Fabrice Rousselot, The Conversation; Stephan Schmidt, The Conversation; Clea Chakraverty, The Conversation y Catesby Holmes, The Conversation
A collection of The Conversation Global’s best articles on animals, from glow-in-the-dark frogs to the wood beetles that do humanity’s dirty work.
Nearly one-third of tropical animal species face extinction if humans do not curb our growing appetites for beef, pork and other land-intensive meats. The Panamanian golden frog bred by the Vancouver Aquarium in this 2014 file photo may be extinct in its natural habitat.
(THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck)
As much as one-third of animal species in the tropics could be eradicated if their habitats continue to be converted for monoculture farming. We can all do something to make a difference.
Hypothetical reconstruction of the largest extinct megapode, Progura gallinacea (right), with a modern Brush-turkey and a Grey Kangaroo.
Artwork by E. Shute, from photos by Tony Rudd, Kim Benson and Aaron Camens
Large birds once lived across Australia, only to become extinct around the time that giant marsupials and other megafauna died out during the Pleistocene “ice ages”.
Immortalised on a stamp, New Zealand’s stout-legged wren went extinct in the 1990s.
Boris15/www.shutterstock.com
The “decision science” approach helps avoid unanticipated consequences of programs to bring species such as New Zealand’s little bush moa, Waitomo frog, or laughing owl back from extinction.
A little protection over here, please?
AP Photo/Harry Hamburg
Giraffe populations have declined by more than a third over the past 30 years. Two wildlife law experts explain the protections that would come with including them on a US list of endangered species.
Beach closed to protect threatened bird species, Chincoteague, Virginia.
brownpau/Flickr
Congress is considering proposals to amend the Endangered Species Act. In this roundup we offer views on what’s lost when species disappear and the complexities of bringing them back from the brink.
A feral dog chasing a wild boar, Banni grasslands, India.
Chetan Misher/Facebook
Cats have a bad reputation as wildlife killers (deservedly so). But dogs aren’t off the hook: new research shows domestic dogs have contributed to the extinction of at least 11 species.
Dingoes are often promoted as a solution to Australia’s species conservation problems.
Dingo image from www.shutterstock.com
The notion of using dingoes to protect Australia’s wildlife is based on wolves in the US, but research cast doubts on the link.
What it could have looked like when humans and megafauna lived together: a giant macropod Procoptodon goliah in the foreground, while Thylacinus cynocephalus hunts for prey nearby. A herd of Zygomaturus can be see on the lake edge of the ancient Willandra system.
Illustration by Laurie Beirne
The extinction of the giant reptiles, marsupials and birds that once called Australia home has been the subject of much debate, including the role early Australians may have had on their fate.
Giraffes’ future is much less secure than many people had imagined.
Craig Fraser/Shutterstock
Are giraffes really facing extinction? The decline of these beloved animals - and many others – has been hidden in plain sight as Africa builds ever more roads, railways and cities.
The grey mouse lemur (Microcebus murinus): at 60 grams, nearly the smallest primate in the world. I studied this primate in Madagascar.
Jason Gilchrist, www.jasongilchrist.co.uk
Large asteroid hits on Earth have the potential to wipe out humanity so knowing how to detect and deflect them is vital. But we know very little about the interior make up of many asteroids.
A living coucal from South Africa, whose huge prehistoric relatives lived on the Nullarbor.
Pascal Bernadin
The Nullarbor is an arid, treeless expanse today. But several hundred thousand years ago it was home to a menagerie of species, including two newly discovered giant cuckoo-like birds.
Human activity doesn’t just reduce biodiversity – new research explores how we are continually creating new species and ecosystems, too.
The Bramble Cay Melomys is arguably the first mammal driven extinct by climate change, rather than direct human interaction.
Ian Bell/EHP/State of Queensland
Australia’s conservation laws presume that we can preserve everything in its natural state. But in a changing world, we’ll have to be more flexible than that.
How many species of frog are in the picture? Genetics often says ‘more than we thought’.
Michael Lee (Flinders University & South Australian Museum)
The Earth is full of many varied species from the largest mammals to the tiniest organisms. But we now think there could be ten times more species than was originally thought.
Matthew Flinders Professor of Global Ecology and Models Theme Leader for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, Flinders University