Buffeted by the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Pacific on the other, the Mitre Peninsula, at the far southern tip of South America, is one of the coldest, harshest places on the planet. “It’s the end of the earth,” said Martina Sasso, program coordinator at Rewilding Argentina But this 2,400-square-kilometer slab is also […]
Tag: Mongabay.com
Indonesia ranks high on legal wildlife trade, but experts warn it masks illegal trade
JAKARTA — A recent analysis of the legal wildlife trade in the last 46 years puts Indonesia, a biodiversity hotspot in Southeast Asia, among the top 10 exporters of live animals. The research, published Nov. 11 by Oslo-based outdoor and nature website Outforia, looked into data from CITES, the global convention on the international wildlife […]
U.K. conglomerate Jardines ‘caught red-handed’ clearing orangutan habitat in Sumatra
BALI, Indonesia — Satellite imagery has detected deforestation in a gold mining concession in Indonesia that overlaps with the habitat of the most threatened great ape in the world. U.S.-based environmental advocacy group Mighty Earth said it had detected 13 hectares (32 acres) of forest loss within the Martabe gold mining concession in North Sumatra […]
Wildlife trade hub Vietnam is also hub of impunity for traffickers, report says
Only 14% of wildlife seizures made in Vietnam in the past decade have resulted in convictions, according to a new report that highlights the weak enforcement in the country and lack of coordination between its agencies in following up on investigations. The report, published by the U.K.-based Environmental Investigation Agency, revealed that of at least […]
Amazonian birds are shrinking in response to climate change, study shows
The canary in the coal mine for how climate change is affecting the treasure trove of biodiversity in the Amazon is … also a bird. Dozens of them, in fact, according to a new study that shows the changing climate is actually shrinking their bodies and elongating their wings. “Our findings show that man-made climate […]
Geneticists have identified new groups of tiger sharks to protect
Tiger sharks sometimes swim thousands of kilometers—far enough to move among oceans. Their flexible diets and adaptable behaviors set them up to be successful jet-setters, zipping around the world and mingling with far-flung members of tiger shark society. But new research shows that tiger sharks from different ocean regions aren’t as chummy with one another […]
Indigenous community saves Colombia’s poison dart frog from coca and logging
One of the most poisonous animals on earth, the golden dart frog carries enough toxins in its body to kill 10 people. If it enters the blood stream, the toxin paralyzes the nervous system and, in only a few minutes, stops the heart from beating. The golden dart frog (Phyllobates terribilis) is found only in […]
Underfunded but passionate, Native American conservationists call for more support
In the prairies of the Lower Brulé Indian Reservation, the typically knee-high grass extends to the horizon. But in areas home to burrowing mammals, like prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus), the grass shrinks to an inch in height as the animals feed their vigorous appetite. After sunset one September day, wildlife biologist Shaun Grassel drives through […]