"Monarch butterflies are having a moment — in court, on Capitol Hill and across the countryside. Some migrating populations are up from 2020’s devastating lows. Congress is kicking in more money. Endangered Species Act legal settlement talks are underway."
"A new study looked at a group of forest lands that hold big conservation potential but aren’t adequately protected."
"From a distance, the canids of Galveston Island, Texas, look almost like coyotes, prowling around the beach at night, eyes gleaming in the dark. But look closer and oddities appear."
"On a dirt path, forked yellow tongue darting from its mouth, a member of the world’s largest lizard species lazes on an island in eastern Indonesia’s Komodo National Park as tourists snap photos. And about 18 miles (30 kilometers) away on another park island that harbors Komodo dragons, trees have been removed and concrete poured for new tourist facilities that have aroused the ire of residents and environmental activists."
"The Center for Biological Diversity on Wednesday filed a notice of intent to sue the U.S. Interior Department, alleging it has not properly protected polar bears from encroachment on their habitat by the oil industry."
"The Fish and Wildlife Service today proposed restoring federal protections for a tiny desert owl that fights above its weight class."
"Montana wildlife officials on Tuesday advanced plans that could allow grizzly bear hunting in areas around Glacier and Yellowstone national parks, if states in the U.S. northern Rockies succeed in their attempts to lift federal protections for the animals."
What does wildness mean when humans interfere with the lives of wild animals in order to protect them? A new volume, “Wild Souls,” explores that dilemma, whether arising through captive breeding programs to reintroduce the California condor and the gray wolf, by allowing hybridization or through the use of gene-editing tools. A review from BookShelf contributor Jenny Weeks.
"The loss of marshes, bogs and swamps is driving a rapid, global decline in dragonflies, researchers say.
Their plight has been highlighted by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's latest Red List of Threatened Species, following its first comprehensive assessment of this colourful group of insects.
Wetlands loss is due to urbanisation and unsustainable agriculture, it says.
And now, 16% of the world's dragonflies are under threat of extinction. "
