biodiversity

A coalition of research organizations and civil society, the Forest Declaration Assessment, has conducted a new study that evaluates the progress toward eliminating deforestation by nations, companies and investors, as well as restoring 865 million acres of degraded land, by the end of the decade. The report, “Off Track and Falling Behind,” shows that last […]

Agriculture is the primary driver of forest and habitat loss worldwide. Some wilderness areas in northern climates have begun to be more suitable for agriculture due to global heating, and this is increasing the risk of agricultural expansion, putting ecosystems at risk. A new study by researchers from the University of Exeter shows that humans […]

Coral bleaching occurs when stressors such as changes in temperature, nutrients or light cause corals to expel the zooxanthellae algae living in their tissue, turning them white. The most common cause of coral bleaching is warming ocean temperatures due to climate change. Now, a new study by scientists from England’s University of Plymouth has found […]

Quick Key Facts What Is a ‘Nature Reserve’? Nature reserves are large areas of land that have been set aside to protect and preserve natural habitat and ecosystems for common, rare and endangered animal and plants species and their natural processes. Designating areas to be protected from human development ensures everyone will have access to […]

The main driver of the extinction of plant and wildlife species around the world is habitat loss. In the U.S. alone, approximately 650 species have become extinct or are “missing in action,” according to the National Wildlife Federation. This week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) removed 21 species from the Endangered Species Act […]

Quick Key Facts What Are Invasive Species? Whether an animal, a plant or a microbe, an invasive species generally describes a living thing that has not historically lived in a given region. An invasive species by definition has a decidedly negative ecological or economic impact on the habitat it has entered, according to the U.S. […]

The loss of pollinator insects is putting some of the most popular tropical crops in the world — like cocoa, coffee, mango and watermelon — at risk, a new study led by researchers from University College London (UCL) and the Natural History Museum has found. The research team looked at how climate change and land […]

A new State of the World’s Plant and Fungi report from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RBG Kew), presents the current conditions of Earth’s plants and fungi. Based on more than 25 scientific papers and the work of 200 researchers from around the world, the report looks at global biodiversity patterns and drivers, as well as […]