During the last weekend of January, participants in Britain’s Big Garden Birdwatch are asked to keep track of the number of each avian species they see at their location over a one-hour period. The counting and recording is usually done in gardens, but parks and other green spaces work too. Participants in this year’s Birdwatch […]
Inside the fight to save California’s dying sea lions from toxic algae: ‘We’re like 911 operators’
It was just after 8am on Tuesday, a thick morning fog still clinging to the California coastline, and SeaWorld’s animal rescue team had already made their first save of the day: a hefty, sick-looking sea lion that had been waddling dangerously close to a four-lane highway in downtown San Diego. Now, in a private area […]
VOTE for the Best Photo of the Month April 2025
Welcome to the “Best Photo of the Month” competition showcasing and celebrating the biodiversity of Planet Earth. Voting is easy and lots of fun. By popular request the number of images to be selected has been increased to six. First click an image and the slideshow will start automatically. Select the SIX images you like best […]
Destroying endangered species’ habitat wouldn’t count as ‘harm’ under proposed Trump rule
The Trump administration is proposing to significantly limit the Endangered Species Act’s power to preserve crucial habitats by changing the definition of one word: harm. On Wednesday, the administration proposed a rule change that would essentially prohibit only actions that directly hurt or kill actual animals, not the habitats they rely on. If finalized, the […]
Georgia Man Fined for Massive Illegal Bird Collection Highlighting Threats to Wildlife
A Georgia orthopedic surgeon was sentenced after amassing one of the largest private collections of illegal bird specimens and rare eggs ever seized in the United States. According to The New York Times reporter Santul Nerkar, John Waldrop was given three years probation and fined $900,000 for conspiracy and violating the Endangered Species Act. Investigators […]
‘Trophies’ shared on social media reveal scale of mass bird slaughter in Lebanon
Every year, during the Northern Hemisphere spring and autumn, the skies over Lebanon are dotted with millions of birds on their epic migrations. From soaring Egyptian vultures (Neophron percnopterus) to charismatic white storks (Ciconia ciconia), more than 500 species of birds traverse the African-Eurasian flyway, which funnels over Lebanon, as they migrate between their breeding […]
The fate of this beloved American creature is in Trump’s hands
In late 2021, I stood in a forest about two hours from Mexico City and watched as a river of butterflies passed overhead. They were monarchs — the iconic, Halloween-colored butterflies — and they were coming here from the US to rest for the cold winter months. Nearly all of the monarchs east of the […]
Mercury Pollution Detected in Antarctic Penguins
In a new study, scientists have confirmed mercury contamination in Antarctic penguins and are raising alarms that this pollutant and its impact on birds mimics the spread of DDT uncovered in the 1960s. Despite the lack of humans near the penguins on the Antarctic Peninsula, researchers have confirmed mercury contamination in these birds. According to […]