By Victoria GillScience and nature reporter, BBC News The effective population of the critically endangered Amur tiger is now fewer than 14 animals, say scientists. Approximately 500 Amur tigers actually survive in the wild, but the effective population is a measure of the genetic diversity of the world’s largest cat. Very low diversity means any […]
By John PlattFeb 25, 2011 Asian appetites are rapidly driving the world’s tortoises and freshwater turtles toward extinction, and some species might only be savable through costly and labor-intensive conservation efforts, according to both a new report and speakers at a workshop about conserving Asian turtles. “It’s going to take some intense management, both to […]
By Jeremy Hance, www.mongabay.comFebruary 16, 2011 Last August, a group of conservation agencies launched the Search for Lost Frogs, which employed 126 researchers to scour 21 countries for 100 amphibian species, some of which have not been seen for decades. After five months, expeditions found 4 amphibians out of the 100 targets, highlighting the likelihood […]
Washington (AFP) Feb 3, 2011 – A survey of oyster habitats around the world released Thursday found that the succulent mollusks are disappearing fast and 85 percent of their reefs have been lost due to disease and over-harvesting. Most of the remaining wild oysters in the world, or about 75 percent, can be found in […]
RICHMOND, Vt.— A fast-spreading fungus responsible for the deaths of more than a million bats in the United States has now reached a second Midwestern state. Wildlife officials in Indiana confirm that two bats found in the southern part of the state have the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome, a deadly disease that has […]
By Jeremy Hance, www.mongabay.com January 27, 2011 An interview with Ian Craigie. The big mammals for which Africa is so famous are vanishing in staggering numbers. According to a study published last year: Africa’s large mammal populations have dropped by 59% in just 40 years. But what is even more alarming was that the study […]
By Jeremy Hance, www.mongabay.com January 24, 2011 Since the 1980s, Liberia has lost 19,000 elephants to illegal poaching, according to Patrick Omondi of the Kenya Wildlife Service speaking in Monrovia, the capital of Liberia. The poaching of Liberia’s elephants has cut the population by 95% leaving only 1,000 elephants remaining. “Though, Liberia opposes trade in […]
By ELISABETH ROSENTHALJanuary 21, 2011 KINANGOP, Kenya — Simon Joakim Kiiru remembers a time not long ago when familiar birdsongs filled the air here and life was correlated with bird sightings. His lush, well-tended homestead is in the highlands next to the Aberdare National Park, one of the premier birding destinations in the world. When […]
By Tiffany Stecker and ClimatewireJanuary 18, 2011 Atlantic cod is yet another species being threatened by climate change. According to a study published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, warmer summer waters off the Norwegian coast are dwarfing the growth of the fish. The researchers culled data from surveys dating back […]
Developers of hydroelectric plant have redrawn the boundaries of a crucial freshwater reserve for rare and economically important species By Jonathan Watts, Asia environment correspondent, www.guardian.co.uk Tuesday 18 January 2011 07.00 GMT The last refuge for many of China’s rarest and most economically important wild fish has mere days to secure public support before it […]
