. authors: | ||
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How an engineer brought degraded wetlands back to life in drought-hit Bangladesh 03 Apr 2026 13:44:20 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/how-an-engineer-brought-degraded-wetlands-back-to-life-in-drought-hit-bangladesh/ author: Abusiddique dc:creator: Sadiqur Rahman content:encoded: The moment A.K.M. Fazlul Haque learnt that the government had declared two wetlands —Bharardaho Beel and Patuakamri Beel — located in Bangladesh’s northern district of Rangpur as the Special Biodiversity Conservation Area, he smiled with relief, he said. “Our years-long conservation efforts have paid off,” was his immediate response. In Bangladesh, a beel is defined as a large topographically low area that accumulates surface runoff water. As a senior deputy-assistant engineer at the Barind Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA), the state-run agency responsible for restoring surface water sources, Fazlul, in 2021 and 2023, led the excavation of the two beels that had almost disappeared from the landscape, having been transformed as silted crop field. After excavating the 4.7 hectares (11.6 acres) of Bharardaho Beel, Fazlul and his peers volunteered the plantation of rare indigenous tree species along the ridges. When the BMDA team approached to excavate the nearby Patuakamtri Beel, illegal occupants attacked Fazlul physically and damaged his high-end photography camera, he said. Despite such obstacles, BMDA finally succeeded in the excavation of the 4.5 hectares (11.3 acres) of Patuakamri Beel. Today, both water bodies shelter hundreds of water birds, some of them migratory, and other wildlife around the year. Such conservation efforts are crucial to be replicated in such drought-prone northern regions of Bangladesh where wetlands are depleting fast, experts say. A study published in November 2022 reveals that Bangladesh’s northwest region lost more than 57% of its total wetland area between 1989 and 2020. Md Shafiqul Bari, a professor…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - In drought-hit regions of Bangladesh, excavation and restoration of wetlands are crucial for local ecosystem and agriculture. - An engineer at a government agency, A.K.M. Fazlul Haque challenges anomalies in wetland regulations around the country’s northern region. - His efforts serve the community and biodiversity, and Fazlul’s story shows that conservation is a continuous struggle. authors: | ||
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Pyrenees brown bear population climbs to an estimated 130 in latest census 03 Apr 2026 12:27:48 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/pyrenees-brown-bear-population-climbs-to-an-estimated-130-in-latest-census/ author: Bobbybascomb dc:creator: Shanna Hanbury content:encoded: The annual census of brown bears in the Pyrenees mountain range of Spain, France and Andorra estimated that 130 bears are now living in the region with an average annual population growth rate of more than 11% over the last 18 years. The subpopulation of Pyrenees brown bear (Ursus arctos arctos) has been steadily increasing in the mountain range since it reached near extinction in the mid-1990s, when the local population reached a low of just five individuals. Since 1996, 11 bears have been reintroduced from Slovenia to help save the population. But just three of those bears had most of the babies: 85-90% of the Pyrenees bears alive today descend from two females and one male. Inbreeding is a growing risk as the bears enter their third or fourth generation with few unrelated bears available to mate with. “We can no longer turn a blind eye, it is urgent to stop inbreeding, at the risk that it will become uncontrollable and permanently harmful to the population of brown bears,” Alain Reynes, director of Pays de l’Ours – Adet, a French conservation organization focused on bears, wrote in a statement. “There is still time, but inaction is no longer an option.” In 2025, eight cubs were born, down from 24 cubs the year before. Only two are not related. The other identified cubs have an inbreeding rate of 20-28%, similar to that of first cousins. The inbreeding rate shows us high levels of consanguinity which may affect the future of…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: The annual census of brown bears in the Pyrenees mountain range of Spain, France and Andorra estimated that 130 bears are now living in the region with an average annual population growth rate of more than 11% over the last 18 years. The subpopulation of Pyrenees brown bear (Ursus arctos arctos) has been steadily increasing […] authors: | ||
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Unwrapping deforestation: Your chocolate Easter bunny may harm the environment 03 Apr 2026 11:45:39 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/unwrapping-deforestation-your-chocolate-easter-bunny-may-harm-the-environment/ author: Andy Lehren dc:creator: Elisângela Mendonça content:encoded: As Easter eggs and chocolate bunnies fill British families’ baskets this holiday season, a new report reveals that West Africa continues to be deforested to meet the United Kingdom’s growing demand for cocoa. In 2025 alone, cocoa imported into the U.K. contributed to more than 2,000 hectares (about 4,940 acres) of deforestation, according to an exclusive analysis by climate NGO Global Witness shared with Mongabay. The findings come more than four years after the U.K. passed its Environment Act, which promised to strip illegal deforestation from the nation’s supply chains. But additional regulations for implementing the law have not been put in place, and the government declines to say when they might be enacted. While the government has failed to set rules, consumers remain at risk of buying chocolate and other goods that contribute to the climate crisis, even as they reach for foods stamped as sustainable, experts say. Last week, a coalition of chocolate manufacturers, British supermarkets and NGOs hosted an All-Party Parliamentary Group event on global deforestation at the House of Commons in London. The group gathered to urge the government to finally regulate commodities at risk for links to deforestation and provide more clarity to the industry. The U.K. Cocoa Coalition is formed of major firms, such as Ferrero Rocher and Hershey; retailers Sainsbury’s, Waitrose and Marks & Spencer; and several nonprofit organizations, including Earthsight, the World Wildlife Fund, Mighty Earth and others. The U.K. Cocoa Coalition met in an event in Parliament last week. Image courtesy…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - The United Kingdom’s cocoa imports drove more than 2,000 hectares of deforestation in 2025 alone, mainly in Côte d’Ivoire (78%) and Ghana (18%), according to an analysis by climate NGO Global Witness. - Total post-2021 losses linked to chocolate products exceeded 8,244 hectares. For all commodities — including palm oil, soy, beef, coffee and rubber — the deforestation exposure was 52,000 hectares. - Britain continues to be exposed to deforestation despite enacting the 2021 Environment Act, designed to purge illegal forest destruction from supply chains. The reason is that the U.K. has not put in place key rules. - Promised regulations remain stalled, with no timeline from the government to implement them. This leaves companies without due diligence rules and consumers remain exposed to goods linked to deforestation. authors: | ||
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Indonesian geothermal projects stall amid Indigenous concerns over justice 03 Apr 2026 10:08:35 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/indonesian-geothermal-projects-stall-amid-indigenous-concerns-over-justice/ author: Naina Rao dc:creator: Mongabay.com content:encoded: An island in eastern Indonesia was meant to lead the country’s transition into renewable energy. But nearly a decade later, the “geothermal island” has suspended projects due to local resistance and concerns for justice and safety. Mongabay’s Basten Gokkon reports that, back in 2017, up to 21 geothermal sites were identified on the island of Flores. Backed by international lenders such as the World Bank and the German Development Bank (KfW), the initiative was presented as a global showcase for clean energy. But a recent study found that, eight years later, key projects remain suspended due to sustained resistance from Indigenous Manggarai communities. They described unjust implementation, including health risks from geothermal emissions, threats to farmland, loss of livelihoods, and vague decision-making processes. “In the Flores case, as in many other places, people are not rejecting the energy transition,” said Cypri Jehan Paju Dale, corresponding author of the study and a social anthropologist with Kyoto University in Japan and the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the U.S. “What they reject is when justice is absent and their living space is disrupted.” The conflict has centered on the communities of Wae Sano and Poco Leok, where residents argue the projects threaten their ruang hidup, or living space. This concept goes beyond mere land ownership, encompassing the economic, cultural, and spiritual ties to ancestral graves, ritual sites, and farmland. The resistance gained significant leverage by articulating these concerns through the lens of customary law, or adat. By demonstrating that their ruang hidup was…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: An island in eastern Indonesia was meant to lead the country’s transition into renewable energy. But nearly a decade later, the “geothermal island” has suspended projects due to local resistance and concerns for justice and safety. Mongabay’s Basten Gokkon reports that, back in 2017, up to 21 geothermal sites were identified on the island of […] authors: | ||
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Indonesia’s deforestation surges 66% in 2025, reversing years of decline 03 Apr 2026 03:50:22 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/indonesias-deforestation-surges-66-in-2025-reversing-years-of-decline/ author: Hans Nicholas Jong dc:creator: Hans Nicholas Jong content:encoded: JAKARTA — Indonesia’s deforestation surged in 2025, rising 66% from the previous year, marking a sharp reversal after several years of decline, according to new data from the NGO Auriga Nusantara. Based on satellite analysis, Auriga estimates that 433,751 hectares (1.1 million acres) of forest, an area more than twice the size of London, were lost in 2025, the highest level in eight years. Forest loss had previously fallen to a historic low in 2021, following five consecutive years of decline since 2017, driven in part by a series of forest protection policies under former President Joko Widodo. But since 2022, the trend has reversed, with deforestation rising again before spiking in 2025 across all of Indonesia’s major islands. “The surge in deforestation in 2025 is truly distressing, taking Indonesia back to a time when it was at its highest,” said Auriga executive director Timer Manurung. The trend stands in contrast to developments in the Amazon, where deforestation has declined for three consecutive years following renewed enforcement and federal efforts under Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In 2025, deforestation in the biome fell 11.1% to 579,600 hectares (1.4 million acres), the lowest level in more than a decade. “Brazil’s deforestation, concentrated in the Amazon, is declining. Meanwhile, Indonesia’s is increasing. So it’s possible Indonesia could become the world’s top deforester among tropical countries in 2025,” Timer said. Auriga’s findings are broadly consistent with early signals from official data. While the government has yet to release full-year figures for…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - New satellite data show that deforestation in Indonesia surged in 2025, up 66% from the previous year, marking a sharp reversal after several years of decline. - The implications extend beyond forest loss, as rising deforestation could derail Indonesia’s climate goals, including its target of turning the forestry and land use sector into a net carbon sink by 2030. - NGO Auriga Nusantara points to policy decisions under both the current and former administrations; at the same time, government-backed projects have been allowed to expand into forest areas, often without adequate spatial planning. authors: | ||
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Today is Jane Goodall Day. Her movement continues. 03 Apr 2026 00:30:50 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/today-is-jane-goodall-day-her-movement-continues/ author: Rhett Butler dc:creator: Rhett Ayers Butler content:encoded: April 3 now carries a different kind of weight. It was always Jane Goodall’s birthday. Now it is also a marker—a point in the year when people are asked not just to remember her, but to do something with what she set in motion. The idea behind the first Jane Goodall Day is simple. Take one action. It can be small. It should be real. The intent is to treat her life as something still in motion and to see those habits she cultivated continue in others. That framing feels appropriate. Goodall resisted the idea that her work belonged to her alone. Even at the height of her recognition, she redirected attention outward—toward the forests she had studied, the chimpanzees whose lives she had made visible, and the people who would decide what came next. In later years, when asked what she wanted to be remembered for, she returned to two things: changing how we see animals, and starting Roots & Shoots. The second of those matters more than it first appears. Roots & Shoots was designed as a way of distributing responsibility. It asked young people, and eventually adults, to look at their immediate surroundings and act on what they saw. It requires no permission and begins at any scale. The premise was that agency begins locally, and that it grows through repetition. Jane Goodall. Courtesy of Moby Anna Rathmann, who leads the Jane Goodall Institute in the United States, describes Jane Goodall Day in similar terms. The goal,…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - April 3, now recognized as Jane Goodall Day, is intended as a day of action—an invitation to carry forward the habits and responsibilities she encouraged, rather than simply commemorate her life. - From Roots & Shoots to community-led conservation models like Tacare, her work continues through people who apply her approach locally, linking the well-being of people, animals, and the environment. - Colleagues at the Jane Goodall Institute describe a consistent throughline in her thinking: start small, stay attentive, and build change through actions that accumulate over time. - The day reflects a broader idea at the center of her life’s work—that progress depends less on scale or certainty than on individuals choosing to act, where they are, with what they have. authors: | ||
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Talks to reduce funding for overfishing remain stalled at WTO meeting 03 Apr 2026 00:08:06 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/talks-to-reduce-funding-for-overfishing-remain-stalled-at-wto-meeting/ author: Rebecca Kessler dc:creator: Elizabeth Fitt content:encoded: Governments across the world have pledged to re-ignite stalled “Fish Two” negotiations and finalize the second part of a long-sought agreement to curb harmful fishing subsidies by mid-2028. The commitment came at the World Trade Organization’s recently concluded 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Yaoundé, Cameroon, where little progress was made on the long-running issue. “It’s important that WTO members have agreed to continue negotiating. But the prospects of reaching a deal remain dim,” Kristen Hopewell, global policy specialist at the University of British Columbia, Canada, told Mongabay. “Just a handful of states are blocking an agreement supported by the vast majority of the WTO membership.” These comprise the U.S., India and Indonesia, according to a Marine Policy paper Hopewell authored earlier this year. WTO members became deadlocked trying to decide how to ban nations from subsidizing their fishing industries in ways that contribute to overfishing and illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, as mandated by U.N. Sustainable Development Target 14.6. Negotiations began in 2001 and dragged out over 21 years. In 2022, WTO members decided to split the elusive agreement in two. This unlocked a deal dubbed “Fish One,” curtailing subsidies that enable IUU fishing and the continued fishing of overfished stocks. Fish One came into force on Sept. 15, 2025, but left the thorny question of how to ban all overfishing and capacity-enhancing subsidies, which enable fleets to operate unsustainably, for ongoing “Fish Two” negotiations. These have progressed little since 2022. Three more states ratified Fish One at MC14:…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Delegates at a recent World Trade Organization summit in Cameroon agreed to continue “Fish Two” negotiations aimed at a deal to curb government subsidies that support unsustainable fishing, but progress remains limited, with just three countries blocking consensus despite broad support. - The first phase of the deal, “Fish One,” entered into force in September 2025 and now has 116 ratifications; but key fishing nations, including India and Indonesia, have not joined. - Disputes over Fish Two center on fairness: Developing countries argue the draft text disadvantages them, particularly through sustainability-based exemptions that favor wealthier nations with better scientific capacity. - A four-year “sunset clause” triggered by Fish One’s entry into force now puts pressure on talks: If a full agreement is not reached by 2029, the entire deal, including Fish One, risks collapsing. authors: | ||
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Return of the giant tortoises 02 Apr 2026 21:20:17 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/return-of-the-giant-tortoises/ author: Sam Lee dc:creator: Sam Lee content:encoded: For the first time in nearly two centuries, giant tortoises are once again roaming Floreana Island in the Galápagos, a conservation milestone more than a decade in the making.This article was originally published on Mongabay description: For the first time in nearly two centuries, giant tortoises are once again roaming Floreana Island in the Galápagos, a conservation milestone more than a decade in the making. authors: | ||
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Green and gray: Mangroves and dikes show potential in protecting shorelines together 02 Apr 2026 20:25:33 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/green-and-gray-mangroves-and-dikes-show-potential-in-protecting-shorelines-together/ author: Nandithachandraprakash dc:creator: Claudia Geib content:encoded: With their dense mats of submerged roots, mangrove forests hold down shorelines worldwide like a coastal Swiss Army knife. They’re a nursery for juvenile fish and a home for important species in and out of the water. They’re also a filtration system for pollution, a holdfast against erosion, and a speed bump that slows incoming waves. But even the best of tools could occasionally use backup. A new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences examines how combining mangrove restoration with water-directing dikes might multiply these ecosystems’ protective abilities even further, particularly as climate change worsens storm surges and raises sea levels. As a hydrologist by training, Timothy Tiggeloven, lead author and environmental researcher at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, is particularly interested in how to manage unruly water by combining natural defenses (“green” infrastructure) with manmade creations (“gray” infrastructure) like dikes and levees. Though mangroves naturally reduce the height and power of waves, they don’t stop all of the water from a storm or flood from moving inland. “So here comes this synergy of combination,” Tiggeloven said. “If you have a dike behind a mangrove, it will prevent the water from flowing over [onto land]. While if you only have dikes, they will be hit by the waves and there will be an overtopping. Having those two together is actually a very smart idea.” So, Tiggeloven and his colleagues developed a computer model to assess where this combination would be most effective, and how the hybrid defenses might…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - A recent paper modeled how restoring mangroves in front of water-controlling infrastructure like dikes might create a hybrid coastal defense system in the face of global sea level rise. - The model found that this combination, put in place today, could reduce the annual damage from storms and flooding by $800 million, and that 140,000 fewer people would be impacted by these events every year. - They also found that these numbers would increase over time with the impacts of climate change. - The researchers also evaluated where these projects would be most cost-effective, finding that the benefits disproportionately help lower-income areas, particularly in Southeast Asia, South Asia and West Africa. authors: | ||
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Banned but not silenced: Gerry Flynn’s commitment to uncovering the truth across the Mekong 02 Apr 2026 18:25:42 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/banned-but-not-silenced-gerry-flynns-commitment-to-uncovering-the-truth-across-the-mekong/ author: Alana Linderoth dc:creator: Alejandro Prescott-Cornejo content:encoded: In a region where independent environmental journalism is often unwelcome, one Mongabay journalist has made a career of tackling often inconvenient truths while accepting personal risks as a necessary part of the work. Gerald “Gerry” Flynn has been based in Southeast Asia since 2017, reporting largely from Cambodia on the intersection of human rights, ecosystems and natural resource governance. Flynn joined Mongabay as a features writer in 2023, following a Rainforest Investigations Network Fellowship with the Pulitzer Center from 2022 to 2023, during which he investigated illegal logging networks across Cambodia, with a focus on the Cardamom Mountains. Upon joining the team, he continued to investigate illegal logging, fishing, mining and land grabs. “These stories are what drew me to environmental journalism,” he says. “Getting on the ground, holding the powerful accountable, and giving voices to those who put their own lives and liberty on the line to protect their natural resources.” However, in January 2025, Flynn was denied entry and banned from Cambodia, a move seemingly in retaliation for his reporting — a setback that only cemented his confidence in evidence-based reporting as fundamental for revealing infractions against nature in autocratic societies. “The violence of the response to environmental reporting in authoritarian jurisdictions only serves to highlight the importance and value of dragging environmental crimes out of the shadows and into the cold, harsh light of public scrutiny,” he says. An investigation into a senior Cambodian official’s illegal logging operation meant taking to the waters of the Sekong River…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Gerald “Gerry” Flynn is Mongabay’s features writer for Southeast Asia, reporting on the intersection of human rights, ecosystems and natural resource governance. - In January 2025, Flynn was permanently banned from Cambodia in what appeared to be retaliation for his journalistic work; he is now based in Thailand and covers the Mekong region more broadly. - He emphasizes that environmental journalism in authoritarian contexts must expose realities often omitted from state-controlled media. - Flynn says he values on-the-ground reporting, amplifying local voices and balancing bravery with safety. authors: | ||
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Brazilian banks to verify satellite deforestation data for rural credit 02 Apr 2026 17:07:47 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/brazilian-banks-to-verify-satellite-deforestation-data-for-rural-credit/ author: Mongabay Editor dc:creator: Associated Press content:encoded: SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s banks will be required to verify official satellite deforestation data before approving rural credit beginning on Wednesday in the South American country. Under the new rule, financial institutions must check whether a property appears in a government registry of areas with potential illegal deforestation after July 31, 2019. The database, maintained by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, is based on satellite data from Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research, or INPE. If a property is flagged, farmers may challenge the designation by demonstrating that the deforestation was legal. They can submit authorization documents, restoration plans for altered or degraded areas, or a technical remote‑sensing report. When the resolution was approved in December, the Finance Ministry said that the new requirements were intended to align rural credit with conservation and sustainability policies. Brazil is a global agribusiness powerhouse. The country is the world’s largest exporter of beef and the biggest soybean producer. Agriculture, however, is the leading driver of deforestation across all of Brazil’s biomes, including the Amazon rainforest. The Amazon plays a critical role in regulating the global climate, and scientists warn that continued forest loss could accelerate global warming. The new rule represents a significant step in integrating agricultural policy, the financial system and sustainability, said Paulo Camuri, climate and territorial intelligence manager at Imaflora, a nonprofit that tracks deforestation. Linking access to credit to environmental requirements, Camuri added, encourages more sustainable production and strengthens the agribusiness sector’s environmental responsibility. “It is an intelligent incentive mechanism…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s banks will be required to verify official satellite deforestation data before approving rural credit beginning on Wednesday in the South American country. Under the new rule, financial institutions must check whether a property appears in a government registry of areas with potential illegal deforestation after July 31, 2019. The database, maintained […] authors: | ||
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Railroad & tariff war boost soy in Brazil’s Cerrado, endangering Indigenous lands 02 Apr 2026 16:29:42 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/railroad-tariff-war-boost-soy-in-brazils-cerrado-endangering-indigenous-lands/ author: Xavier Bartaburu dc:creator: Kevin Damasio content:encoded: MATO GROSSO, Brazil — In 2025, soy farmers in Brazil saw a new boost caused by the tariff war between the United States and China. Brazilian soy exports to the Chinese market reached a record high: 85.4 million metric tons, almost 80% of total soy shipments. In Mato Grosso, soy production had already seen a boost in 2019, partly due to trade tensions between the Chinese and the first U.S. President Donald Trump administration. In addition to China’s demand for the product, new agricultural frontiers were opened for soy farmers after the BR-163 federal road was paved, connecting them to ports in Pará state. Since then, soy plantations in Mato Grosso have increased by 3.4 million hectares (8.4 million acres), according to Brazil’s National Supply Company (CONAB), while their output went from 33 million metric tons in the 2018-19 harvest to 51 million metric tons in 2024-25 – a 54.5% increase. Soy plantations are advancing mainly in the Cerrado, the most biodiverse savanna on the planet, which is essential to Brazil’s water supply, since its sources provide it to eight of the country’s 12 hydrographic regions. In the Juruena River Basin, in western Mato Grosso, consolidation of monocultures — not only soy but also corn and cotton — is a matter of concern to people in the Tirecatinga Indigenous Land. They report that the surrounding farms have been contaminating water bodies, plants and fruit with pesticides and are blocking the rivers with small hydroelectric plants. Located between the Buriti and…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Driven by the tariff war between the U.S. and China, soy production in Brazil’s Mato Grosso state is breaking records and encroaching on the Cerrado biome. - Logistics projects such as the Ferrogrão railroad are expected to scale up production, further increasing the risk of deforestation. - In the Tirecatinga Indigenous Land, amid still-standing Cerrado, Indigenous peoples are already feeling the impacts of pesticides and dams. authors: | ||
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New species discovered in Cambodia’s rare rocky ecosystems 02 Apr 2026 16:03:36 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/new-species-discovered-in-cambodias-rare-rocky-ecosystems/ author: Bobbybascomb dc:creator: Shanna Hanbury content:encoded: 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, dramatic landscapes of caves and large protruding rocks on both land and water that create isolated habitats, researchers surveyed 64 caves and 10 hills over the last three years. “The survey uncovered a treasure trove of extraordinary creatures,” wrote Fauna & Flora, the conservation nonprofit behind the report. “Surrounded by a sea of inhospitable, human-made landscapes, many of these creatures are, in effect, trapped. Over time, they have continued to evolve in complete isolation.” Among the new species is a turquoise-colored pit viper (Trimeresurus sp. nov.) which is still being formally described after it was spotted in Phnom Prampi, a protected natural heritage site, in July 2025. A terrestrial micro snail (Clostophis udayaditinus) is a new species smaller than 2 millimeters (0.1 inches) wide and is the first of its genus recorded in Cambodia. And a dark orange millipede discovered in a cave was just one of three new species in its genus. “Each one of these isolated karst areas act as their own little laboratory,” Lee Grismer, a biology professor at La Sierra University, U.S., said in a statement. “The results are species that exist nowhere else — not just nowhere else in the…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: 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, […] authors: | ||
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How underinvesting in information threatens our collective well-being 02 Apr 2026 14:21:00 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/how-underinvesting-in-information-threatens-our-collective-well-being/ author: Rhett Butler dc:creator: Rhett Ayers Butler content:encoded: This essay is adapted from the article, “Information as Civic Infrastructure—and How Philanthropy Can Support the Ecosystem,” which was originally published in Nonprofit Quarterly on March 3, 2026. Philanthropy has grown accustomed to funding the “final” solution. It is comfortable buying land, backing new technologies, and underwriting the services or policies that address urgent problems. Yet, it often overlooks the very social foundation those solutions stand on: a shared, reliable information environment. Today, that foundation is cracking. This fragility extends beyond the spread of falsehoods. It appears as indifference to accuracy, fatigue from complexity, and a growing difficulty in judging what deserves attention. In many places, facts still exist, but they travel poorly. They arrive late and out of context, their credibility stripped away before they even reach the public. The result is not always disagreement; more often it is disengagement. For donors concerned with climate change, biodiversity loss, public health, or democratic governance, this crumbling foundation puts even the best-funded programs at risk—a blind spot many donors haven’t yet addressed. Programs may be well designed and generously funded, yet fail to gain traction because the informational terrain beneath them has shifted. Projects that rely on public oversight, regulatory follow-through, or market response depend on the availability of trusted, usable information. Environmental harm offers a clear illustration. Deforestation, overfishing, and illegal mining tend to accelerate where monitoring is weak and scrutiny sporadic. This is not because laws do not exist, but because violations go unrecorded or unnoticed. When documentation does…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - This essay is adapted from the article, “Information as Civic Infrastructure—and How Philanthropy Can Support the Ecosystem,” which was originally published in Nonprofit Quarterly on March 3, 2026. - While philanthropy traditionally funds direct solutions like land conservation or technology, it often overlooks the fragile information environment that these interventions require to succeed. - The lack of credible, verified data creates an “information gap” that allows environmental harms to go unnoticed and undermines the public oversight necessary for regulatory and market accountability. - Investing in the core capacities of a healthy information ecosystem—such as data verification and digital security—provides the essential clarity needed to address our most urgent global challenges. authors: | ||
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How wild cattle recovery is transforming local livelihoods near key Thai reserve 02 Apr 2026 09:31:41 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/how-wild-cattle-recovery-is-transforming-local-livelihoods-near-key-thai-reserve/ author: Isabel Esterman dc:creator: Carolyn Cowan content:encoded: HUAI KHA KHAENG, Thailand — “Five years ago, we’d never have been able to see this,” says Boonlert Tianchang, raising a pair of binoculars to his beaming eyes. “To see just one banteng, we would have had to go deep into the forest. Now, they’re right here.” We’re standing on a wildlife-viewing platform overlooking a roughly 8-hectare (20-acre) grassland in the buffer area surrounding the northeastern boundary of Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, a flagship protected area in Thailand’s Uthai Thani province. Russet-colored banteng (Bos javanicus), one of the world’s rarest species of wild cattle, step one by one into the clearing from the cover of the forest. Mothers, calves and adult males browse the vegetation nonchalantly, their stocky bright-orange bodies contrasting almost comically with their spindly white legs and snowy rumps. “This is the only place in Thailand where you can see a lot of banteng like this,” says Boonlert, who lives in the buffer area and leads a community-based ecotourism initiative focused on tours to see this increasingly common sight. “I see them here so often,” he says. “But every time, I’m humbled thinking of all the work that’s gone into protecting them [to] get to this point.” Boonlert Tianchang scans the landscape at a wildlife watching platform in Rabam subdistrict. Image by Carolyn Cowan for Mongabay. Protection prompts recovery As large herbivores, banteng play a vital role in dispersing seeds and cycling nutrients in the dry, open-canopy forests that are their preferred habitat. Their browsing of understory…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Banteng, a species of wild cattle, have suffered an 80% population decline across their range in recent decades. But in Thailand, populations are rebounding strongly in well-protected areas. - Decades of strict habitat protection and ranger patrols have reduced poaching and recovered numbers to such an extent that several herds have spread outside of protected sites into surrounding buffer areas, where enforcement of wildlife laws is limited. - In an effort to protect the growing herds, villagers living in the buffer area of Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, who once experienced conflict with the banteng, have set up a community-led ecotourism initiative based on banteng-watching. - The wildlife tours are creating powerful cultural, social and financial deterrents to poaching, and the banteng are proving to be a key species around which to rally local support for conservation. authors: | ||
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Linda Dakin-Grimm and Geo Chen join Mongabay’s board as it expands global coverage 02 Apr 2026 00:31:44 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/linda-dakin-grimm-and-geo-chen-join-mongabays-board-as-it-expands-global-coverage/ author: Rhett Butler dc:creator: Mongabay.com content:encoded: Mongabay is pleased to announce that Linda Dakin-Grimm and Geo Chen have joined its board of directors, strengthening its capacity to advance its mission of producing high-impact environmental journalism. Dakin-Grimm joins the board following a distinguished legal career as a senior consulting partner at Milbank LLP, where she handled complex litigation across U.S. courts before focusing on pro bono immigration work. Her experience navigating legal systems and public-interest issues aligns with Mongabay’s role in supporting transparency, accountability and informed governance. “At this moment in history, I cannot imagine a more important mission than Mongabay’s journalism, informing the public and raising awareness worldwide about conservation of ecosystems and wildlife,” Dakin-Grimm said. “I am honored to be part of this board.” Chen brings experience at the intersection of philanthropy, finance and impact investing. He is principal of the Huang Chen Foundation and his family office, Three Quays Holdings, where he supports initiatives in conservation, climate and humanitarian response, alongside investments across global markets. His perspective reflects a growing recognition among investors that credible, independent information is essential to effective decision-making in an era of environmental risk. “I deeply admire Mongabay’s work and have been impressed by their ability to grow their audience and their impact,” Chen said. “I’m excited to support them as they continue to scale and innovate!” Their appointments come at a time of continued growth for Mongabay. “We are building on an excellent group of board advisors, now covering more deeply our global footprint” said Holt Thrasher, Mongabay’s Board…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Mongabay has appointed Linda Dakin-Grimm and Geo Chen to its board of directors, adding legal, philanthropic and investment expertise to support its mission of independent environmental journalism. - Their appointments come amid rapid organizational growth, with traffic up 166% and story production rising 44% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period last year. - The organization continues to expand its editorial capacity and global reach, including new investments in key reporting areas, additional language offerings, and a fellowship program that is expected to nearly double in size. - Mongabay’s growth is guided not by scale alone but by how its reporting informs decisions by policymakers, practitioners and communities working on environmental challenges. authors: | ||
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Australia’s flying foxes offer valuable services & deserve better reputation: Study 01 Apr 2026 22:43:23 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/australias-flying-foxes-offer-valuable-services-deserve-better-reputation-study/ author: Bobbybascomb dc:creator: Megan Strauss content:encoded: Each night, a dark cloud of flying foxes, or fruit bats, moves through the skies of eastern Australia on their way to gorge on nectar and fruits. With a meter-wide (3.2-foot) wingspan, they transport large quantities of pollen and rain down seeds in their poop, helping establish new trees. A new study in Scientific Reports provides the first economic valuation of the ecosystem services provided by flying foxes in Australia, focusing on their significant contribution to the timber industry. Recent fires and heat stress events have led to colony loss and a dramatic drop in bat numbers; more than 80% of some populations have been wiped out amid extreme heat events. Justin Welbergen, an animal ecology professor at Western Sydney University who was not part of the study, told The New York Times, “A single hot afternoon can result in mortality on a regional scale and in biblical proportions, with tens of thousands of dead flying foxes.” Flying foxes can travel thousands of kilometers per year, spreading pollen and seeds over large distances, making their economic value immense. First author Alfredo Ortega González, a University of Sydney scientist, said in a video interview with Mongabay, “There is no bird that can move the distance, on average, that a flying fox can move in a night.” The study authors calculated the spatial extent of the bats’ nightly foraging, based on the locations of 1,209 roosts of four mainland Australian flying fox species (Pteropus poliocephalus, P. Alecto, P. scapulatus and P. conspicillatus).…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: A new study in Scientific Reports provides the first economic valuation of the ecosystem services provided by flying foxes in Australia, focusing on their significant contribution to the timber industry. authors: | ||
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Who gives up land for the world’s climate fixes? 01 Apr 2026 21:35:35 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/who-gives-up-land-for-the-worlds-climate-fixes/ author: Rhett Butler dc:creator: Rhett Ayers Butler content:encoded: Planting trees has become one of the most widely promoted responses to climate change. As forests grow, they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere while offering habitat for animals, plants and other organisms. The idea is straightforward: Expand forests, and the planet gains both climate mitigation and renewed biodiversity. Yet the land required to remove large quantities of carbon from the atmosphere may place these goals in tension. Efforts to plant forests or cultivate bioenergy crops with carbon capture need vast areas. In some places, those projects could displace ecosystems that already support rich biodiversity. A recent analysis suggests that roughly 13% of globally important biodiversity areas overlap with land that climate models designate for carbon-removal projects, reports John Cannon. The research, published in Nature Climate Change, examined five widely used models that outline pathways to limit global warming to 1.5° Celsius (2.7° Fahrenheit) above preindustrial levels. Ruben Prütz of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and his colleagues mapped where these models anticipate land-intensive carbon dioxide removal, such as new forests or bioenergy plantations. They then compared those locations with important wildlife habitats. Previous work tended to analyze a single model and a narrower set of species. The new study expanded the scope to roughly 135,000 species, including fungi and invertebrates alongside plants and vertebrates. That broader view offers a more detailed sense of how climate mitigation plans might affect life on Earth. Avoiding biodiversity hotspots entirely would sharply limit the land available for carbon-removal projects. According to…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: Planting trees has become one of the most widely promoted responses to climate change. As forests grow, they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere while offering habitat for animals, plants and other organisms. The idea is straightforward: Expand forests, and the planet gains both climate mitigation and renewed biodiversity. Yet the land required to remove […] authors: | ||
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Ethiopian women plant trees, restoring lands & livelihoods 01 Apr 2026 20:37:03 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/ethiopian-women-plant-trees-restoring-lands-livelihoods/ author: Terna Gyuse dc:creator: Charles Mpaka content:encoded: In the southern Ethiopian region of Sidama, unsustainable farming practices and tree cutting for fuel are causing land degradation. In response, members of the Integrated Women’s Development Organization are planting indigenous trees, bananas and vegetables as well as desho (Pennisetum glaucifolium) and elephant grass (Cenchrus purpureus) for cattle fodder in an effort to restore damaged farmland and build more resilient livelihoods. In an email interview, IWDO’s general manager, Ruhama Getahun, told Mongabay that the women and youth who make up the NGO’s membership have planted more than 1,250 hectares (3,080 acres) since 2020. She said these initiatives have begun generating income for community members — particularly women — helping them rely less on forest products such as charcoal and firewood for survival. Negasi Solomon, a land and environment researcher at Tigray Institute of Policy Studies in Mek’ele, Ethiopia, told Mongabay that rapid population growth means the average size of a household’s land in the Sidama region has shrunk. This has pushed farmers to expand their plots onto fragile and steep hillsides. Solomon told Mongabay in an email that women are — or should be — central to land use and land restoration decisions in Sidama, and in Ethiopia in general, because of the role they play in day‑to‑day farm management. He noted, however, that many women in Ethiopia still face obstacles to taking up leadership roles. “Patriarchal norms and customary systems often concentrate land ownership and key decision‑making in men, while limiting women’s inheritance and control over land even where…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - In southern Ethiopia, unsustainable farming practices and tree cutting for fuel are causing land degradation. - The Integrated Women’s Development Organization has planted fruit and other trees as well as grass for animal fodder to restore soil and tree cover and provide additional income for its members. - IWDO recently became a member of the GLFx network, connecting it with similar independent, community-oriented groups to strengthen its work protecting and restoring healthy forests and other landscapes. authors: | ||
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Thai court rules gold mine liable, but villagers face uncertain justice 01 Apr 2026 18:17:35 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/thai-court-rules-gold-mine-liable-but-villagers-face-uncertain-justice/ author: Isabel Esterman dc:creator: Kannikar Petchkaew content:encoded: BAN KHAO MO, Thailand — On March 24, 2026, residents of this small community achieved a landmark legal victory. Ten years into a class action suit against the Chatree gold mine, the Bangkok Civil Court ruled in their favor, holding the company liable for environmental damage and health impacts. Four days later — and four years after first documenting the villagers’ struggle for justice — Mongabay returned to the community still living in the shadow of Thailand’s largest gold mine. The scene in the village was hardly celebratory. Chamnian Buakam stands in Ban Khao Mo village, in Thailand’s Phichit province, on March 28, 2026. The wall of the tailings dam is visible behind her in the distance. Image by Kannikar Petchkaew for Mongabay. Thailand’s mid-summer bore down with relentless, furnace-like heat. Villagers around the gold mine retreated to the sparse shade of trees, waiting in uneasy uncertainty. The court had ordered the company to compensate nearly 400 villagers found to have elevated levels of heavy metals in their blood. It must also shut down one of the storage facilities where it keeps mining waste, or tailings, long cited as a source of contamination, and bear the full cost of environmental rehabilitation — an effort one expert estimates could reach hundreds of millions of baht. The verdict is historic, the country’s first environmental class action following a 2015 legal amendment that enabled such lawsuits. Yet, even with the support of an NGO, only 40 villagers were able to make the five-hour…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - A Thai court has ruled a gold mining company liable for environmental damage and health impacts, ordering compensation for nearly 400 villagers and mandating cleanup measures. - The landmark verdict, Thailand’s first environmental class action, is being appealed, delaying payouts and prolonging an already decade-long legal battle. - Villagers say the compensation falls far short of their losses, with many continuing to suffer from contamination, health issues and ruined livelihoods. - The case highlights ongoing tensions over mining impacts and accountability, as operations continue and communities push for stronger legal action and remediation. authors: | ||
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Marina Silva steps down as Brazil’s environment minister to run for Congress 01 Apr 2026 16:07:58 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/marina-silva-steps-down-as-brazils-environment-minister-to-run-for-congress/ author: Mongabay Editor dc:creator: Associated Press content:encoded: SAO PAULO (AP) — Marina Silva is stepping down as Brazil’s environment minister so that she can run for Congress in national elections. Under Brazilian law, ministers must leave office six months before the vote. Silva returned to the job in 2023 and helped drive a sharp drop in deforestation after major losses under former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. Forest loss has fallen by more than half since 2022. Silva also rebuilt enforcement agencies and revived the Amazon Fund. However, experts say her influence have not stopped weaker licensing rules and and a push by current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva for offshore oil drilling. By Gabriela Sá Pessoa, Associated Press Banner image: Brazil’s Environment Minister Marina Silva smiles during a decree-signing ceremony on Environment Day at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, June 3, 2025. Photo by Eraldo Peres via Associated PressThis article was originally published on Mongabay description: SAO PAULO (AP) — Marina Silva is stepping down as Brazil’s environment minister so that she can run for Congress in national elections. Under Brazilian law, ministers must leave office six months before the vote. Silva returned to the job in 2023 and helped drive a sharp drop in deforestation after major losses under former […] authors: | ||
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American Samoa said ‘no’ to deep sea mining, Washington heard ‘faster’ (commentary) 01 Apr 2026 16:07:22 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/american-samoa-said-no-to-deep-sea-mining-washington-heard-faster-commentary/ author: Erik Hoffner dc:creator: Jackie Dragon content:encoded: At 7:45 a.m. one recent January day in American Samoa, a delegation from Greenpeace and Pacific Island partners sat in a small radio studio explaining why we had traveled thousands of miles across the Pacific. We were invited by local leaders to the unincorporated U.S. territory — halfway between Hawai‘i and Australia — to listen, to learn, and to help elevate what people in American Samoa have been saying for years. Communities there are deeply concerned about deep-sea mining, and they want to be heard before decisions are made about the ocean that sustains them. Hours later, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) stood before local officials in a meeting space up the street, walking them through the steps of a federal leasing process that was already moving forward, fast. BOEM’s visit, even as the governor’s office convened space for community voices, felt less like consultation and more like choreography. The agency’s message was, in essence, we hear you, but we are moving forward. Meeting with the governor (center, in red) about the proposal, from left: Ekolu Lindsey, director of Maui Nui Makai Network; Sheila Sarhangi, director of Pacific Islands Heritage Coalition; Bobbi-Jo Dobush, independent ocean policy consultant, Salt Horizon LLC; American Samoa Governor Pula’ali’i Nikolao Pula; Solomon Kahoohalahala, Indigenous Hawaiian elder, Maui Nui Makai Network; Jackie Dragon, senior oceans campaigner, Greenpeace USA; Arlo Hemphill, Greenpeace USA’s campaign lead on deep sea mining. Image courtesy of Greenpeace USA. BOEM received more than 76,000 public comments, most warning of environmental…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - The U.S. government is moving fast to grant leases to corporations for deep sea mining in places like the territory of American Samoa: once issued, these are very difficult to rescind. - Leaders there have weighed in against this lease on cultural and environmental grounds, but the federal agency in charge has merely acknowledged this dissent while continuing to move forward. - “American Samoa is not a test case; it’s at risk of becoming the federal government’s blueprint” on deep-sea mining licensing, a new op-ed states. - This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay. authors: | ||
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A ‘big book’ documenting Cameroon’s sharks & rays fills critical conservation gap 01 Apr 2026 15:16:40 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/a-big-book-documenting-cameroons-sharks-rays-fills-critical-conservation-gap/ author: Malavikavyawahare dc:creator: Shuimo Trust Dohyee content:encoded: BUEA, Cameroon — To his fishing peers, Ojah Alfred, 45, is a fisher like they are. But to Cameroon’s scientific community, he is also a scientist — a citizen scientist. For eight years, Alfred, alongside more than 80 other fishers across Cameroon’s three coastal regions, has been collecting data on marine species brought to landing sites and caught out at sea, using the Siren app, a citizen science platform. “I never imagined that the pictures I take every day of fish with the Sirens app would lead to the publication of this ‘big book,’” Alfred told Mongabay, referring to a study published in December in the journal Environmental Biology of Fishes. Two daisy stingrays (Dasyatis margarita) and a critically endangered blackchin guitarfish (Glaucostegus cemiculus) displayed for sale at Youpwè Fish Market, Cameroon’s largest fish market, in Douala. Image by Shuimo Trust Dohyee for Mongabay. The “big book” is the first detailed snapshot of shark and ray diversity in the country, helping fill a major knowledge gap that has long hindered conservation and fisheries management. Many of the species being caught in Cameroon’s fisheries are already at risk of extinction worldwide, and the country has no specific laws protecting sharks and rays, according to Ghofrane Labyedh, the study’s lead researcher. The fishers’ data, along with fish market surveys, recorded 45 species of sharks and rays in Cameroon’s waters, of which 36 are considered threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), including 13 classified as critically endangered. Alarmingly, most…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Between 2015 and 2023, researchers working with fishers recorded more than 7,000 sharks and rays caught at sea and landed along Cameroon’s coast. - The recorded animals represent 45 species, of which 13 are critically endangered. - Their research found that most sharks and rays landed in Cameroon’s fisheries are juveniles, raising serious concerns about population recovery. - The data help scientists better understand species composition, catch trends and conservation priorities along Cameroon’s coast. authors: | ||
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Working together, Indigenous peoples & researchers describe new Amazonian palm 01 Apr 2026 14:06:11 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/working-together-indigenous-peoples-researchers-describe-new-amazonian-palm/ author: Alexandrapopescu dc:creator: Sofia Moutinho content:encoded: In 2025, botanists Rodrigo Cámara-Leret and Juan Carlos Copete embarked on a two-hour boat ride down the Vaupés River in the Colombian Amazon, followed by a two-hour hike to the village of Wacará, where about 140 Indigenous Cacua people live in relative isolation. They were aiming to study the medicinal plants used by this Indigenous group, one of the smallest in the country. But their plans changed as soon as they had their first meal in the village of thatch-roofed houses, when some children offered them a yellowish-brown fruit the Cacau called táam. Although the duo had been studying tropical plants for more than a decade, they had never seen that drop-shaped fruit before. Initially, they thought the fruit might be from a palm tree introduced to the region from nearby Brazil. However, as they spent more time with the community, they realized it was likely an entirely new species of palm that had not yet been described by scientists. “We knew most of the plants we would encounter in the forest, so when we saw that fruit, we were extremely shocked and surprised,” Cámara-Leret, a professor in tropical plant diversity and ethnobotany at the University of Zürich, tells Mongabay. Discovering new palm species in the Amazon is rare, even more so one that is tall-stemmed and used in the human diet like the táam. Palms are among the most well-known species of the region and were extensively studied by European naturalists who explored the jungle between the 16th and…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - 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. authors: | ||
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‘Sharing is off the table’ as drought reshapes the culture of Ethiopia’s pastoralists 01 Apr 2026 07:00:46 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/sharing-is-off-the-table-as-drought-reshapes-the-lives-of-ethiopias-pastoralists/ author: Latoya Abulu dc:creator: Kaleab Girma content:encoded: JIJIGA, Ethiopia — The land here used to speak. At dawn in Kebribeyah district, Somali Regional State, eastern Ethiopia, the plains stretch wide beneath a pale sky, with dusty shades of brown and yellow broken by thorny acacia trees and the slow movement of livestock across the horizon. For generations, pastoralists learned to read the landscape. The arrival of seasonal winds, the timing of the rains, and the alignment of stars all carried meaning. Mohamoud Sulub, a 50-year-old livestock herder, grew up relying on these signs in Guuyow village. They told him when to move his herd and when to stay. He knew his neighbors would, in hard times, understand them, too — and help when needed. That knowledge is now failing him. This year, Mohamoud says, there is simply nowhere to go. “The land is all drought,” he tells Mongabay. The father of six has spent his entire life herding animals across this arid landscape, as his father did before him. Today he keeps 40 goats and sheep, five cows and six camels. “When the rains are good, the land is fine and there is no need to move,” he says. “But during drought, we migrate.” In this photo taken Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017, dust clouds blow across the parched landscape in the Danan district of the Somali region of Ethiopia, which hasn’t seen significant amounts of rain in the past three years. Image by AP Photo/Elias Meseret. For generations, pastoralists like Mohamoud relied on mobility and strong social…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Pastoralists in Ethiopia’s Somali region say that worsening drought is eroding traditional systems of sharing that once helped communities survive. - A recent study finds rainfall patterns have grown increasingly unpredictable, making it harder for pastoralists to plan and sustain their herds. - Indigenous systems such as Gergar — a form of social insurance — and communal grazing are weakening as households struggle to sustain their own herds. - As climate pressures grow, pastoralists are turning to alternative livelihoods, while assistance struggles to keep up with the scale of the problem. authors: | ||
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State fishing village plan in Indonesian Papua sparks Indigenous opposition 01 Apr 2026 03:41:37 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/state-fishing-village-plan-in-indonesian-papua-sparks-indigenous-opposition/ author: Basten Gokkon dc:creator: Basten Gokkon content:encoded: Indigenous leaders in Indonesia’s South Papua province have rejected a government plan to build a state-backed fishing settlement on their ancestral land, highlighting growing tensions between national development programs and customary land rights in the country’s easternmost island. Members of the Wiyagar tribe say the proposed Red and White Fishers’ Village (KNMP) in Sumuraman, a remote coastal area in Mappi district, is being advanced without proper consultation with traditional landowners. The project forms part of a nationwide initiative to develop hundreds of “modern” fishing settlements to boost marine productivity and coastal livelihoods. “We oppose the designation of Sumuraman as a Red and White Fishers’ Village because the people of the Wiyagar tribe do not work as fishers there,” Alowisius Boi, a coordinator of the coalition Solidarity for the Environment and People in South Papua, said as quoted by local media. A planned design for the fishing village initiative by the government. Image courtesy of the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries. Local Indigenous organizations and youth groups say the government has treated Sumuraman as unoccupied land, even though it has been held under the customary tenure of Wiyagar families for generations. Community representatives say they weren’t informed when officials from the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries conducted surveys in early March, and they accuse authorities of meeting with people they don’t recognize as legitimate landowners. The dispute also reflects deeper complexities in Indonesian Papua, where decades of migrant influx from other parts of Indonesia, overlapping land claims, and…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Indigenous Wiyagar leaders in Indonesian Papua oppose a planned state-backed fishing village, saying it’s being pushed without proper consultation on their customary land. - The project is part of a nationwide program to build thousands of “modern” fishing settlements, a key plank of President Prabowo Subianto’s maritime development agenda. - Critics warn the initiative risks “blue injustice,” as top-down planning may sideline local livelihoods, cultural systems and legal rights to participation. - The dispute underscores broader tensions in Indonesian Papua over Indigenous land rights, with concerns that fast-tracked national projects could deepen land conflicts and environmental impacts. authors: | ||
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Oil surge sharpens calls for Indonesia to shift away from fossil fuels 01 Apr 2026 03:23:28 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/oil-surge-sharpens-calls-for-indonesia-to-shift-away-from-fossil-fuels/ author: Hans Nicholas Jong dc:creator: Hans Nicholas Jong content:encoded: JAKARTA — As the U.S.-Israel war on Iran drives oil prices above $100 a barrel and disrupts global supply routes, Indonesia is once again confronting the costs of its dependence on fossil fuels — with growing calls not only to accelerate its renewable energy adoption, but also to make oil and gas companies help pay for the transition. The crisis is already testing the country’s energy system. Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for global oil flows, have constrained supply, sending prices sharply higher from around $70 a barrel before the war began at the end of February. For Indonesia, the impact has been immediate. The country of 280 million people has been a net oil importer since 2003, and its economy remains heavily dependent on fossil fuels to power transport, industry and electricity. That dependence is now translating into rising fiscal pressure, currency risks and broader economic vulnerability. Yet the same shock is also sharpening calls to speed up the transition to renewable energy, even as policymakers move to secure more fossil fuel supplies and ramp up coal output at home. The ongoing global energy crisis, which the International Energy Agency (IEA) describes as the worst in recorded history, has laid bare the risks of Indonesia’s energy mix. The country consumes around 1.5 million barrels of oil per day but produces less than 700,000 barrels, leaving it highly reliant on imports. That exposure carries a direct cost. An analysis by the Institute for Development of Economics and…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Indonesia faces rising fiscal and economic pressure as global oil prices surge amid the U.S.-Israel war on Iran, exposing its heavy reliance on imported fossil fuels. - Analysts say the crisis underscores the need to accelerate renewable energy development, which could reduce exposure to volatile global markets and improve long-term economic stability. - Despite this, the government is also boosting coal output and exploring expanded biofuel use — moves that critics warn could undermine climate goals and create new environmental risks. - Civil society groups are calling for windfall taxes on fossil fuel companies to fund a just energy transition, arguing current policies risk deepening inequality and dependence on extractive industries. authors: | ||
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Meaningful conservation demands truth, not just facts, says political ecologist 31 Mar 2026 23:00:12 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/03/meaningful-conservation-demands-truth-not-just-facts-says-political-ecologist/ author: Hayat Indriyatno dc:creator: Mike DiGirolamo content:encoded: The people and policies that control how humans treat the natural world are increasingly dominated by a small class of elite political entities and corporations, argues our guest, political ecologist Bram Buscher at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, on this week’s Newscast. This power, he says, is concentrated on platforms that have no allegiance to fact or truth, but rather serve only what increases their bottom line. Understanding this power dynamic and speaking truth to it is essential for the environmental movement to succeed. “If you keep on doing the same kind of things and not take the root causes, the root structural forms of power into account, you may have nice terms like nature-based solutions, ecosystem services, natural capital, but they don’t actually challenge the power structures to change,” he says. That structure he refers to as “platform capitalism.” Tasks humans used to do through various options or pathways are now gate-kept by tech companies. These companies have monopolized these platforms, including social media, generative artificial intelligence, and search engines that prioritize data collection over sincere citizen engagement. This makes it difficult for the environmental movement’s message to find an open audience. In some cases, people cannot tell the difference between what is real and what is not anymore. Buscher has written his thoughts in his book The Truth About Nature: Environmentalism in the Era of Post-Truth Politics and Platform Capitalism, which explains why “speaking facts to power” does not fundamentally change the policies currently failing the environment. Speaking…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: The people and policies that control how humans treat the natural world are increasingly dominated by a small class of elite political entities and corporations, argues our guest, political ecologist Bram Buscher at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, on this week’s Newscast. This power, he says, is concentrated on platforms that have no allegiance to […] authors: | ||
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What ‘paper parks’ reveal about the limits of conservation policy (commentary) 31 Mar 2026 22:36:12 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/what-paper-parks-reveal-about-the-limits-of-conservation-policy-commentary/ author: Erik Hoffner dc:creator: Kevin Green content:encoded: Conservation has no shortage of ambitious policy. Marine protected areas now cover roughly 8% of the world’s oceans. Protected lands account for nearly a fifth of the planet’s terrestrial surface. Community forest concessions span millions of hectares across the tropics. On paper, the progress is striking. Yet conservationists have long warned about “paper parks”: protected areas that exist in law but not in practice. After the legislation passes, boundaries are gazetted and rules changed, but the wildlife, fish and forests do not recover because the human behavior those rules depend on never shift. Paper parks illustrate something conservationists have learned the hard way: structural reform is necessary, but rarely sufficient. Structural reform sets the rules, but behavioral dynamics determine whether those rules become a functioning system — or a paper park. This problem sits at the center of a debate sparked by Nick Chater and George Loewenstein’s recent book, It’s On You: How Corporations and Behavioral Scientists Have Convinced Us That We’re to Blame for Society’s Deepest Problems. Both authors are leading behavioral scientists, part of a field that studies how people actually make decisions and respond to incentives, drawing on insights from economics, psychology and related disciplines. Their critique targets what they call the “i-frame”: interventions that try to change individual behavior within existing systems, like reminder messages, information campaigns and default settings. Corporations and policymakers, they argue, often prefer this approach because it shifts attention away from structural reforms that might threaten powerful interests. The alternative is the…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - From fisheries to forests, conservation success depends on building trust, norms and cooperation that make regulations real, a new op-ed argues. - Structural reforms to conservation policy may change the rules, but these succeed only when the behaviors those rules depend upon take hold. - “Durable conservation happens when people trust the rules, expect others to follow them, and participate in the systems that make compliance real. Where those behavioral foundations are missing, even the best policies remain paper promises,” the author writes. - This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay. authors: | ||
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The underwater meadows that help keep beaches from disappearing 31 Mar 2026 18:57:45 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/the-underwater-meadows-that-help-keep-beaches-from-disappearing/ author: Mongabay Editor dc:creator: Rhett Ayers Butler content:encoded: Seagrass meadows, which rarely draw the attention given to coral reefs or mangrove forests, perform a steady but important task: they help hold coasts in place. The plants anchor themselves in sediment through dense root systems that bind the seabed, similar to how forests stabilize soil on land. Oscar Serrano Gras, a researcher affiliated with the Blanes Center for Advanced Studies in Spain and Edith Cowan University in Australia, told Mongabay contributor Sean Mowbray that these underwater meadows can form a natural barrier against erosion. Their structure also allows them to capture and store large amounts of carbon dioxide. As climate change strengthens storms and extends their duration, many coastlines are facing more frequent flooding and infrastructure damage. The loss of seagrass reduces a layer of natural protection. Dense meadows slow water movement, reducing wave energy before it reaches shore. Heidi Nepf, a civil and environmental engineering professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, explained that the leaves create resistance to flowing water, weakening waves as they pass through the vegetation. The details matter. Larger species with broader leaves interact more strongly with moving water. Neptune grass, common in the Mediterranean, can blunt waves far more effectively than smaller varieties such as dwarf eelgrass. At the same time, the plants stabilize sediments and gradually build them up. A study published in Nature in 2024 suggested that widespread loss of Neptune grass could lead to markedly higher water levels along parts of the Mediterranean coast. Even so, scientists caution against treating…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: Seagrass meadows, which rarely draw the attention given to coral reefs or mangrove forests, perform a steady but important task: they help hold coasts in place. The plants anchor themselves in sediment through dense root systems that bind the seabed, similar to how forests stabilize soil on land. Oscar Serrano Gras, a researcher affiliated with […] authors: | ||
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An invasive guava is muscling out Madagascar’s forests — and lemurs are helping 31 Mar 2026 18:44:49 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/an-invasive-guava-is-muscling-out-madagascars-forests-and-lemurs-are-helping/ author: Terna Gyuse dc:creator: Ryan Truscott content:encoded: Madagascar is renowned for its lemurs, which are threatened due to hunting and deforestation. Restoring native forests to ensure their survival is critical, but once damaged, forests in Madagascar are vulnerable to takeover by invasive guava trees — whose seeds the lemurs themselves are helping to spread. When the delicious strawberry guavas (Psidium cattleyanum) are in fruit, lemurs will choose them over native fruit, says Amy Dunham, a biologist at Rice University in the U.S. On her last visit to Ranomafana National Park, in southeastern Madagascar, Dunham, who has been doing fieldwork there for more than 30 years, filmed an endangered Milne-Edwards’ sifaka (Propithecus edwardsi), a large lemur with a dark-brown and cream-colored coat, a black hairless face, and penetrating orange eyes. The sifaka was sitting in a thick guava patch munching on one of the ruby-red fruits. “For me, [the video] captures a big part of the picture,” Dunham says. “An endangered lemur can benefit from an invasive plant that is simultaneously undermining the long-term biodiversity and functioning of the forest.” Dunham and colleagues carried out a study in Ranomafana in 2024 that found that where strawberry guavas, originally from Brazil, had taken hold, they created thick, impenetrable patches in areas of forest that had been disturbed as far back as the 1930s. These thickets, which Dunham refers to as “monocultures,” drain key nutrients from the soil, suppress the growth of native plants, and strip away the diversity of insects and other invertebrates. The loss of insect diversity means…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - The island of Madagascar is a hotspot for animal and plant biodiversity, but since the 1950s it has suffered high rates of deforestation. - Once damaged, these forests are susceptible to takeover by a nonnative plant invader, the strawberry guava tree originally from Brazil. - The guavas produce delicious fruit that the lemurs relish and whose seeds the lemurs themselves help to spread. - Conservationists say forest restoration, critical to the survival of lemurs, needs to take into account the pernicious effects that strawberry guavas have on the ecology of forests — both those that are still intact, and those that are being restored. authors: | ||
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Brazil is uniquely positioned to weather rising world oil prices 31 Mar 2026 18:29:27 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/brazil-is-uniquely-positioned-to-weather-rising-world-oil-prices/ author: Mongabay Editor dc:creator: Associated Press content:encoded: SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil is finding protection in a decades-old buffer against shocks that is both cheap and environmentally friendly as global oil markets tremble amid the escalating conflict in the Middle East. Tens of millions of Brazilian drivers have a choice at the pump: fill up with 100% sugarcane-based ethanol or a gasoline blend that contains 30% of biofuel. Brazil’s massive “flex-fuel” fleet, which are vehicles capable of running on any mix of ethanol and gasoline, is unique in its scale. It is the result of a landmark military dictatorship program launched in 1975, transformed into success during democratic times to reduce foreign oil dependency. By Mauricio Savarese, Associated Press This article was originally published on Mongabay description: SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil is finding protection in a decades-old buffer against shocks that is both cheap and environmentally friendly as global oil markets tremble amid the escalating conflict in the Middle East. Tens of millions of Brazilian drivers have a choice at the pump: fill up with 100% sugarcane-based ethanol or a gasoline […] authors: | ||
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Peru-Brazil Bioceanic Railway brings too much risk to the Amazon, experts warn 31 Mar 2026 17:16:20 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/peru-brazil-bioceanic-railway-brings-too-much-risk-to-the-amazon-experts-warn/ author: Xavier Bartaburu dc:creator: Yvete Sierra Praeli content:encoded: The idea of a railway line stretching across the width of South America — from Peru on the Pacific coast to Brazil on the Atlantic — has gained steam since the inauguration of the megaport of Chancay in Peru. To complete its route, this “Bioceanic Railway,” as it’s known, would have to cross the Andes mountain range in Peru and also the Amazon Rainforest in both countries. In July 2025, Brazil and China signed a cooperation deal to conduct feasibility studies on the railway corridor. In August 2025, Peru’s Transport and Communications Ministry presented the railway plan before the country’s Congress. Image by the Peruvian government. While the Peruvian government wasn’t present at that signing, in May that year the country’s then-economy minister, Raúl Pérez Reyes, and transport minister, César Sandoval Pozo, met with senior Chinese officials, including Fei Dongbin, president of China’s National Railway Administration, and Song Yang, the Chinese ambassador to Peru, to discuss the development of railway infrastructure in Peru. Several months later, in January 2026, the Chancay-Sierra Central section of the railway line was announced. The project was reportedly awarded to a Chinese company. The route that would continue after this section into Brazil has not yet been confirmed, but there are two proposals for crossing the Andes and the Peruvian Amazon to reach Brazilian territory. The mega construction project has prompted widespread concern due to the potential socioenvironmental impacts, especially for the section that crosses the Amazon. Compounding worries are the economic and geopolitical jousting…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Discussions around the construction of a railway line linking the Atlantic and Pacific coasts in South America have raised concerns about the potential social and environmental impacts. - Experts warn about the consequences within and around the proposed routes of the Bioceanic Railway between Peru and Brazil, potentially harming Indigenous communities as well as the native Amazonian ecosystem. - While authorities told Mongabay that there’s no “definitive route” to date, all the potential routes would cross through environmentally sensitive areas of the Peruvian regions of Ucayali and Madre de Dios. - Critics also warn that opening new routes inside the Amazon could boost criminal activity, paving the way for illegal mining and drug trafficking. authors: | ||
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Indonesia reviews firms in river basins after latest floods affect 7% of Bornean province 31 Mar 2026 13:38:50 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/indonesia-reviews-firms-in-river-basins-after-latest-floods-affect-7-of-bornean-province/ author: Mongabay Editor dc:creator: Riyad Dafhi Rizki content:encoded: BANJAR, Indonesia – Indonesia’s government continues to review mines and plantations in the river basins of southern Borneo, months after more than 7% of the population there was impacted by flooding in December last year. “An audit is still in progress,” environment ministry spokesperson Yulia Suryanti told Mongabay Indonesia. South Kalimantan is one of five Indonesian provinces on the highly biodiverse island of Borneo, which Indonesia shares with Brunei and Malaysia. The southeastern province is particularly vulnerable to flooding during the region’s main rainy season — at least 35 people were killed during major floods that destroyed more than 100,000 homes in 2021. The population of South Kalimantan was almost 4.4 million as of the 2020 census, the most recent conducted by the government. Meanwhile, data from Indonesia’s disaster management agency showed that nearly 290,000 people were affected by the latest annual floods since the beginning of December last year. Eleven out of the 13 cities and districts that make up the province experienced flooding by January. Civil society organizations say that likely reflects wholesale destruction of old-growth forest throughout the basins of the Barito and Maluka rivers, which run through the province and out into the Java Sea. The Barito is the second-longest river in Borneo, after the Kapuas. “Across South Kalimantan, especially in the mid and lower sections of the Barito River Basin, a lot of the forest cover has been lost,” said Anggi Prayoga, a forestry campaigner at Greenpeace Indonesia. The head of the forestry department in…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - The province of South Kalimantan experiences annual flooding, frequently worse than other Indonesian provinces on the island of Borneo. - In late December, Indonesia’s environment minister said the government would review companies operating within watersheds in the province after a large share of the province’s 4.4 million people were impacted by floods at the end of last year. - Civil society organizations and scientists say land-use change in the water catchment area has reduced the drainage capacity of soils and increased the likelihood of runoff, which inundates a large share of settlements in the province every year. - A spokesperson for the environment ministry told Mongabay in March that a review of companies operating in the river basis was ongoing. authors: | ||
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‘Ancient’ carbon venting from lakes in the Congo Basin peatlands: Study 31 Mar 2026 13:35:06 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/ancient-carbon-venting-from-lakes-in-the-congo-basin-peatlands-study/ author: Malavikavyawahare dc:creator: John Cannon content:encoded: Across the central Congo Basin lies a bastion of carbon that scientists are just beginning to understand. First mapped only about a decade ago, the Cuvette Centrale peatlands are the size of England and hold some 30 billion metric tons of carbon. Over thousands of years, the swampy conditions in this part of Central Africa have slowed the decay of plant matter falling from the forest above. The process leads to the development of peat, and the peatlands in the Congo Basin are the largest known repository in the tropics. Across the millennia, enormous amounts of carbon have built up and been stashed away inside the peat. Recent research now suggests that some of that very old carbon may be returning to the atmosphere through lakes that form amid peatlands — similar to the way smoke escapes a fireplace through a chimney, according to the authors. It’s a finding that opens new questions about how we account for the cycling of carbon through these ecosystems and the resulting influence on climate change. Water draining forested landscapes meets water draining savanna landscapes at this confluence between the Fimi and Kasaï rivers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The reddish color of the Kasaï River originates from the iron oxides associated with clays of suspended sediments transported by the river, which are more predominant in savanna compared to forest. The much darker color of the Fimi River, which drains Lake Mai Ndombe, stems from organic materials that leach from leaves and soils…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - 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. authors: | ||
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With high seas treaty in place, West African countries plan for protected area 31 Mar 2026 12:51:53 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/with-high-seas-treaty-in-place-west-african-countries-plan-for-protected-area/ author: Malavikavyawahare dc:creator: Victoria Schneider content:encoded: With the High Seas Treaty coming into force in January, efforts to establish protected areas in the marine spaces that lie beyond countries’ jurisdiction are gaining momentum — including one off the coast of West Africa. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is taking the lead in designing the proposal that will be up for consideration at the first Conference of Parties for the High Seas Treaty. The meeting is scheduled to take place within a year of the treaty coming into effect. Covering almost half of the Earth’s surface, the high seas host tremendous levels of biodiversity, much of it underexplored. However, these areas are also difficult to police, making them vulnerable to all sorts of illegal and unregulated activities, including exploitative industrial trawling. The Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction accord (BBNJ), commonly known as the High Seas Treaty, provides the framework to establish marine protected areas in waters beyond countries’ exclusive economic zones (EEZs). However, the institutions and mechanisms to operationalize the treaty are still being established. The area under consideration in West Africa includes the convergence zone of the colder Canary and warmer Guinea Currents, characterized by a strong upwelling and nutrient-rich waters. It is considered an ecologically or biologically significant marine area (EBSA) that stretches from Cape Verde and Senegal in the north to Nigeria and São Tomé and Príncipe in the south, according to ECOWAS representatives Mongabay spoke to. A hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata). Image ©️ Rod Sleath via iNaturalist. (CC BY-NC 4.0).…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - West African nations are working on a proposal to establish one of the first high seas marine protected areas located beyond their national waters. - The focus of the proposed MPA is the convergence zone between the Canary and Guinea currents, covering a biologically productive and ecologically complex marine zone that stretches from the maritime borders of Senegal to Nigeria. - The region is a global biodiversity hotspot facing threats, including industrial fishing and plastic pollution, and is at risk from future deep-sea mining. - The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) members are aiming to finalize the proposal by the end of this year, but questions remain about how the management of the area will be financed and on monitoring and enforcement. authors: | ||
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Baby octopus in Argentina: Photo of the week 31 Mar 2026 10:19:01 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/baby-octopus-in-argentina-photo-of-the-week/ author: Bobbybascomb dc:creator: Shanna Hanbury content:encoded: These eggs belong to a small octopus known in Argentinian Patagonia as pulperos. The Patagonian octopus (Octopus tehuelchus) is one of the more common octopus species in the region, but researchers still haven’t been able to determine its global conservation status, although reported catches in Patagonia have declined over the past 50 years. The photo offers a rare glimpse into the early life of the species: The black dots inside each egg are the developing eyes of the embryos, indicating that they’re progressing toward hatching. The female octopus of this species often lays her eggs in the shell of an oyster, then guards them fiercely. She even stops eating during this period. The photo was taken in the intertidal boulders of Argentina’s Puerto Lobos Protected Natural Area by Martin Brogger, a researcher with the country’s Institute of Marine Organism Biology (IBIOMAR). “Finding the nest was a very special moment,” Brogger told Mongabay by email. “Encountering egg clutches in situ always reinforces the idea of how much is happening beneath the surface, even in environments we think we know well.” The species plays an important role as both predator and prey in coastal ecosystems ranging from Argentina’s Patagonia up to the southern coast of Brazil. While the species isn’t considered endangered, overfishing and habitat disturbances caused by human activity, common to coastal ecosystems, are active threats. Banner image: Patagonian octopus eggs in Puerto Lobos Protected Natural Area in Argentina. Image courtesy of Martin Brogger.This article was originally published on Mongabay description: These eggs belong to a small octopus known in Argentinian Patagonia as pulperos. The Patagonian octopus (Octopus tehuelchus) is one of the more common octopus species in the region, but researchers still haven’t been able to determine its global conservation status, although reported catches in Patagonia have declined over the past 50 years. The photo […] authors: | ||
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Conservation depends on rangers. Their wellbeing is often an afterthought 31 Mar 2026 09:27:07 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/conservation-depends-on-rangers-their-wellbeing-is-often-an-afterthought/ author: Rhett Butler dc:creator: Rhett Ayers Butler content:encoded: The gunfire began just before six in the morning. At first, Christine Lain thought it might be a drill. Upemba National Park had run exercises like this before. Rangers had trained for the possibility that armed groups might one day come for the headquarters. The park had lived with that risk for years. But the sound did not stop. It intensified. “We immediately realized that the intensity of the firing was so high that it was certainly not a drill,” she later told Mongabay’s Ashoka Mukpo. What followed lasted most of the day. By the end, three rangers and four civilian staff were dead. Survivors had hidden in a crawl space while armed men searched the building below them. Others ran through tall grass under fire, unsure who would make it out. “Everybody got traumatized,” Lain said. “The whole station, everybody.” The attack on Upemba in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) was unusually large. It was also familiar. Across the world’s protected areas, violence against rangers is no longer rare. “214 of our colleagues have been killed in confrontations with militias intent on poaching and illegal invasions,” Emmanuel de Merode, the director of Virunga National Park in DRC, who was shot twice through the chest in an attack in 2014, told Mongabay last week. In some places it is tied to organized poaching. In others, to insurgencies, land disputes, or politics that extend well beyond park boundaries. The details change. The pattern does not. Rangers are often…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - An attack on Upemba National Park that left seven dead reflects a broader pattern: rangers are increasingly exposed to violence across protected areas, often facing armed groups with limited support. - The risks do not end with the attack itself. Many rangers work under sustained pressure, with repeated exposure to trauma, long absences from family, and little access to mental health care. - Research shows these conditions can affect decision-making, performance, and retention, with implications not only for ranger wellbeing but for conservation outcomes. - Some efforts are emerging—from counseling programs to support for rangers’ families—but they remain limited, raising a central question: whether the systems around rangers will change enough to sustain the people doing the work. authors: | ||
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Decades after poaching drove them extinct, rhinos are back in the wild in Uganda 31 Mar 2026 07:15:50 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/decades-after-poaching-drove-them-extinct-rhinos-are-back-in-the-wild-in-uganda/ author: Terna Gyuse dc:creator: Benjamin Jumbe content:encoded: Forty-three years after the last free-ranging rhinos were seen in the country, the Uganda Wildlife Authority has welcomed four southern white rhinos to Kidepo Valley National Park, in the country’s north, from a breeding sanctuary designed for the species’ reintroduction. “We are glad and privileged to be taking back rhinos much as it is a different subspecies from that that used to exist, because the northern white rhino is the one which used to exist there but was hunted to extinction,” UWA executive director James Musinguzi said at the Ziwa sanctuary on Mar. 17. According to the wildlife authority, a total of eight rhinos will be released in the park by May this year, marking the beginning of a longer process aimed at establishing a viable free-ranging rhino population in Kidepo Valley National Park. Kidepo Valley National Park. Image by Rod Waddington via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0). Uganda was once home to around 300 northern white rhinos (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) and 400 eastern black rhinos (Diceros bicornis michaeli). But these populations were devastated by intense poaching that flourished amid the civil war that began in the late 1970s. The last of the country’s wild rhinos was killed in 1983. In 2005, a breeding program for rhinos was established at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. Six southern white rhinos (Ceratotherium simum simum) — four from Kenya and two from a sanctuary in the U.S. — were introduced the following year, and by 2023, that herd had grown to 42, according to the sanctuary’s…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - The Uganda Wildlife Authority has welcomed four southern white rhinos to Kidepo Valley National Park in the north of the country. - The last of Uganda’s wild rhinos was killed in the early 1980s; the translocated animals come from a breeding program set up at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary in 2005. - Authorities tout the reintroduction as both strengthening ecosystem restoration and enhancing the tourism value in the host parks. authors: | ||
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In Peru, Indigenous women work to save an ancestral potato from disappearance 31 Mar 2026 07:02:48 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/in-peru-indigenous-women-work-to-save-an-ancestral-potato-from-disappearance/ author: Xavier Bartaburu dc:creator: Astrid Arellano content:encoded: Kashiri, the Moon, saw the young woman through a window. The celestial body descended from the sky and found her eating soil molded into the shape of a tubercle. “What you are eating is mud, not yuca,” the root of the cassava plant. “I will let you taste the true yuca,” it said. In love with her, Kashiri handed a sacred seed and taught her how to plant it. This is the story that has survived through the tales of grandmothers and grandfathers of the Machiguenga people. Gabriela Loaiza Seri recalls the ancestral anecdote. The account speaks about the origin of crops in her village of San José de Koribeni, in Cusco, in southeastern Peru — the largest Indigenous Machiguenga community in the South American country. “The young woman learned how to plant yuca, magona potatoes, shonaki [an Indigenous name for a type of sweet corn root] and all the tubers we have always consumed,” she says. Since then, women have been responsible for these crops. This time-honored knowledge, however, is now facing increasing threats. The expansion of monocultures and intensive agriculture in Peru has put many of these native species at risk of disappearing, according to Loaiza Seri. To make matters worse, the introduction of new varieties and foreign crops has reduced the diversity of yucas that once secured food to Indigenous communities year-round. The arrival of external projects has also distanced the community from their chacras ( small, traditional farming plots). A member of the association Mujeres Emprendedoras…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - In the community of San José de Koribeni, in southeastern Peru, Indigenous women fight to preserve the cultivation of the magona potato, a tubercle linked to their identity, family nutrition and the ancestral knowledge passed down through generations. - Since 2023, Machiguenga women have been working to recover 11 varieties of magona potatoes and 17 types of yuca, a traditional cassava. Both vegetables are threatened by the expansion of agriculture, foreign crops and farm abandonment. - The magona crops are grown without agrochemicals or machinery, with the potatoes being later transformed into flours and snacks under the local women-led brand Kipatsi. authors: | ||
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Sri Lanka sweats in scorching heat, but reasons ‘unlikely due to El Niño’ 31 Mar 2026 05:44:03 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/sri-lanka-sweats-in-scorching-heat-but-reasons-unlikely-due-to-el-nino/ author: Dilrukshi Handunnetti dc:creator: Kamanthi Wickramasinghe content:encoded: COLOMBO — Amid the hustle and bustle of Pettah, one of the busiest marketplaces in the Colombo district, Sri Lanka’s commercial region, Sandya Jayasekara was busy cutting king coconuts for her customers. Despite the heat, Sandya must engage in her business outdoors to earn a living and to fund her medical treatment. “I have been selling king coconuts [Cocos nucifera var. aurantiaca] from a very young age,” Sandya tells Mongabay. “But sales are exceptionally low now because the price of a king coconut varies,” from 200-220 rupees ($ 0.63-$0.70). The heat is unbearable and sometimes my skin turns red, but I can’t afford to stay at home,” the vendor says. Sri Lanka has been experiencing warmer temperatures for a couple of weeks now, and the dry heat is making people avoid outdoors as much as they can. The latest heat advisory issued by the Meteorology Department shows an amber alert for several provinces, including the Western province. On Saturday, March 28, the highest temperature was recorded from the north-central district of Anuradhapura, at 39° Celsius (102° Fahrenheit), while Colombo recorded 39°C. Marimuththu Maheshwaran blames the heat for the reduction in fruit sales. Image by Kamanthi Wickramasinghe. Sweltering heat Meril Mendis, director at forecasting and decision support at the Meteorology Department, says the amber warning is meant for people to be prepared. “We use three colors: yellow is for people to be aware, amber to be prepared or the caution level and red to take action. But usually, warm weather prevails during…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Warm temperatures across Sri Lanka are likely to prevail till mid-May, with the heat index showing temperatures between 39° Celsius and 45°C, officials say. - The Department of Meteorology has issued an “amber alert,” cautioning people to brace for warmer temperatures and to take adequate safeguards. - Experts argue that prevailing warm temperatures in Sri Lanka are unlikely due to El Niño events. authors: | ||
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Singapore resort said to halt controversial dolphin sourcing, breeding 31 Mar 2026 05:21:35 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/singapore-resort-said-to-halt-controversial-dolphin-sourcing-breeding/ author: Philip Jacobson dc:creator: Robin Hicks content:encoded: SINGAPORE — The Resorts World Sentosa casino and entertainment complex in Singapore has halted sourcing dolphins from the wild for its aquarium, Mongabay has learned. The resort’s Oceanarium has also suspended its breeding program, according to insiders. The facility is assembling a panel of experts to determine the future of the more than 20 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) it has held since 2013. RWS has not announced any formal policy regarding the dolphins and declined to comment. Multiple visits by Mongabay to the Oceanarium were unable to confirm the exact number of animals held at its Marine Mammal Habitat, although trainers said no additional dolphins were being captured or bred. The last dolphin born at the facility was Kenzo, a male now 7 years old, staff said during a visit in March. Uncertainty over the fate of Singapore’s captive dolphins comes amid a growing global shift against keeping cetaceans in captivity, as awareness grows of their intelligence, complex social structures, and poor welfare in confined environments. In June 2025, Mexico became the latest country to ban the captivity of cetaceans for entertainment, joining Canada, France, India, Chile, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Taiwan is also phasing out cetacean performances. But countries including China, Japan and some in the Middle East continue to source dolphins for newly built aquariums as they expand marine attractions aimed at boosting tourism. RWS originally sourced 27 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins from the Solomon Islands in 2008 and 2009. The Dolphin Island exhibit…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Singapore’s Resorts World Sentosa is to end sourcing dolphins from the wild and has suspended a captive breeding program, according to sources. - The company is assembling a team of experts to decide the future of more than 20 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, most of which were captured from the Solomon Islands in 2008 and 2009. - The resort has maintained the dolphins are well cared for and the exhibit at Singapore’s Oceanarium serves educational and conservation purposes. - Experts say that rehabilitation and release of the dolphins is possible, with transfer to a natural sea pen the first step for assessment. authors: | ||
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As traditional forest governance erodes in Peru, ‘ghost permits’ fill the vacuum 30 Mar 2026 20:23:41 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/as-traditional-forest-governance-erodes-in-peru-ghost-permits-fill-the-vacuum/ author: Latoya Abulu dc:creator: Michele Calamaio content:encoded: HONORIA, Peru — Jacqueline Flores sits cross-legged on a wooden platform inside a dim Asháninka maloca, the Indigenous longhouse where her dress, painted with geometric patterns, seems to merge with the resin-sweet smell of plants macerating for ceremony. Outside, the Boiling River murmurs. Inside, her voice rises in a long, trembling ícaro, part prayer, part medicine, part declaration of her identity. This South American ancestral colloquialism for ‘magic song’ serves her a specific purpose, she says: to anchor herself to something older than memory. “I’m a student of the plants,” she says, “to help humanity and people who need to ‘heal’.” In the ‘80s, Jacqueline’s ancestors were forced to leave their Asháninka territory in Peru’s central rainforest to escape the violence of the Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso) terrorist group. “A lot was lost,” she says. She sees it in the fragmentation of neighboring communities, internal divisions and the disappearance of shared points of reference. Her work — improving her own healing center, Pumayaku, recovering her language and reconnecting with her territory after displacement — is her answer to that loss. In the Peruvian Amazon, erosion of traditional governance is reshaping the forest as powerfully as any force of globalization, according to anthropologist Glenn Shepard. Ancestral culture fades, languages are forgotten, rituals weaken and community guidance fractures, while internal corruption can concurrently become the driving force behind deforestation and the quiet dismantling of Indigenous stewardship. As elder-based authority, ritual discipline and long-term leadership degrade, collective decision-making gives way to document-based control,…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - In the Peruvian Amazon, prosecutors and documents show how “ghost paper forests” have allowed illegal logging to penetrate Indigenous governance, with forest permits rented or sold by community leaders and used to launder timber cut in unapproved or protected areas, turning legal paperwork into a shadow supply chain. - Around Peru’s Boiling River, deforestation and land pressure tied to ecotourism and spiritual entrepreneurship are also reshaping who controls the forest, with mestizo healers warning that rituals, language use, elder authority and secure land tenure are being sidelined in favor of extractive, tourism-driven claims. - Sources say the erosion of Indigenous governance of forests is one cause of these issues, transforming the forest as deeply as any external pressure, weakening language, ritual life and communal authority while allowing corruption to drive deforestation from within. - In response, Peru’s modern forest system has increasingly turned to institutional reforms that aim to counter these pressures by formally involving Indigenous communities in forest governance, monitoring and decision-making. authors: | ||
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‘Extraordinary’: Second set of rare mountain gorilla twins born in DRC’s Virunga 30 Mar 2026 18:17:54 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/extraordinary-second-set-of-rare-mountain-gorilla-twins-born-in-drcs-virunga/ author: Malavikavyawahare dc:creator: David Akana content:encoded: Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo recorded the birth of a second set of mountain gorilla twins this year. According to park authorities, the twins were born into the Baraka family and are believed to be a male and a female, now about 2 weeks old. Their arrival follows a twin birth in January in the Bageni family. Mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei), a subspecies of the eastern gorilla (Gorilla beringei), live in close-knit groups or families led by a dominant silverback male and several females with their offspring. The Virunga mountains host one of two known populations of the endangered ape. Only around 1,050 remain in the wild today. The birth brings the Baraka family to 19 individuals and marks the seventh gorilla birth recorded in Virunga this year. “Two instances of twin births within three months is an extraordinary event and provides another vital indicator that dedicated conservation efforts which have continued despite the current instability in eastern Congo are supporting the growth of the endangered mountain gorilla population,” Jacques Katutu, Virunga’s head of gorilla monitoring, said in a press release. Twin births among mountain gorillas are rare, typically occurring in less than 1% of births, according to park authorities. The first twins of the year, born in January to adult female Mafuko in the Bageni family, are now about 11 weeks old and reported to be thriving. Field teams have also observed strong social support within the group, including a young blackback (a sexually…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo recorded the birth of a second set of mountain gorilla twins this year. According to park authorities, the twins were born into the Baraka family and are believed to be a male and a female, now about 2 weeks old. Their arrival follows a twin birth […] authors: | ||
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A stranded whale in Germany’s Baltic Sea weakens as hopes of its return to the Atlantic fade 30 Mar 2026 17:58:52 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/a-stranded-whale-in-germanys-baltic-sea-weakens-as-hopes-of-its-return-to-the-atlantic-fade/ author: Mongabay Editor dc:creator: Associated Press content:encoded: A stranded humpback whale in Germany’s Baltic Sea looks weaker, and experts fear it won’t be able to find its way back to the Atlantic despite several attempts at its rescue this week. A 500-meter (yards) restricted area was enforced around the whale so it could get some rest and hopefully free itself, officials said Sunday in a news conference in the eastern German coastal town of Wismar, near where the giant cetacean has been stuck. “He would be able to do so if he regains his strength, and that is why we decided to leave him alone, allowing him to actually set off and then successfully leave this area,” said Till Backhaus, the environment minister of the state of Mecklenburg-Pomerania, where Wismar is located. “But we also have to assume that he is weakened. And he is also sick,” said Backhaus, adding that the humpback whale may have injuries because it came into contact with a fishing net. Previous efforts to rescue the 12-15 meter (39-49 feet) whale off a sandbank at Timmendorfer Strand beach and in the Wismar Bay with the help of an excavator and boats, creating large waves to help it swim free earlier this week, captivated Germans — with media sending news alerts of updates on its progress and streaming live video from the scene. The whale also became a popular topic of conversation across the country, with people exchanging text messages about rescue efforts. But by now, hopes are dimming that the whale is still strong enough to swim free…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: A stranded humpback whale in Germany’s Baltic Sea looks weaker, and experts fear it won’t be able to find its way back to the Atlantic despite several attempts at its rescue this week. A 500-meter (yards) restricted area was enforced around the whale so it could get some rest and hopefully free itself, officials said Sunday in a […] authors: | ||
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Marine flyways are the missing map we can use to boost seabird conservation (commentary) 30 Mar 2026 17:34:47 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/marine-flyways-are-the-missing-map-we-can-use-to-boost-seabird-conservation-commentary/ author: Erik Hoffner dc:creator: Aline Kühl-StenzelTammy Davies content:encoded: Last week, governments, conservationists and civil society from around the world gathered in Brazil for the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS-15). In a rare moment of unity, they formally established something scientists have long understood but never before mapped at a global scale: marine flyways. This decision may sound technical, but it represents one of the most important shifts in ocean conservation in a generation. For decades, we have celebrated the great migrations of land birds like cranes sweeping across continents and swallows stitching hemispheres together, but far offshore, another story has been unfolding, largely unnoticed. Seabirds have been navigating vast, predictable highways across the open ocean, linking nations, ecosystems and hemispheres in ways we are only now beginning to understand. At BirdLife International, our latest research revealed six major marine flyways used by more than 150 migratory seabird species spanning the waters of 54 countries. These routes are not abstract lines on a map, they are living, breathing pathways traveled by albatrosses – the largest of the seabirds – to storm petrels, the smallest – and many in between. The Arctic tern, the world champion of migration, travels almost 100,000 kilometers (over 62,000 miles) a year along these ocean highways. A puffin ringed on Skomer Island in June may be feeding off the coast of Canada by winter. Despite their resilience and astonishing navigational feats, 42% of these species are globally threatened, more than half are declining, and the ocean is changing…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - At the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Migratory Species last week in Brazil, delegates formally established something scientists have long understood but never before mapped at a global scale: marine flyways used by seabirds. - Seabirds are more than charismatic travelers along these routes, rather, they are indicators of ocean health and can guide conservationists to the most important areas for marine biodiversity. - “Seabirds have been tracing these routes for millennia. They have shown us the map. Now it is our turn to follow it with urgency, ambition and a shared commitment to safeguarding the ocean that sustains us all,” a new op-ed argues. - This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of Mongabay. authors: | ||
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Asia now hub of growing illegal wildlife trade across 100+ countries, study shows 30 Mar 2026 17:28:45 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/asia-now-hub-of-growing-illegal-wildlife-trade-across-100-countries-study-shows/ author: Sharon Guynup dc:creator: Spoorthy Raman content:encoded: Wildlife trade is decimating the planet’s biodiversity, driving declines in more than 31,500 wild species and spreading infectious zoonotic diseases that jump between wildlife, livestock and humans. In addition to massive legal, regulated trade, there’s widespread illicit trafficking in both live animals and high-demand, profitable animal products, a commerce worth at least $20 billion per year. Dubbed “one of the world’s largest criminal activities,” wildlife ranks among the most lucrative smuggled goods, a list that includes guns, drugs and humans — but with way lower risks. Yet, there’s patchy data on how this trade has grown over the years; what species are trafficked; and where the hotspots are. What we do know comes from law enforcement seizures, which are often just the tip of the iceberg. “Much of what we know about [illegal wildlife trade] is based on static estimates, isolated case studies or regional snapshots, rather than long-term, system-level analyses,” said researcher Tow Jia Hao at the National University of Singapore. “[It] is a difficult picture to piece together and tackle, especially with much of the pieces still being hidden.” To fill the knowledge gaps, Hao and his colleagues analyzed data on illegal wildlife trade from the last two decades (2000 – 2019), and compared it with legal trade data. They gathered seizure data from TRAFFIC’s Wildlife Trade Portal and collected information on permitted wildlife trade from the CITES legal trade database, which records all legitimate commerce in species listed under a global wildlife treaty, CITES. They mapped out…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - At least 110 countries are now involved in illegal trade in wildlife — more than doubling from 49 in 2000. Trade connections jumped by more than 400%, according to a recent analysis of global wildlife seizure data. - Asia, rather than Europe, is now the center of illegal trade for most species, the study found, sparked by extensive trading, business and diplomatic connections with Africa — the source for many wildlife products. - This trade, often run by transnational criminal syndicates, is complex and resilient to disruptions, such as the pandemic or border restrictions, and adapts quickly, making intervention and enforcement extremely challenging. - Experts say constant monitoring and transnational law enforcement efforts are needed to crack down on this rapidly evolving illegal enterprise. authors: | ||
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Who controls Mexico’s Yaqui River? 30 Mar 2026 16:05:56 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/specials/2026/03/who-controls-mexicos-yaqui-river/ author: Alejandroprescottcornejo dc:creator: content:encoded: Water has shaped the identity, livelihoods and governance of the Yaqui Indigenous people in northern Mexico for centuries. Today, the Yaqui River faces mounting pressure as drought intensifies, pollution persists and water is increasingly diverted to agriculture and cities. In this award-winning series, staff writer Aimee Gabay explores how climate change is sharpening long-standing disputes over water allocation and why rulings recognizing Yaqui water rights haven’t been translated into meaningful change. The reporting examines how reduced river flows affect public health, food production and cultural continuity, and how gaps in scientific research, legal enforcement and water governance continue to shape the future of the Yaqui River Basin. This article was originally published on Mongabay description: Water has shaped the identity, livelihoods and governance of the Yaqui Indigenous people in northern Mexico for centuries. Today, the Yaqui River faces mounting pressure as drought intensifies, pollution persists and water is increasingly diverted to agriculture and cities. In this award-winning series, staff writer Aimee Gabay explores how climate change is sharpening long-standing disputes […] authors: | ||
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Koala on the road? AI signs could alert drivers in real time 30 Mar 2026 15:39:55 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/koala-on-the-road-ai-signs-could-alert-drivers-in-real-time/ author: Abhishyantkidangoor dc:creator: Abhishyant Kidangoor content:encoded: A new AI-powered camera system could potentially make road crossings less of a nightmare for koalas. Scientists have developed a camera that can be incorporated into smart road signs to warn passengers about koalas crossing the roads. A prototype of the technology captured and recorded a koala crossing a road in real time in the Australian state of Queensland, validating the methodology for the first time. Developed by scientists at Griffith University in Queensland, the camera is an expansion of previous work where the scientists built a database to detect koalas crossing roads. The Australian government has declared koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) an endangered species in Queensland, New South Wales and the Australia Capital Territory. Population counts of these marsupials are hard to maintain because they usually live high up in trees and are nocturnal animals. “They can be hard to see,” Douglas Kerlin, senior research fellow at Griffith University’s School of Environment and Science, told Monday in an email interview. “They are distributed across such a vast area that it is difficult to really know how many there are with any certainty.” Koalas face threats to their survival from multiple quarters. While deforestation and urbanization have destroyed eucalyptus forests, their primary habitats, they also face the risk of diseases. To make matters worse, the deadly Australian bushfires of 2019 and 2020 decimated their populations across the country. As human encroachment into forests rise, these animals often have to cross roads to travel across their fragmented habitats. As a result, vehicle…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - A new AI-powered camera system is being experimented in the Australian state of Queensland to identify koalas crossing the road in the dark. - The cameras could be incorporated into smart road signs to warn drivers about koalas crossing up ahead. - Vehicle strikes are a huge contributor to koala mortality; koalas are often forced to cross roads to move across habitats that have been left fragmented by deforestation and urbanization. authors: | ||
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Global warming already impacts daily lives around the globe, study finds 30 Mar 2026 15:25:18 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/global-warming-already-impacts-daily-lives-around-the-globe-study-finds/ author: Glenn Scherer dc:creator: Mike Gaworecki content:encoded: As a grueling March heat wave batters the U.S. West with dangerous temperatures, and the world girds itself for what could be another sizzling record-smashing Super El Niño, a team of researchers has published a study looking at how global warming is already impairing people’s regular daily activities. Using 75 years of data stretching from 1950 to 2024, the scientists identified a clear trend and concluded that climate change is already placing serious limitations on people’s daily lives, with those impacts now widespread and very likely to worsen as temperatures continue to rise. Older adults, and people in the tropics, are especially being affected. The research team found that the global average number of hours per year people are exposed to heat that severely limits their activity has doubled for younger adults since the 1950s, while for older adults it went from about 600 hours per year to about 900 hours. However, these impacts aren’t evenly distributed: Parts of Southwest and South Asia, South America and Australia already experience what the researchers call “extreme livability limitations” even for younger adults. Farmer harvesting rice by hand in Indonesia. Parts of Southwest and South Asia are among locations already experiencing what researchers call “extreme livability limitations” even for younger adults. Image by Annam Jeje via Pexels (Public domain). The research team behind the study, led by Luke Parsons, an applied climate modeling scientist at The Nature Conservancy, said he used a “physiologically grounded” heat model to analyze 75 years of global climate…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - 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. authors: | ||
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Brazilian settlers turn to reforestation in ambitious land recovery plan 30 Mar 2026 14:49:12 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/brazilian-settlers-turn-to-reforestation-in-ambitious-land-recovery-plan/ author: Xavier Bartaburu dc:creator: Sibélia Zanon content:encoded: PONTAL DO PARANAPANEMA, Brazil — Sugarcane fields undulate across the landscape as a line of water stretches to the horizon. We travel along a dirt road in western São Paulo, on the banks of the Paraná River — the watery border between the states of São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul. Here, monoculture overwhelms a landscape once covered by semideciduous seasonal forest, known as the Inland Atlantic Forest, where trees shed their leaves during the dry season. In his pickup truck, biologist Haroldo Gomes, who holds a master’s degree in agronomy, carries a small forest: ipês (Handroanthus spp.), aroeiras (Myracrodruon urundeuva) and guarantãs (Esenbeckia leiocarpa) are some of the nearly 70 native Atlantic Forest species looking for a place to take root. There was a time when Haroldo’s family, too, had no land. “When we arrived at the encampment, I was 11,” said Gomes, the son of land reform settlers. “During the conflicts, we lived for six years in a makeshift tent. I’ve run from gunfire during land occupations.” Today, Haroldo serves as field coordinator for the Corridors of Life project at the Institute for Ecological Research (IPÊ). Through the initiative, both he and a diversity of native plant and animal species have found a place to call home. Since 2002, the project — driven by land reform families — has restored more than 6,000 hectares (14,800 acres), with 10 million trees planted. The ambitions ahead are even greater: By 2041, the group aims to restore 75,000 hectares (185,000…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - Driven by the work of several generations of land reform settlers, an initiative has already planted 10 million trees across 6,000 hectares in the Pontal do Paranapanema region of western São Paulo; the goal is to reach 75,000 hectares by 2041, an area roughly the size of New York City. - By reconnecting Atlantic Forest fragments and creating ecological corridors, the project has helped bring wildlife back: 174 bird species and 29 mammal species have been recorded in reforested areas, and in 2024, a jaguar was sighted for the first time. - The effort has also delivered local economic benefits: Rural startups, community nurseries and agroforestry coffee plantations have been established to support the program, all providing additional income for settler families. authors: | ||
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Lab-made jaguar: Is cloning a solution to extinction? 30 Mar 2026 13:48:10 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/video/2026/03/lab-made-jaguar-is-cloning-a-solution-to-extinction/ author: Sam Lee dc:creator: Gustavo FonsecaJulia LimaLetícia Klein content:encoded: Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil — What if the first-ever cloned jaguar were born within the next few years? Sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie? Not to the scientists at Reprocon research group, based at the Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul in Brazil. They are collecting genetic material, like blood and tissue samples, from jaguars alive today, with the goal of cloning the species in the future — and potentially preventing its extinction. As an apex predator, jaguars play a crucial role in regulating the animals below them in the food chain and keeping ecosystems healthy. But massive habitat loss has caused their populations to plummet. In some Brazilian biomes, such as the Caatinga and the Atlantic Forest, fewer than 250 individuals remain. When jaguars are confined to fragmented habitats and small, isolated groups, they often end up mating with close relatives. This inbreeding reduces genetic diversity and can lead to malformations, miscarriages and increased vulnerability to disease and climate change. To counter this, Reprocon researchers are turning to assisted reproductive technologies, including cloning. But as you might expect, this strategy is not without controversy, especially in a world where headlines recently claimed that the dire wolf had been “brought back from extinction” with great fanfare in 2025. In our latest Mongabay Explains, we break down how scientists plan to clone a jaguar — and ask the bigger question: Is cloning truly a viable way to save a species from extinction? Mongabay’s Video Team wants to…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil — What if the first-ever cloned jaguar were born within the next few years? Sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie? Not to the scientists at Reprocon research group, based at the Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul in Brazil. They are collecting genetic material, like blood and […] authors: | ||
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Grasslands and wetlands are being lost to agriculture four times faster than forests 30 Mar 2026 11:29:04 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/grasslands-and-wetlands-are-being-lost-to-agriculture-four-times-faster-than-forests/ author: Bobbybascomb dc:creator: Shanna Hanbury content:encoded: 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 million acres) of natural ecosystems, a combined area almost the size of Mexico, was converted, mostly into pastures and farms. Policies that protect only forest ecosystems are partly to blame for this pressure, the researchers wrote in a recently published study. “A narrow policy focus on forests has fueled agricultural expansion into ecologically significant but severely overlooked non-forest ecosystems, including grasslands and open wetlands,” they wrote. Half of the world’s nonforest ecosystems were lost to pasture, while 27% were cleared for crop plantations for human food, and another 17% for animal feed. Grasslands alone account for a third of all global biodiversity hotspots and hold 20-35% of global carbon stocks. Brazil leads the ranking, accounting for 13% of the world’s nonforest land conversion. Most of the nation’s losses come from the Cerrado savanna, an ecosystem that’s been dubbed an inverted forest due to its extensive underground root network responsible for storing so much carbon and water. Inverted forest visual representation. Image courtesy of Walisson Kenedy-Siqueira. Grassland ecosystem loss is notably harder to study than forest loss. Technical restraints, such as the lack of fine-grained satellite imagery, can make it difficult to distinguish pastures from a…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: 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 […] authors: | ||
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Local conservationists sustain research on threatened heron amid Myanmar instability 30 Mar 2026 11:10:54 +0000 https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/local-conservationists-sustain-research-on-threatened-heron-amid-myanmar-instability/ author: Isabel Esterman dc:creator: Carolyn Cowan content:encoded: Community-led bird surveys have confirmed that one of the world’s most threatened bird species, the white-bellied heron, still survives in northern Myanmar’s Kachin state. As few as 50 mature white-bellied herons (Ardea insignis) are thought to remain globally, confined to a handful of undisturbed forested valleys in Bhutan, northeastern India and northern Myanmar. Their rarity comes down to their extreme dependence on large, fast-flowing, clean rivers, which means they can’t adapt to the world’s increasingly human-modified watercourses. These slender and shy fish-eaters are also notoriously flighty, easily abandoning their nests if disturbed. With numbers dwindling across their range due to hydropower, mining, pollution, destructive fishing and climate change, the latest IUCN Red List assessment estimates their critically endangered global population at no more than 50-249 adult individuals. White-bellied herons depend on pristine watercourses where they catch fish. Image courtesy of Jonathan P. Slifkin. Local efforts plug gaps Led by Northern Wildlife Rangers (NWR), a local civil society group with a long history of conservation work in Kachin state, the surveys identified three to five individual white-bellied herons from 25 separate sightings in their survey area between 2022 and 2023. The grassroots initiative was exclusively conducted by surveyors from local communities and funded by a WWF small grants program. The latter aims to boost local capacity for conservation to cover diminished government support and reduced NGO presence amid Myanmar’s political crisis triggered by a 2021 military coup. Locally led efforts are increasingly significant in Myanmar, where the post-coup instability has seen…This article was originally published on Mongabay description: - 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. authors: | ||
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