Seabird nests built with plastic waste off the coast of Germany: Photo of the week (March 25, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/seabird-nests-built-with-plastic-waste-off-the-coast-of-germany-photo-of-the-week/
The northern gannet, a seabird that lives across the northern Atlantic Ocean, typically builds its nests from seaweed and other aquatic plants. But more recently, its nests have started to include plastic material fished from the ocean. Martin Brogger, a researcher at Argentina’s Institute of Marine Organisms Biology (IBIOMAR), photographed several gannet nests containing plastic […]
Canada invests $1m into mining exploration on Indigenous land (March 25, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/canada-invests-1m-into-mining-exploration-on-indigenous-land/
A First Nation in Canada’s subarctic Northwest Territories has received C$1.5 million ($1.1 million) in federal funding to explore for elements on its traditional lands. The Tłı̨chǫ own a 39,000-square-kilometer (15,000-square-mile) stretch of boreal forest and tundra. On March 3, they announced a three-year prospecting project with the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency. Exploration will […]
As Sri Lankans choke on bad air, authorities cite transboundary pollution (March 25, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/as-sri-lankans-choke-on-bad-air-authorities-cite-transboundary-pollution/
- With an increase in air pollution levels in several areas, Sri Lankan authorities trace transboundary air pollution as a key reason for the island’s poor air quality.
- A systematic rise in low air quality has occurred since the 1990s, experts say.
- A seasonal trend has been observed during agricultural burning in India with emissions from the coal power plant in Norochcholai, in the island’s northwest, adding to the poor air quality.
- Health authorities warn against cardiovascular diseases of people exposed to high levels of fine particulate matter for prolonged periods of time.
‘We will not know what we lost’: Conservation fallout a year after USAID shutdown (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/03/we-will-not-know-what-we-lost-conservation-fallout-a-year-after-usaid-shutdown/
When then-U.S. president John F . Kennedy created the United States Agency for International Development in 1961, it was meant primarily to administer health and food aid around the world. In the decades since, USAID expanded to become one of the world’s largest financial contributors to conservation, providing nearly $400 million annually before the end […]
Another legal challenge for TotalEnergies in South Africa (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/another-legal-challenge-for-totalenergies-in-south-africa/
In August 2025, a South African court canceled an environmental authorization granted to French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies and its joint venture partner Shell to drill offshore exploration wells. Now TotalEnergies is facing fresh legal challenges in South Africa for another proposed project. March 23 and 24, the Western Cape High Court is hearing […]
Kenya marks World Meteorological Day amid dozens of flood fatalities (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/kenya-marks-world-meteorological-day-amid-dozens-of-flood-fatalities/
March 23 was world Meteorological Day, which celebrates the science of helping humanity understand and predict the weather. However, in eastern Kenya, the day came as families were mourning the deaths of lives lost to ongoing heavy rains. Two people died after a rain-soaked wall collapsed on them, a little girl was swept away while […]
Defying drought and invasives, a feisty Australian marsupial makes a comeback (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/defying-drought-and-invasives-a-feisty-australian-marsupial-makes-a-comeback/
- Not long ago, Australia’s ampurta, also known as the crest-tailed mulgara, hung on the precipice of extinction. Now, a new study has mapped its dramatic resurgence.
- This small marsupial increased its range by an area the size of Denmark between 2015 and 2021, building on an ongoing re-expansion.
- The ampurta resurged thanks to an introduced disease that drastically reduced the population of nonnative rabbits. That led to a drop in the number of foxes and feral cats that prey on small animals, including ampurtas.
- Despite the good news, Australian scientists have serious concerns about a lack of investment in the ongoing biological control of both rabbits and feral cats.
Eastern monarch butterfly populations increase in 2025, but challenges remain (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/eastern-monarch-butterfly-populations-increase-in-2025-but-challenges-remain/
Monarch butterfly populations in North America have been in dramatic decline for several decades. But in a glimmer of hope for the iconic orange-and-black species, the 2025 population estimate was roughly 64% higher compared to the previous year. Scientists split migratory monarchs (Danaus plexippus) into two populations — western and eastern — depending on which […]
Vietnam and Russia advance nuclear power deal as energy security concerns grow in Southeast Asia (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/vietnam-and-russia-advance-nuclear-power-deal-as-energy-security-concerns-grow-in-southeast-asia/
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam and Russia signed a deal to build a nuclear power plant in Vietnam as the Southeast Asian country revives its nuclear plans with hopes of boosting energy security while curbing greenhouse gas emissions. The deal for the Ninh Thuan 1 plant, reported by Vietnamese state media, comes after two similar projects were […]
Upemba National Park staff recount assault that left seven dead (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/upemba-national-park-staff-recount-assault-that-left-seven-dead/
- On March 3, a group of militants attacked the headquarters of Upemba National Park in the southern Democratic Republic of Congo.
- The attack left seven people dead and caused severe damage to facilities at the headquarters.
- A group claiming responsibility for the assault said it was part of an effort to achieve independence for the mineral-rich region of Katanga, of which Upemba is a part.
- Upemba National Parks staff members spoke to Mongabay from the DRC about the attack and its aftermath.
On Manatee Appreciation Day, remember these gentle giants who protect aquatic ecosystems (commentary) (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/on-manatee-appreciation-day-remember-these-gentle-giants-who-protect-aquatic-ecosystems-commentary/
- Slow-moving, peaceful and curious, manatees quietly maintain the health and balance of aquatic ecosystems, from rivers to bays and coasts worldwide.
- Manatee Appreciation Day is observed annually on the last Wednesday of March, and it’s a good time to remember why these animals matter, and the people who have dedicated their lives to protecting them.
- “The gentle giants of our oceans have survived for millions of years. Whether they survive the next century depends on all of us,” a new op-ed argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
China’s deep-sea mining fleet may also track US submarines (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2026/03/chinas-deep-sea-mining-fleet-may-also-track-us-submarines/
A Mongabay and CNN investigation found the eight Chinese state-owned ships that conduct deep-sea mining research in China’s mining areas allocated by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) actually spent little time in these exploration areas, while spending much of their remaining time operating in militarily strategic waters. Many of these vessels are linked to the […]
Argentina updates national IUCN mammal list with new focus on non-native species (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/argentina-updates-national-iucn-mammal-list-with-new-focus-on-non-native-species/
- The Argentine Society for the Study of Mammals reviews the national IUCN Red List of mammal species the goal of better understanding population trends and threats across the country’s many ecosystems.
- This time around, scientists evaluated 417 mammal species, 22 more than the 395 species evaluated in 2019.
- The increase reflects newly discovered mammals but also taxonomic revisions to mammals that were once grouped together and are now recognized as distinct species.
- For the first time, SAREM also used the environmental impact classification for alien taxa, known as EICAT, to determine how much damage non-native species were doing to biodiversity in the country.
Conservation win as first palm cockatoo chick fledges from artificial hollow in Australia (March 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/conservation-win-as-first-palm-cockatoo-chick-fledges-from-artificial-hollow-in-australia/
Conservationists in Australia are celebrating the fledging of a palm cockatoo chick, a species considered endangered in the country. It fledged from an artificial log hollow installed on a tree for breeding cockatoos. The structure is one of 29 such spaces created as part of People For Wildlife’s (PFW) Breeding Habitat Restoration Project, in partnership […]
The ocean’s enforcement gap (March 23, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/the-oceans-enforcement-gap/
- Governments have designated vast marine protected areas and pledged to conserve 30% of the ocean by 2030, enforcement often lags behind these commitments.
- Research shows that the ecological benefits of marine protected areas depend less on their size than on whether rules are visible, monitored, and enforced.
- New tools—such as satellite imagery, vessel-tracking systems, and data analytics—are making it easier and cheaper to detect illegal fishing and focus enforcement efforts.
- As monitoring improves, the future of ocean conservation may depend less on creating new protected areas than on ensuring existing rules are consistently applied.
Indigenous groups demand halt to Belo Sun Amazon gold mine (March 23, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/indigenous-groups-demand-halt-to-belo-sun-amazon-gold-mine/
More than 120 Indigenous protesters have occupied a federal building in Altamira in the Brazilian Amazon since Feb. 23. They are demanding that authorities block a Canadian mining company’s license to open one of the country’s largest open-air gold mines on the Xingu River. Led by a movement of Indigenous women, the protest follows a […]
Huge amounts of nanoplastics discovered in tap and bottled water (March 23, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/huge-amounts-of-nanoplastics-discovered-in-tap-and-bottled-water/
The amount of nanoplastics in drinking water in the U.S. has been wildly underestimated. That’s according to a new study that found the amount of plastic in both tap and bottled water was 10-100 times higher than previous estimates. For the new study, researchers used more advanced methodology and found more plastic. “It is like […]
Can this giant freezer de-extinct animals? (March 23, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/can-this-giant-freezer-de-extinct-animals/
We’re losing species at an alarming rate. Could freezing the genetic material of the world’s most endangered animals help save them? Biotech start-up Colossal Biosciences is developing a “biovault” — a massive facility designed to store the frozen DNA of threatened species. Their founder calls it “a backup plan for life on Earth.” But can […]
French company stops US offshore wind projects in $1B deal with Trump administration (March 23, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/french-company-stops-us-offshore-wind-projects-in-1b-deal-with-trump-administration/
The Department of Interior says a French energy company has agreed to give up two U.S. offshore wind leases and invest in fossil fuel projects instead. The department said Monday that TotalEnergies committed to invest approximately $1 billion in oil and natural gas production in the United States. That is the amount the company paid […]
How Namibia’s bird conservation projects build community resilience (commentary) (March 23, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/how-namibias-bird-conservation-projects-build-community-resilience-commentary/
- Droughts and land degradation often erode communities’ social bonds, but in the Karas region of Namibia, bird conservation initiatives have become a rallying point.
- Women and youth are at the forefront of these initiatives, which has inspired confidence among peers and shown that conservation is not the domain of scientists alone, but also a practice of everyday community resilience.
- “It is time for policymakers, NGOs, and donors to support these initiatives not just as biodiversity projects, but as investments in community well-being,” a new op-ed argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.