Rhett Ayers Butler
Since 1970, North America has lost 3 billion birds. The decline hasn’t stopped. Bird populations across the United States are plummeting, according to a new report from the North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI) that paints a sobering picture of ecological decline. One in three species—229 in total—are now in urgent need of conservation. Among [Continue reading]
Life on Earth is changing—not just in numbers, but in essence Human activity is reshaping life on Earth in profound and alarming ways. A landmark study published in Nature offers the most comprehensive synthesis to date of how five primary anthropogenic pressures—habitat change, pollution, climate change, resource exploitation, and invasive species—are affecting biodiversity across all [Continue reading]
Few apes have done more to unsettle human certainties than Kanzi. He was not the first non-human primate to use symbols to communicate, but he was the first to do so with such fluency, subtlety, and apparent ease that it prompted uncomfortable questions about the supposed uniqueness of human language, culture, and thought. Born in [Continue reading]
For months on end, he would maroon himself on remote islands—no phone, no company, no fanfare. Just a transistor radio, a hammock, and the possibility of seeing a turtle. It was enough. For Satish Bhaskar, the joy lay not in discovery as much as in the quiet act of observing: measuring tracks in the sand, [Continue reading]
Few creatures better embody the notion of peaceful coexistence than the manatee. Slow-moving and largely indifferent to human affairs, these aquatic herbivores graze on seagrasses and algae in the shallow coastal waters of the Americas and West Africa. Yet despite their unassuming nature, manatees are increasingly at the mercy of human activity. The West Indian [Continue reading]
A forest may burn to the ground, but beneath the ashes, a pangolin is already rebuilding. Pangolins are best known for their misfortune. As the world’s most trafficked mammal, their numbers have been decimated by poaching for scales and meat. But a recent study underscores what is at stake beyond the species itself: pangolins play [Continue reading]
The vaquita teeters on the brink of extinction. Here’s how people are trying to save it. Fewer than ten vaquitas, the world’s smallest porpoise, remain in the Gulf of California, their only habitat. Illegal fishing for totoaba, a fish whose swim bladder is prized in China for its purported medicinal value, has decimated the population. [Continue reading]
February 16th is World Whale Day. One little-known but interesting fact about whales is that some species have been found to store carbon in their bodies for over a century, making them natural climate allies. How does that work? When whales die and sink to the ocean floor, their massive bodies trap carbon that [Continue reading]
February 15th is World Pangolin Day Among the world’s lesser-known mammals, few are as peculiar or as imperiled as the pangolin. Scaly yet soft-footed, reclusive yet trafficked in vast numbers, pangolins embody paradoxes. On World Pangolin Day, here are a few facts about these creatures that warrant more attention than they receive. 💪 The only [Continue reading]
February 14th is known for love and affection—but not only among humans. It is also World Bonobo Day, a celebration of one of our closest relatives, the endangered bonobo (Pan paniscus). These apes have long been associated with cooperation and social harmony, a reputation that aligns fittingly with Valentine’s Day. Yet, recent research paints a [Continue reading]
Moo Deng, a baby pygmy hippo, became an internet sensation—but will her fame help save her species? Jeremy Hance explored that question in a recent piece on Mongabay News. Moo Deng became TikTok famous overnight. Millions watched videos of her antics: gnawing on a keeper’s boots, chasing water from a hose, and snoozing in a [Continue reading]
Moo Deng, a baby pygmy hippo, became an internet sensation—but will fame help save her species? Jeremy Hance explored that question in a recent piece published on Mongabay. Moo Deng became TikTok-famous overnight. Millions watched videos of her antics: gnawing on a keeper’s boots, chasing water from a hose, and snoozing in a way only [Continue reading]
Today is International Zebra Day With their iconic black-and-white stripes, zebras are widely recognized, yet they are often underestimated beyond their striking appearance. Members of the horse family, zebras possess exceptional hearing and eyesight, can sprint up to 70 km/h (43 mph), and deliver kicks powerful enough to deter apex predators. Their distinctive stripes, however, [Continue reading]
Today is Wildlife Conservation Day Nature documentaries and conservation campaigns paint an image of Earth teeming with wildlife, but the numbers tell a different story. A February 2023 study, published in PNAS, quantified the biomass of the world’s mammals and revealed an ecosystem heavily dominated by humanity and its livestock. A few striking figures from [Continue reading]
Today is International Jaguar Day 🐆 International Jaguar Day is dedicated to a predator whose presence shapes forests, rivers, and plains from northern Mexico to Argentina. The jaguar, Panthera onca, is a creature of paradox: elusive yet emblematic, ferocious yet vulnerable. As the Americas’ largest big cat, its muscular frame and distinctive rosette-patterned coat symbolize [Continue reading]
In the twilight of their lives, the world’s oldest creatures carry the weight of wisdom, experience, and resilience. Yet, these elders—fish that spawn in abundance, coral that shelters marine life, or elephants that guide their herds—are vanishing. The causes are disturbingly familiar: overfishing, habitat destruction, trophy hunting, and climate change. A new review led by [Continue reading]
The slender-billed curlew, Numenius tenuirostris, slipped from the world in the way of rare things: gradually, quietly, and irretrievably. Once it coursed over the steppes of Siberia and wintered along Mediterranean shores, its migratory path a delicate thread connecting continents. Its last confirmed sighting, in Morocco in 1995, marked the end of a lineage and [Continue reading]
Birdsong has long captivated scientists and poets alike, but the evolutionary and ecological forces that shape its dazzling diversity remain incompletely understood. A recent study led by H S Sathya Chandra Sagar sheds light on these mysteries, leveraging a dataset of over 140,000 recordings from 8,450 species—nearly 80% of the world’s avian diversity. The findings, [Continue reading]
I prepare obituary sketches for high-profile conservation figures and species-on-the-brink in advance, to be held until they’re needed to be developed into full obituaries. The following is one I hope to never publish, though as of today, fewer than ten vaquitas—gentle porpoises no larger than a child—are believed to remain in the wild. 🐬🐬🐬🐬🐬🐬 The [Continue reading]
Today is World Lemur Day Lemurs, Madagascar’s iconic residents, encompass over 100 species. Exclusively endemic to the island (one species was introduced to a neighboring island), these fascinating creatures have evolved into one of the most diverse primate groups on the planet. To celebrate World Lemur Day, here are five lesser-known facts about these remarkable [Continue reading]
With United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP 16) starting today in Cali, I thought a fitting way to mark Reptile Appreciation Day would be to highlight the blue anole (https://mongabay.cc/4Ycrmm), endemic to the island of Gorgona, located off the Pacific coast of Colombia, not far from Cali. Gorgona, long noted for its biodiversity, hosts this vibrant [Continue reading]
Today is International Sloth Day 🦥 Sloths, as a group, might be said to epitomize the concept of taking life slowly. The six species, found mainly in Central and South America, spend most of their days hanging from trees, moving deliberately to conserve energy—a strategy shaped by a diet of nutrient-poor leaves. Yet, contrary to [Continue reading]
Once formidable predators in the world’s coastal and estuarine waters, sawfish—members of the ray family with their distinctive, toothed “saws”—now find themselves on the verge of vanishing. On International Sawfish Day, it is worth highlighting a creature whose form is as memorable as its fate is precarious. Sawfish, which can grow up to 7.6 meters [Continue reading]
Yesterday the latest Living Planet Index (LPI) report was released by WWF and Zoological Society of London (ZSL). It paints a sobering picture: wildlife populations have plummeted by an average of 73% over the past half-century. Based on nearly 35,000 monitored population trends spanning 5,495 species, LPI documents a collapse in biodiversity that extends across [Continue reading]
On World Octopus Day 🐙, it seems fitting to reflect on a creature whose intelligence is as intriguing as its ability to blend into its surroundings. The octopus, a soft-bodied mollusc with eight limbs, has long mesmerized audiences ranging from scientists and storytellers. With over 300 species scattered across the oceans—from shallow coral reefs to [Continue reading]