Record seizure highlights scale of wild bird egg theft in UK

Police in the U. K. recently announced the seizure of more than 5, 000 eggs belonging to several wild bird species, following nationwide raids in November 2024. While no arrests have been made in this case, the investigations are continuing. The seizure, the largest of its kind in U. K.

In the Pan Amazon, inequality and informality fuel informal economies

One of the main social and economic challenges facing Amazonian countries is inequality. Although the standard of living of the lower economic strata is better now than at any time in history, tens of millions of people in Amazonian countries are either poor or live on the margin of poverty.

In Panama, major port construction begins at key mangrove site

Conservation groups in Panama are trying to halt the construction of a new port in the Pacific province of Chiriquí that they say could destroy breeding grounds and nurseries for marine species.

US set to lose out as Trump retreats from climate agreement, NGOs warn

U. S. President Donald Trump kicked off his second term in office by issuing an executive order withdrawing the U. S. from the 2015 Paris climate accords, a historic agreement to limit global warming to below 2° Celsius (3. 6° Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. The order states that it’s the policy of the new administration to put U. S.

Mexico misses one-year deadline to submit new protected areas’ management plans

It’s been one year after Mexico’s government announced the creation of 20 new protected areas, covering roughly 2. 3 million hectares (5. 7 million acres). But the country’s environment ministry, Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT), has failed to publish a single protected area management plan, despite being required to do so by law.

Birdwatchers rally behind endemic hummingbird, spurring conservation movement in Mexico

Nestled in the thorny shrubs of the dry forests of Veracruz in the Gulf of Mexico, a small bird lights a spark for a promising future.

Floods devastate tortoise sanctuary in southern Madagascar

Hundreds of tortoises have died following severe floods at a sanctuary in southwestern Madagascar that houses and protects more than 12, 000 of the critically endangered animals. On Jan.

World Bank cancels $150m tourism project in Tanzania after abuse claims

The World Bank has cancelled a $150 million project to boost tourism to Tanzania’s Ruaha National Park, following allegations of human rights abuses by park authorities. Under the Tanzanian government’s plans to expand Ruaha, 21, 000 local people could be displaced. The Oakland Institute, a U. S.

Rising deforestation threatens rare species in Indonesia’s ancient Lake Poso

Over the course of just eight years, the forests surrounding Indonesia’s Lake Poso, an ecological and evolutionary “gem” on the island of Sulawesi, have been whittled away, satellite data and imagery show, while flooding has intensified, and traditional livelihoods suffer.

Survey uncovers ‘wildlife treasure’ in Cambodian park — but also signs of threats

The first biodiversity survey ever conducted in one of northwestern Cambodia’s last forest frontiers has found potentially new-to-science species and recorded direct threats to what conservationists call a “small but precious” ecosystem.

Five-month-old male gorilla, victim of illegal wildlife trade, seized in Istanbul

On Dec. 22, 2024, Turkish customs officers conducting a random search of a plane’s cargo hold found a surprise stowaway inside a small wooden crate with holes: a malnourished baby gorilla dressed in a soiled T-shirt. The Turkish Airlines flight was headed from Nigeria to Thailand and was transiting via Istanbul, authorities told local media.

As Gálapagos ecotourism booms, top naturalist guide urges sustainability

GALÁPAGOS ISLANDS — Marco Andres Vizcaino Garcia is probably the most qualified naturalist guide a person could hire during their visit to Galápagos National Park and its adjacent marine reserve.

This rescue center saves Rio’s wildlife from poachers | Wild Targets

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – In September 2024, Vida Livre Institute, a wildlife rescue center, received an unusual call from the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden staff. They were sending over two monkeys who were behaving strangely and had to be assessed by the Institute’s veterinarian.

‘James Bond’ lizard among 35 new species described from Caribbean islands

Shaken, not stirred: That’s how fictional secret service agent James Bond prefers his martini. And now there’s a lizard in the Caribbean that shares his name: the James Bond forest lizard, found close to where author Ian Fleming wrote his iconic Bond novels.

Record seizure highlights scale of wild bird egg theft in UK

Police in the U. K. recently announced the seizure of more than 5, 000 eggs belonging to several wild bird species, following nationwide raids in November 2024. While no arrests have been made in this case, the investigations are continuing. The seizure, the largest of its kind in U. K.

In the Pan Amazon, inequality and informality fuel informal economies

One of the main social and economic challenges facing Amazonian countries is inequality. Although the standard of living of the lower economic strata is better now than at any time in history, tens of millions of people in Amazonian countries are either poor or live on the margin of poverty.

In Panama, major port construction begins at key mangrove site

Conservation groups in Panama are trying to halt the construction of a new port in the Pacific province of Chiriquí that they say could destroy breeding grounds and nurseries for marine species.

US set to lose out as Trump retreats from climate agreement, NGOs warn

U. S. President Donald Trump kicked off his second term in office by issuing an executive order withdrawing the U. S. from the 2015 Paris climate accords, a historic agreement to limit global warming to below 2° Celsius (3. 6° Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. The order states that it’s the policy of the new administration to put U. S.

Mexico misses one-year deadline to submit new protected areas’ management plans

It’s been one year after Mexico’s government announced the creation of 20 new protected areas, covering roughly 2. 3 million hectares (5. 7 million acres). But the country’s environment ministry, Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT), has failed to publish a single protected area management plan, despite being required to do so by law.

Birdwatchers rally behind endemic hummingbird, spurring conservation movement in Mexico

Nestled in the thorny shrubs of the dry forests of Veracruz in the Gulf of Mexico, a small bird lights a spark for a promising future.

Floods devastate tortoise sanctuary in southern Madagascar

Hundreds of tortoises have died following severe floods at a sanctuary in southwestern Madagascar that houses and protects more than 12, 000 of the critically endangered animals. On Jan.

World Bank cancels $150m tourism project in Tanzania after abuse claims

The World Bank has cancelled a $150 million project to boost tourism to Tanzania’s Ruaha National Park, following allegations of human rights abuses by park authorities. Under the Tanzanian government’s plans to expand Ruaha, 21, 000 local people could be displaced. The Oakland Institute, a U. S.

Rising deforestation threatens rare species in Indonesia’s ancient Lake Poso

Over the course of just eight years, the forests surrounding Indonesia’s Lake Poso, an ecological and evolutionary “gem” on the island of Sulawesi, have been whittled away, satellite data and imagery show, while flooding has intensified, and traditional livelihoods suffer.

Survey uncovers ‘wildlife treasure’ in Cambodian park — but also signs of threats

The first biodiversity survey ever conducted in one of northwestern Cambodia’s last forest frontiers has found potentially new-to-science species and recorded direct threats to what conservationists call a “small but precious” ecosystem.

Five-month-old male gorilla, victim of illegal wildlife trade, seized in Istanbul

On Dec. 22, 2024, Turkish customs officers conducting a random search of a plane’s cargo hold found a surprise stowaway inside a small wooden crate with holes: a malnourished baby gorilla dressed in a soiled T-shirt. The Turkish Airlines flight was headed from Nigeria to Thailand and was transiting via Istanbul, authorities told local media.

As Gálapagos ecotourism booms, top naturalist guide urges sustainability

GALÁPAGOS ISLANDS — Marco Andres Vizcaino Garcia is probably the most qualified naturalist guide a person could hire during their visit to Galápagos National Park and its adjacent marine reserve.

This rescue center saves Rio’s wildlife from poachers | Wild Targets

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – In September 2024, Vida Livre Institute, a wildlife rescue center, received an unusual call from the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden staff. They were sending over two monkeys who were behaving strangely and had to be assessed by the Institute’s veterinarian.

‘James Bond’ lizard among 35 new species described from Caribbean islands

Shaken, not stirred: That’s how fictional secret service agent James Bond prefers his martini. And now there’s a lizard in the Caribbean that shares his name: the James Bond forest lizard, found close to where author Ian Fleming wrote his iconic Bond novels.