Australia is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world. It is home to more than 7% of all the world’s plant and animal species, many of which are endemic. One such species, the Pharohylaeus lactiferus bee, was recently rediscovered after spending nearly 100 years out of sight from humans. James B. Dorey, a […]
By Tara Lohan A logged forest is a changed forest, and for woodland caribou that could mean the difference between life and death. A recent study in the Journal of Wildlife Management tracked the survival rates and population growth of woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) across two areas of northern Ontario, Canada. In one area […]
By John R. Platt In most cases an extinction takes decades of slow attrition and population declines — a death by a thousand cuts. Sometimes, though, a species can nearly vanish in the blink of an eye. Take the strange, scary case of the Bellinger River snapping turtle (Myuchelys georgesi). A few years ago, an […]
By Julia Conley As the North Atlantic right whale was placed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s list of critically endangered species Thursday, environmental protection groups accusing the U.S. government of bowing to fishing and fossil fuel industry pressure to downplay the threat and failing to enact common-sense restrictions to protect the animals. […]
By John R. Platt It takes a lot of effort and more than a little bit of luck for researchers like André Raine to get to the remote mountaintops of Kauai, where they’re working to save endangered Hawaiian seabirds from extinction. First you need a helicopter capable of reaching sites more than 4,600 feet above […]
By Alexander Richard Braczkowski, Christopher O’Bryan, Duan Biggs, and Raymond Jansen Pangolins are one of the most illegally trafficked animals on the planet and are suspected to be linked to the current coronavirus pandemic. Pangolins are also one of the world’s most threatened species but new efforts are underway to reintroduce pangolins to parts of […]
By Andrew Glikson At several points in the history of our planet, increasing amounts of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have caused extreme global warming, prompting the majority of species on Earth to die out. In the past, these events were triggered by a huge volcanic eruption or asteroid impact. Now, Earth is heading for […]
By Jason Bittel When you walk into the tropical rainforest room at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh, the first thing you’ll probably notice are the hyacinth macaws perched in mango trees. The feathers of these massive parrots are so impossibly blue that the birds look like birthday party piñatas. And the first thing you’ll likely […]
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Department of the Interior have failed to protect 241 plant and animal species under the Endangered Species Act, according to a federal lawsuit filed last week by the Center for Biological Diversity, as Bloomberg Environment reported. Four years ago, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services created a […]