The Interior Department is expanding oil and gas leasing on land in six western states that is vital habitat for the greater sage grouse. Lawsuits are certain to follow.
Carving up ecosystems or opening them to development puts the survival of species at risk.
A pod of narwhals (Monodon monoceros) in central Baffin Bay. Narwhals are the most vulnerable animals to increased ship traffic in the Arctic Ocean.
Kristin Laidre/University of Washington
Climate change is shrinking Arctic sea ice and opening the region to ship traffic. Whales, seals and other marine mammals could be at risk unless nations adopt rules to protect them.
National parks and nature reserves are vital for conservation, but are also great places for recreation. Balancing the two is tricky, but it can be done if we realise parks are not just playgrounds.
The Endangered Species Act was enacted in 1973 partly to help save the bald eagle, the U.S. national symbol, from extinction. Should public appeal influence which species get priority?
Jitze Couperus
How should the US spend limited funds for conserving endangered species? A new data tool lets managers compare different strategies so they can allocate money to protect the most species.
Releasing a female wolf on Isle Royale, Oct. 2, 2018.
NPS/Jim Peaco
The National Park Service is moving wolves to Isle Royale in Lake Superior to replenish a small pack on the island. Wolves prey on moose, which are overgrazing the island. It doesn’t hurt that they are charismatic.
Fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox) at the Houston Zoo.
Josh Henderson
The fossa, Madagascar’s largest predator, is a cat-like carnivore that eats everything from insects to lemurs. Because they are rare and elusive, scientists know very little about them, including how many there are.
Scientists asked young people to draw what they would like the natural world to look like when they’re older. Their imagination could help make conservationists more ambitious.
The ibis has become an Australian cultural phenomenon. The birds’ tenacity and fearlessness as environmental refugees mean they attract love and hate alike.
A Northern Spotted Owl in Oregon’s Deschutes National Forest.
AP Photo/Don Ryan, File
The Trump administration wants to step up logging, saying it will benefit wildlife by reducing forest fire risks. But wildfires create habitat for threatened Spotted Owls and many other species.
Cal Fire Division Chief Mark Higgins directs helicopters dropping water in Lakeport, California.
AP Photo/Noah Berger
Max Moritz, University of California, Santa Barbara; Naomi Tague, University of California, Santa Barbara y Sarah Anderson, University of California, Santa Barbara
As California reels from another devastating fire season, environmental resource scholars explain how the state – and other fire-prone areas – can better prepare and coexist with wildfires.
Conservation groups are organizing soccer games to help bridge the gaps between park rangers and communities.
(Shutterstock)
Cells that transmit nerve impulses in the part of elephants’ brains responsible for functions such as learning and memory are structured differently from those of any other mammal.
An elephant successfully translocated by SAN Parks from Kruger National Park to Addo Elephant National Park.
Author supplied