World's tigers poached to extinction within 20 years

By Gopal Sharma KATHMANDU (Reuters) – Tigers could become extinct in the wild in two decades unless the world ramps up conservation efforts to halt the decline in their population, wildlife experts said on Wednesday. Barely 3,500 tigers are estimated to be roaming in the wild in 12 Asian countries and Russia compared with about […]

350 reasons we need to get to 350: 350 species threatened by global warming

On this site, you’ll find 350 animals and plants that could vanish due to global warming. If we can sufficiently curb greenhouse gas emissions, many of them will still have a chance to survive and recover — but we have to act now. And we have to act decisively, with a firm goal of cutting […]

Colombia's endangered species at the mercy of jungle drug cartels

A global campaign will make young people aware of the danger the illicit drug trade represents to hundreds of species in Colombia’s rainforests By Jamie Doward, The Observer, Sunday 25 October 2009 Until recently, the Gorgeted Puffleg was rather obscure – in fact, until four years ago it did not officially exist. But although the […]

Desperate plan to freeze coral samples as reef ecosystems die

By Matt McGrathBBC News, Copenhagen The prospects of saving the world’s coral reefs now appear so bleak that plans are being made to freeze samples to preserve them for the future. A meeting in Denmark took evidence from researchers that most coral reefs will not survive even if tough regulations on greenhouse gases are put […]

Rains came too late for Kenya wildlife

By STEVEN BULL, Thursday, October 22 2009 The rains are finally here, heralding a new start for the agricultural masses. But welcome as they are, they came a bit too late for the country’s prime tourist attraction – the wildlife. According to the Kenya Wildlife Services, hundreds of animals died solely due to the drought. […]

Chinese paddlefish may be extinct in Yangtze River

By Jeremy Hance, mongabay.com, October 22, 2009 In December of 2006 it was announced that the Yangtze River dolphin, commonly known as the baiji, had succumbed to extinction. The dolphin had survived on earth for 20 million years, but the species couldn’t survive the combined onslaught of pollution, habitat loss, boat traffic, entanglement in fishing […]

Poachers kill 100 elephants a day in Africa

By John Platt Twenty years after the international ban on ivory trade took effect, poachers are still slaughtering more than 100 elephants a day, according to a report by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW). The ban on ivory trade, established by the U.N.’s Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna […]

African elephants poached to extinction in 15 years

African elephants could be extinct within 15 years because of the illegal ivory trade, conservation experts have warned. By Amy Willis The population – currently 600,000 – is diminishing by 38,000 each year. These figures, calculated using the annual number of illegal tusk seizures, significantly exceed elephant birth rates meaning the species could face extinction […]

We will be billions of dollars poorer when coral reefs die

By Shanta Barley The world’s coral reefs “earn” $172 billion every year, but they’re on the brink of collapse, economist says The world’s coral reefs save us $172 billion every year, but they’re on the brink of collapse (PDF) because of political inertia, an ecological economist has told the global Diversitas biodiversity conference in Cape […]

Three bird species extinct from poaching in Malta

Malta is an important way-point for birds migrating between Europe and Africa. But the spring and autumn migrations attract illegal hunters, who pick off the birds as they fly overhead. There has been a huge rise in illegal hunting in recent years, prompting conservationist group BirdLife Malta to set up camps to deter illegal hunters. […]

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