Mongabay · Page 18

CAPE TOWN — South Africa’s False Bay was once known as a global hotspot for great white sharks. But within the span of a few years, between 2015 and 2019, this apex predator vanished from the area, leading to profound ecological changes, according to a new…

BANGKOK — A new report published on Feb. 18 detailed widespread discrepancies in data provided from Southeast Asia’s long-tailed macaque breeding farms, highlighting how monkey trafficking is able to slip through the regulatory cracks put in place by the…

ENDE, Indonesia — The governor of one Indonesia’s poorest provinces said it would pause development of new geothermal energy projects on the island of Flores, following an intervention by the Catholic Church. On April 4, East Nusa Tenggara Governor Emanuel…

The queuña forests in Peru, once covering vast stretches of the mountains, have dwindled to a mere fraction of their former glory, leaving behind a landscape where biodiversity and water security hang in the balance. This ecological collapse has triggered an…

MEXICO CITY — Officials have acknowledged the environmental damage caused by Tren Maya, and say they’re exploring ways to restore cenotes and rainforests disrupted by the railway’s construction through the Yucatán peninsula. During a press event earlier…

New Zealand experienced heavy flooding and damage due to Cyclone Tam last week through this weekend. What started out as a tropical low hovering over the South Pacific Ocean nation of Vanuatu was upgraded to Cyclone Tam on April 14 by the Fiji meteorological…

The government of Laos has for the first time shut down a farm where live bears were harvested for their bile, after convincing the farm’s owner to voluntarily hand over three bears. The rescued Asian black bears (Ursus thibetanus), two males and one female,…

In 2023, Brazil’s Federal Police spotted an unusual movement in the small airport of Santarém, in Pará state: Seemingly humble Venezuelans buying expensive last-minute tickets and always paying for extra luggage. In October, agents decided to go for it and…

There’s something about viewing Earth from space — the shift in perspective has for decades moved us emotionally, scientifically, and philosophically. The iconic Earthrise image of our planet rising above the lunar horizon, taken in 1968 by astronauts…

This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center’s Ocean Reporting Network, where Elizabeth Claire Alberts is a fellow. BERGEN, Norway — It’s been nearly five months since the Norwegian government paused its controversial plans to launch deep-sea mining…

A coalition of leading European environmental groups has cautiously welcomed a “landmark” agreement by lawmakers in Brussels on new rules aimed at curbing a major source of microplastic pollution in the world’s oceans. The provisional deal, reached last…

LANGKAT, Indonesia — A critically endangered Sumatran elephant was found dead April 4 on the border of the Gunung Leuser National Park in Sumatra’s Langkat district, officials said. The elephant was male, around 10 years old, and weighed no more than 2…

Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. It’s difficult to describe the feeling of standing beneath Auyán-Tepuí, that towering table mountain in southern…

Scientists have identified nine planetary boundaries that help regulate a livable planet. Human activities have pushed six of those nine critical Earth systems beyond safe limits, threatening the stability of life as we know it. Mongabay has consistently…

This is Part 1 of a two-part series on fisheries management and ocean governance under the second Trump administration, which took office Jan. 20. Part 1 looks at the potential impacts that cuts and deregulation at the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric…

This story is published through the Indigenous News Alliance. Last Thursday, Hanieh Moghani, a legal scholar from Iran, was scheduled to attend a private meeting at United Nations headquarters in New York City with more than a dozen Indigenous experts from…

PLAQUEMINES PARISH, U.S. — Down past New Orleans lies Plaquemines parish, a narrow sliver of land at the tip of Louisiana that reaches southward like a finger pointing into the Gulf of Mexico. Past barbecue joints, a naval base, Baptist churches, white…

Seven environmental activists from around the world will be awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize on April 21. Known as the “Green Nobel Prize,” the Goldman Prize honors activists from the six inhabited continental regions. This year’s winners include…

Two North Atlantic right whales, among the most at-risk marine mammals, were spotted swimming in the Bahamas on April 15, marking the first time the species has been seen in the nation’s waters. “That moment for me was breathtaking, and I couldn’t fully…

BASRA, Iraq — The air in Basra carries a strange weight: part saline mist from the nearby Persian Gulf and part acrid smoke from the towering oil refineries that loom over the southern horizon. Cracked riverbanks crumble into brackish water, where mangrove…