Press release | 28 Jul, 2014
Eating pangolins to extinction
The enigmatic pangolin, or scaly anteater, is literally being eaten out of existence according to the latest update of The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, which shows that all eight species are now threatened with extinction.
Story | 28 Jul, 2014
World Tiger Day - New hope despite the numbers?
It is a curious thing that there are more tigers in captivity than in the wild right now as we mark World Tiger Day. According to estimates as few as 3000 roam the wilds of the 13 tiger range countries of Asia. That’s a big area and a very low number. In fact we have lost 97% of all wild tigers…
Story | 28 Jul, 2014
Rising murder toll of park rangers calls for tougher laws
With poachers responsible for more than half of ranger deaths over the past two years, IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and the International Ranger Federation (IRF) call for a toughened stance against wildlife crime globally, marking World Ranger Day celebrated across…
Story | 24 Jul, 2014
One tenth of bird species flying under the conservation radar
More than 350 newly recognised bird species have been assessed by BirdLife International for the first time on behalf of The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™. The assessment shows that more than 25% of these newly recognised birds have been listed as threatened on The IUCN Red List -…
Jointly published | 2014
Status and trends of Caribbean coral reefs : 1970-2012
With only about one-sixth of the original coral cover left, most Caribbean coral reefs may disappear in the next 20 years, primarily due to the loss of grazers in the region, according to this latest report, Status and Trends of Caribbean Coral Reefs: 1970-2012. This is the most detailed and…
Story | 17 Jul, 2014
Another Step Forward on High Seas Governance
The international community continues to make progress in its discussions on issues relating to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction. At the eighth meeting of the UN Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group to study such issues…
Story | 16 Jul, 2014
Fleet growing for ‘Mua’ – the sailing voyage to World Parks Congress 2014
More Pacific Island countries are climbing aboard the ‘Mua: Guided by Nature’ voyage to help convey the ‘one Pacific voice’ to the world, with the number of traditional voyaging canoes sailing from the Pacific to Sydney for the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014 rapidly growing into a fleet.
Story | 15 Jul, 2014
Call for nominations for the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel of IPBES
IPBES has issued a call for nominations for the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel (MEP) for the three-year term 2015–2017, replacing the current interim MEP. The MEP is an important body as it is responsible for overseeing the…
Story | 09 Jul, 2014
International Day of the Vaquita
The Gulf of California, also known as the Sea of Cortez, is a large and extremely rich body of water that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland. Spreading over more than 1,130km of coast and reaching a surface area of 160,000km2, the Gulf of California is listed as…
Story | 09 Jul, 2014
SOS Marine: Collaboration key to saving Bangladesh’s cetaceans from gillnets
The lives of Bangladesh's fishermen and its coastal cetaceans are intertwined. Regarded as their brethren at sea, fishermen often lament the death of these top predators through entanglement in gillnets. Finding mutually beneficial solutions, Brian Smith and colleague Rubaiyat Mowgli Mansur,…