High rates of inbreeding among hooded vultures in Ghana and South Africa spell trouble for their future, according to a newly published study. The study found that despite wide differences in the population size of the birds in the two countries, both face similar risks associated with low genetic diversity. It underlined the need to […]
Tag: Mongabay.com
Report exposes meatpackers’ role in recent chemical deforestation in Brazil
A recent investigation has uncovered new significant links between Brazil’s top meatpackers — JBS, Marfrig and Minerva — and widespread environmental destruction in the Pantanal wetlands, the Amazon Rainforest, and the Cerrado savanna. The investigation, part of Mighty Earth’s Rapid Response deforestation monitoring program in partnership with Brazilian news outlet Repórter Brasil and sustainability NGO […]
Fishing in a fog: Ship noise hampers orcas’ hunting success
Underwater noise from ships is making it tough for killer whales, or orcas, to find and catch their favorite fish, a recent study has found. Orcas (Orcinus orca) rely heavily on sound to hunt. They emit ultrasonic echolocation clicks that bounce off objects. By listening for the echoes of these clicks, the orcas can identify […]
We know how many okapi live in zoos. In the wild? It’s complicated
Revered by the Indigenous Mbuti and Efe tribes as a spiritual symbol and uplifted by the Democratic Republic of Congo as a national one, the okapi is deserving of a nickname as mystical as “forest unicorn.” The dark-colored ungulates are docile, elusive, and characterized by the zebra-like stripes on their legs and rump, though they’re […]
Just 0.7% of land hosts one-third of unique, endangered species, study
Just 0.7% of the world’s land surface is home to one-third of the world’s most threatened and unique four-legged animals, a recent study has found. In the vast evolutionary tree of life, some animals, like rats, have many closely related species that are at no immediate risk of extinction. But others, like the red panda […]
Logging has a ‘lasting legacy’ on Gabonese forest soundscapes
Noncertified logging concessions in Gabon have much quieter soundscapes, a proxy for vocalizing wildlife, than either national parks or sustainably logged concessions, according to a recent study. However, forests that have never been logged are home to the highest diversity of vocalizing wildlife, researchers found. “Therefore, conserving these increasingly rare never logged forests, in combination […]
The Itombwe owl: Two birds and an identity crisis
Everything we know for certain about the Itombwe owl comes from just two individuals: one dead for more than 70 years, and the other also most likely dead by now. The second, a small, chestnut-colored owl, was netted by Tom Butynski’s team in 1996; a wild owl can expect to live 10 years. Butynski tells […]
Highways prevent pumas from reclaiming their eastern U.S. range: Study
Pumas are unlikely to recolonize much of their historical range in the eastern U.S., a new study finds. It’s not a lack of habitat or food keeping out the pumas, also known as cougars or mountain lions. It’s the highways. Historically, pumas (Puma concolor) ranged coast to coast across nearly all of the Americas, stretching […]