Direct killing by humans pushing Earth’s biggest animals toward extinction – “70% of megafauna species are decreasing and 59% are threatened with extinction”

By Steve Lundeberg30 January 2019 CORVALLIS, Oregon (OSU) – One hundred forty-three species of large animals are decreasing in number and 171 are under threat of extinction, according to new research that suggests humans’ meat consumption habits are primarily to blame. Findings published today in Conservation Letters involved an analysis of 292 species of “megafauna” […]

1,500 live turtles found wrapped in duct tape at Manila airport

By Hannah Ellis-Petersen 4 March 2019 (The Guardian) – Police in the Philippines have discovered 1,529 live turtles wrapped in duct tape inside suitcases abandoned in an airport. The customs bureau seized four suitcases in Manila on Sunday and found they were filled with rare and protected varieties including star tortoises, red-footed tortoises, sulcata tortoises […]

Remote Hawaiian Island erased by Hurricane Walaka – Breeding ground for green sea turtles wiped out

By Nathan Eagle 23 October 2018 (Honolulu Civil Beat) – Hurricane Walaka, one of the most powerful Pacific storms ever recorded, has erased an ecologically important remote northwestern island from the Hawaiian archipelago.Using satellite imagery, federal scientists confirmed Monday that East Island, a critical habitat for endangered Hawaiian monk seals and green sea turtles, was […]

“Hyperalarming” study shows massive loss of insect populations and corresponding declines in lizards, frogs, and birds – “Everything is dropping”

By Ben Guarino 15 October 2018 (The Washington Post) – Insects around the world are in a crisis, according to a small but growing number of long-term studies showing dramatic declines in invertebrate populations. A new report suggests that the problem is more widespread than scientists realized. Huge numbers of bugs have been lost in […]

Photo gallery: Winners of the Environmental Photographer of the Year award for 2018

24 September 2018 (Daily Mail) – The competition is run annually by the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management. “Not in My Forest” by Calvin Ke, taken in Malaysia in 2018, received a Highly Commended award. He saw this southern pig-tailed macaque clutching a discarded bottle, examining and tasting it before sinking into this […]

How Hurricane Florence may affect wildlife

By Jason Bittel 12 September 2018 (National Geographic) – Evacuations are already underway in North and South Carolina in anticipation of Hurricane Florence’s arrival this weekend. But what happens to the wild animals that aren’t set up for text alerts?Experience suggests it won’t be pretty, and stories abound from storms past. For example, in August […]

About 300 endangered sea turtles found dead off Mexican coast, trapped in fishing nets

By Jose Cortes, Ana Isabel Martinez, and Julia Love; Editing by Sandra Maler 28 August 2018 SANTA MARIA COLOTEPEC, Mexico (Reuters) – About 300 endangered sea turtles were found dead off the southern coast of Mexico on Tuesday, trapped in fishing nets, shortly after more than 100 dead turtles were recovered.Fishermen in the southern state […]

“Devastating” dolphin loss in Florida red tide disaster – More than 100 tons of dead sea creatures have been shoveled up from smelly, deserted beaches

16 August 2018 (AFP) – A state of emergency has been declared in Florida as the worst red tide in a decade blackens the ocean water, killing dolphins, sea turtles and fish at a relentless pace. More than 100 tons of dead sea creatures have been shoveled up from smelly, deserted beaches in tourist areas […]

Red tide is devastating Florida’s sea life. Are humans to blame?

By Maya Wei-Haas 8 August 2018(National Geographic) – The first thing you notice is the smell. It’s not a scent, exactly, but a tingling in the nose that quickly spreads to the throat and burns the lungs. But then you see the carcasses. Thousands of sea creatures now litter many of southern Florida’s typically picturesque […]

Hundreds of sea turtles washing up dead on Southwest Florida beaches, likely victims of red tide

By Chad Gillis 25 July 2018 (Fort Myers News-Press) – Hundreds of sea turtles have washed up on Southwest Florida beaches this year in a mass mortality event that researchers say will impact the recovery of protected species. Seventeen have been recovered in Sanibel and Captiva waters in the past week. “Our average for the […]

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