Water voles continue to decline in their distribution across Britain but there are signs of recovery in some regions, with populations bouncing back in 11 key areas, according to a report. The river-residing mammal, which inspired Ratty in the Wind in the Willows, has revived in number in parts of Yorkshire, Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire and East […]
Plants Are Becoming Less Nutritious Because of Climate Change, Impacting Herbivores From Insects to Giant Pandas
More than a third of animals on Earth are herbivores, but since plants don’t have a lot of calories it can be hard for grazers to eat enough to meet their energy needs. To add to the problem, climate change is lowering the nutritional value of certain foods that these plant eaters rely on. Fossil […]
In 2024, Nepal faced old & new challenges after tripling its tiger population
KATHMANDU — The year 2024 marked two years since Nepal announced the near tripling of its wild Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) population as part of the 2010 global initiative to save the big cats. Nepal was home to 121 tigers in 2010, the same year that 13 range countries agreed to double the animal’s […]
Amphibious Mouse Among 27 New Animal Species Found by Peruvian Amazon Expedition
Researchers in northwest Peru‘s Alto Mayo region have discovered 27 new animal species, including a semi-aquatic mouse, a salamander that climbs trees and a “blob-headed fish.” The 38-day survey uncovered and recorded more than 2,000 species of plants and wildlife, reported The Guardian. “Discovering even one new species of mammal on an expedition would be […]
Nigerian Authorities Seize 2 Tons of Pangolin Scales and Arrest Key Broker in Major Wildlife Trafficking Bust
In early December, a major anti-trafficking operation resulted in the arrest of a suspected pangolin scale broker and the seizure of over 2 metric tons of pangolin scales. Representing approximately 1,100 pangolins, the seizure is a significant blow to transnational wildlife trafficking networks operating in Nigeria, where the bust was carried out. Acting on intelligence […]
As polar ice caps melt, how are ‘Christmas animals’ faring?
Between snowy winters and holiday songs, many animals come to mind during Christmas. There are polar bears wearing Santa hats and red-nosed reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh. Turtle doves and the partridge in a pear tree are also immortalized in the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” But climate change and habitat loss are taking a […]
Wild Cam: As snow decreases, wolf stomachs rumble
The first sign that Thomas Gable and his colleagues were approaching a kill site was the calls of crows and eagles cutting through the winter silence in northern Minnesota. The ecologist in the Voyageurs Wolf Project at the University of Minnesota was surveying wolf predation last winter when snowfall was particularly low. He and his […]
A Marine Heatwave Killed 4 Million of Alaska’s Murre Seabirds
Beginning in late fall 2014 and lasting into 2016, an anomalous, massive marine heatwave nicknamed “the Blob” developed off the western coast of the U.S., covering all of Alaska‘s coastwater and extending as far south as Southern California, raising ocean temperatures by several degrees Celsius. The Blob had an extreme effect on Alaska in particular. […]