Esther Wullschleger

Out of captivity, into conflict: slow lorises struggle to survive after release Wildlife releases are usually joyous events. Uplifting scenes of animals cautiously nosing the air as they take their first tentative steps into freedom warm our hearts. However, new research…

In Bangladesh, 7 of 9 rescued Bengal slow lorises died within six months of release.

Most were killed by wild rivals, highlighting the risks of releasing territorial animals into occupied forests.

Experts say stopping poaching and habitat loss is key.

Giant tortoises return to Galápagos island 180 years after relatives went extinct Giant tortoises have been reintroduced to Floreana Island in the Galapágos, 180 years after going extinct there.

The tortoise species originally found on Floreana Island is extinct. Those being introduced to the island are hybrids with another species from another island. Hopefully, those being introduced will perform the ecosystem functions of the lost species. 🌰🌍

news.mongabay.com/short-articl...

Fluttering ‘tails’ on bird nests confuse would-be predators Blue manakins in Brazil use “disruptive camouflage” to protect their eggs, new study finds

why some birds build "nests with tails"

Helicopter translocation brings isolated banteng to safer grounds in Cambodia Earlier this month, a team of conservationists translocated 16 critically endangered banteng into Siem Pang Wildlife Sanctuary in northeast Cambodia in a bid to boost numbers that had dwindled to…

Conservationists in northeastern Cambodia moved critically endangered banteng to Siem Pang Wildlife Sanctuary using helicopters and trucks.

With populations hit by hunting and deforestation, experts say relocating isolated herds could help secure the species’ future.

Japan's ancient 'tigers' were actually cave lions, DNA evidence shows There aren't any native lion or tiger populations living in Japan today, but this was not always the case. Fossil evidence indicates that at least one species of large cat roamed the archipelago durin...

Big Cats in Ancient Japan

A kākāpō chick in a nest with an egg. Credit: Deidre Vercoe

The first #kakapo chick for four years hatched two days ago (on Valentine’s Day for those who like to anthropomorphise!). Here’s Tiwhiri-A1-2026 in Yasmine’s nest. 📸: Deidre Vercoe. www.doc.govt.nz/news/media-r... #kakapo2026 #conservation #parrots #birds

Climate crisis linked to fall in southern right whale birth rates as researchers raise ‘warning signal’ Lead author of Australian study says breeding slowdown is linked to climate-driven changes in ‘magnificent’ whale’s foraging grounds

After decades of recovery, southern right whales are showing signs of a climate-driven decline in breeding rates, which scientists say is a “warning signal” about changes in the Southern Ocean.
#climatecrisis #auspol www.theguardian.com/environment/...

NEW STUDY: Climate change is fueling deadly fires that threaten some of the world’s oldest living things: the ancient Alerce trees of Patagonia, which can live for over 3,000 years.

Our analysis shows that human-induced warming is making weather conditions more conducive to fire. 1/5

" Wenig überraschend werden die meisten der (neu entdeckten Arten) in Südamerika und Asien vermutet, aber selbst Nordamerika gilt noch als potenziell guter Fundort. "

eine fast unglaubliche Artenschutzgeschichte

‘Nothing is sacred to them’: the race to save rare plants as Russian troops advance With some of Ukraine’s most valuable biodiversity sites and science facilities under occupation, experts at Sofiyivka Park in Uman are struggling to preserve the country’s natural history

'He adds that... one of the world’s oldest steppe reserves, Askania-Nova, [is...] in that zone and [has] fallen under occupation. “This territory will be inaccessible to us for many decades, or maybe even centuries” because it has been heavily mined, he says.'

🧪🌱
www.theguardian.com/environment/...

These Pets Are Armored, Spiky and Pricey. Poachers Want to Cash In.

Thousands of enthusiasts in online communities around the world are collecting and breeding different varieties of #isopods. Some scientists worry that the popularity of isopods and the largely unregulated market for them could pose a serious threat.
Study from @conbiology.bsky.social

Und jetzt auch in der Schweiz? www.birdlife.ch/de/content/j...

Dazu kommen noch die Pflanzen. Es wird unüberschaubar ohne klarere Regulierungen.. Bei den Vögeln wenigstens besteht mehr Uebersicht, da Wildfangimportverbote seit 2006.

Fire rips though habitat of critically endangered parrot Experts estimate 11,000 hectares of core habitat for the critically endangered parrot has been lost to a recent fire.

sad news from Australia

Rangelands and pastoralists: central to life As the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists 2026 unfolds, the global importance of grasslands comes into focus, revealing what is at stake for birds and people, and how community-led…

As the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists 2026 unfolds, the global importance of grasslands comes into focus, revealing what is at stake for birds and people, and how community-led conservation can secure their future. - www.birdlife.org/news/2026/01...

How did birds evolve? The answer is wilder than anyone thought Nature - Discoveries in Jurassic rocks reveal that birds were adept fliers earlier than scientists realized.

This discovery is shedding light on how and why birds evolved, and whether they evolved powered flight just once or many times during the age of the dinosaurs

go.nature.com/49pD9YF

Mummified cheetahs reveal forgotten history of Arabian Peninsula - Dailynewsegypt A Saudi-international research team has uncovered seven naturally mummified cheetahs, along with dozens of skeletal remains, preserved inside a network of caves in the Arar region near the Saudi-Iraqi...

ancient cheetahs in Arabia

Artenschutz: Gibt es 2026 einen Babyboom bei den Kakapos? Vogelschützer erwarten beste Brutsaison seit Jahrzehnten

hoffentlich so

From sea slugs to sunflowers, California Academy of Sciences described 72 new species in 2025 Researchers at the California Academy of Sciences kept busy throughout 2025. Along with collaborators from across the globe, they described 72 new-to-science species from six continents — creatures li...

new-to-science species from six continents

" Some researchers estimate that less than 20% of all the species on the planet have been described, and many will face extinction before they’re named by science. "

Declared extinct in 2025: A look back at some of the species we lost Some species officially bid us farewell this year. They may have long been gone, but following more recent assessments, they’re now formally categorized as extinct on the IUCN Red List, considered…

Some species officially bid us farewell this year. Recent IUCN assessments now list the slender-billed curlew, Christmas Island shrew, three Australian bandicoots, plants in Mauritius and Hawai‘i, and a Cape Verde cone snail as extinct.

6 Otherworldly Deep-Sea Images from 2025 From the first sighting of a colossal squid in the wild to a seriously goofy octopus, 2025 delivered some astounding photos from the ocean’s depths

From the first sighting of a colossal squid in the wild to a seriously goofy octopus, 2025 delivered some astounding photos from the ocean’s depths

Dodo’s closest living relative spotted in remote South Pacific rainforest Manumea’s first sighting since 2013 raises hope critically endangered species can be saved from extinction

more hope for this enigmatic bird

Junge Haiarten sterben häufiger aus als alte

" Die Studie zeigt, dass die heutigen Haie und Rochen die Überlebenden einer langen Geschichte voller Höhen und Tiefen sind – darunter mehrere Aussterbeereignisse, von denen man bisher nichts wusste. "

In Mexico, world’s smallest turtle faces big threats from trafficking, habitat loss It sounds like a scene out of the Ocean’s series of heist movies. Only this one didn’t happen in Las Vegas, but at a Mexican university campus surrounded by lush tropical vegetation. And it wasn’t…

The Vallarta mud turtle, the world’s smallest turtle, lives only in temporary lagoons in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, posing a huge challenge for its conservation.

By the time scientists determined they were a distinct species, just 1,000 turtles remained.

Their population has since dropped to 300.