Scientists call on Ecuador to stop the rising trafficking of Galápagos iguanas (November 4, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/scientists-call-on-ecuador-to-stop-the-rising-trafficking-of-galapagos-iguanas/
- In a recent letter, scientists call on Ecuador to stop the trafficking of marine iguanas, endemic to the Galápagos Islands, amid a surge in seizures.
- The archipelago is home to four species of endemic iguanas, and all are in demand as exotic pets, despite it being illegal to take them from the wild under Ecuadorian laws or sell them internationally under CITES, the global wildlife trade treaty.
- The authors say that international wildlife traffickers recruit domestic artisanal fishers whose livelihoods are impacted by drug cartels, dwindling fish, and poverty.
- Conservationists say Ecuador must audit its systems designed to stop wildlife trafficking in the Galápagos and countries must close CITES loopholes that let traffickers legally trade offspring of smuggled wildlife.
Artificial mangrove roots offer temporary shield for Thailand’s eroding coastline (November 4, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/artificial-mangrove-roots-offer-temporary-shield-for-thailands-eroding-coastline/
Coastal communities near Bangkok in Thailand are testing artificial mangrove roots to combat severe shoreline erosion, reports Mongabay’s Carolyn Cowan. The shorelines of Phra Samut Chedi district, located in the Chao Phraya River Delta where Bangkok’s main waterway empties into the Gulf of Thailand, is especially vulnerable to erosion. Each year, strong surges claim 20 […]
Microplastics pollute nearly two-thirds of corals in Malaysia’s marine protected area, study finds (November 4, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/microplastics-pollute-nearly-two-thirds-of-corals-in-malaysias-marine-protected-area-study-finds/
- A study by Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) found microplastics in 64% of coral fragment samples taken from sites at Pulau Redang Marine Park.
- The primary plastic identified was polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a polymer commonly used in single-use drinking bottles.
- Corals tangled in plastic debris or fibers had nearly three times as many microplastics in their skeletons as those that were not.
- Sites closer to tourist hotspots recorded the highest levels of contaminants, while quieter sites reserved for turtle nesting had lower levels.
How a ‘living breakwater’ in Hawai‘i aims to create coral habitat and protect coastline (November 4, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/how-a-living-breakwater-in-hawaii-aims-to-create-coral-habitat-and-protect-coastline/
- A new project off the Hawaiian island of O‘ahu tests an unusual method of shielding coastal communities and infrastructure from destructive waves: an artificial reef intended to act as a set of speed bumps.
- By January 2027, 60 huge concrete structures will be sunk off Kalaeloa Harbor, an industrial port on West O‘ahu, to protect the coastline from storm surge and erosion.
- The project also aims to provide shelter for corals and eventually create habitat for reef-dwelling fish and other marine life.
- This “living breakwater” was designed to facilitate ongoing community participation, and could be replicated at other locations in the Hawaiian archipelago.
Photograph helps identify a West African bird not seen in 13 years (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/photograph-helps-identify-a-west-african-bird-not-seen-in-13-years/
Researchers recently spotted the brightly colored Ghana cuckooshrike in Côte d’Ivoire’s Taï National Park. The “lost” bird hadn’t been seen in 13 years, reports Mongabay’s John Cannon. Stephanie Bartlett, a field research fellow with the International Bird Conservation Partnership (IBCP), took a photo of the cuckooshrike while Paulo Ditzel, also an IBCP research fellow, called […]
Human-wildlife coexistence with wolves in Europe requires a holistic approach (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/11/human-wildlife-coexistence-with-wolves-in-europe-requires-a-holistic-approach/
For a time during the 19th and 20th centuries, gray wolves were practically extinct across Western and Central Europe. Now, thanks to strict protection measures in countries across the region, their populations have risen over the past couple of decades — including a reported surge of 58% between 2012 and 2022. On the one hand, […]
High expectations but no agreement on Antarctic marine protection, krill fishing (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/high-expectations-but-no-agreement-on-antarctic-marine-protection-krill-fishing/
- The 45th meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) took place Oct. 19-30 in Hobart, Australia.
- The multilateral body charged with regulating fishing and protecting ecosystems in the Southern Ocean concluded with no agreements on the longstanding issues of establishing new marine protected areas and adopting new krill-fishing management measures.
- Of particular interest was the potential establishment of a marine protected area in a large swathe of sea between the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Orkney Islands. Krill fishing is concentrated in the area, which also serves as an important feeding ground for krill-reliant wildlife.
- China, a top krill fishing nation that, with Russia, has blocked the establishment of new protected areas for nearly a decade, proposed redefining existing and future MPAs within the CCAMLR convention area such that fishing could take place there.
Brazil election sparks threats to reinvade Indigenous Amazon territory (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/brazil-election-sparks-threats-to-reinvade-indigenous-amazon-territory/
A federal judge issued an emergency order on Oct. 23 to deploy federal security forces to the Apyterewa Indigenous Land in Brazil’s Pará state. The order came after new evidence emerged that hundreds of former non-Indigenous occupants planned to reinvade the territory on Oct. 25, the day of Brazil’s presidential runoff election. The court order […]
Governments must include small-scale fishers in their plans to protect the oceans: Report (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/governments-must-include-small-scale-fishers-in-their-plans-to-protect-the-oceans-report/
- Pledges to protect the world’s oceans are featured prominently in countries’ action plans to meet the targets set out in the Global Biodiversity Framework — the international agreement to reverse nature loss — according to a new report released by two organizations during the U.N. biodiversity conference (COP17) held Oct. 19-30 in Yerevan, Armenia.
- Yet the report says most pledges related to ocean biodiversity are only “weakly anchored” in policy and accountability measures, raising concerns about how they will be fulfilled.
- Speaking during the conference, a group of small-scale fishers underscored the report’s finding that few country commitments addressing the economics of fishing focus on small-scale fishers, and said their role as coastal custodians is often overlooked.
- Instead, the fishers said, governments are focused on creating Blue Economy initiatives, prioritizing sectors such as tourism and shipping and excluding local, small-scale fisheries.
Afghanistan’s Taliban officials will attend a UN climate summit for the second time as observers (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/afghanistans-taliban-officials-will-attend-a-un-climate-summit-for-the-second-time-as-observers/
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Afghanistan’s Taliban officials have been invited and will attend the upcoming U.N. climate summit as observers. The summit starts next week in Antalya, Turkey. This marks their second attendance since returning to power in 2021. A Turkish and a Kabul official on Tuesday confirmed the Afghan Taliban’s observer status at the Conference […]
UN recognizes ongoing restoration work inside Ethiopia’s Desa’a forest amid conflict (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/un-recognizes-ongoing-restoration-work-inside-ethiopias-desaa-forest-amid-conflict/
- The United Nations Environment Programme named Ethiopia’s Desa’a forest restoration initiative a World Restoration Flagship, recognizing efforts to restore a degraded Afromontane ecosystem in the Tigray region.
- The project has restored more than 23,000 hectares (57,000 acres) of degraded land, prevented an estimated 500,000 metric tons of soil erosion and increased soil water infiltration in restored areas.
- Despite progress, years of armed conflict have disrupted restoration work and devastated local communities. Renewed fighting reported in September 2026 could further threaten the project’s long-term goals.
Payment scheme in Botswana pays communities to coexist with wildlife (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/payment-scheme-in-botswana-pays-communities-to-coexist-with-wildlife/
A new payments scheme rewards two rural communities on the edge of Botswana’s Okavango Delta for living alongside wildlife. Residents have installed cameras around their villages and earn money from photographs of elephants, lions and other wild animals that might raid vegetable gardens or kill livestock. The scheme is part of the Harmony with Wildlife […]
Global biodiversity summit ends with shortfall of funding for Africa, despite 30×30 push (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/global-biodiversity-summit-ends-with-shortfall-of-funding-for-africa-despite-30x30-push/
African countries left the United Nations biodiversity conference in Yerevan, Armenia, with an unresolved funding gap for conservation. International funding for protected and conserved areas in Africa fell significantly even as countries are working toward a global agreement to protect 30% of the world’s land and oceans by 2030, known as the 30×30 goal. During […]
The RSPO closed the case on First Resources. Indonesian forests kept falling for palm oil (commentary) (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/the-rspo-closed-the-case-on-first-resources-indonesian-forests-kept-falling-for-palm-oil-commentary/
- A new report and unearthed court records raise questions over the palm oil industry body RSPO’s ability to police its members, writes The Gecko Project’s Tom Johnson.
- The report, by Rainforest Action Network, builds on work by The Gecko Project, published in 2023, investigating Singapore-listed, Indonesian-owned First Resources, a palm oil producer alleged to be clearing rainforest through a network of secret companies in Indonesia.
- In December 2025, the RSPO Complaints Panel issued its final ruling on a long-running case against First Resources.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
US couple sentenced for helping finance trade in rhino horn, puma bones, other wildlife parts (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/us-couple-sentenced-for-helping-finance-trade-in-rhino-horn-puma-bones-other-wildlife-parts/
A federal court in the U.S. has sentenced two residents of the state of California for their roles as financial facilitators in a scheme trafficking wildlife body parts between the U.S. and Vietnam. Linh Luu and Kevin Le, a married couple from Anaheim, were sentenced on Oct. 23 to three years of probation and fined […]
Uncertainty surrounds controversial resort in Zanzibar forest reserve as work stalls (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/uncertainty-surrounds-controversial-resort-in-zanzibar-forest-reserve-as-work-stalls/
- Work that began earlier this year on a luxury resort inside Zanzibar’s Ngezi-Vumawimbi Forest Reserve appears to have come to a halt.
- Details of the project remain opaque, but construction of a wall near the reserve’s boundary and land used by nearby communities sparked public outcry earlier in 2026.
- Last year, scientists published an open letter calling on the authorities to reconsider the development as it could pose a major threat to endemic plant and animal species.
Do not ‘engage formally’: UK officials advised against billionaire-run zoo ahead of CITES meeting (November 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/do-not-engage-formally-uk-officials-advised-against-billionaire-run-zoo-ahead-of-cites-meeting/
- Internal U.K. government communications obtained by Mongabay and The Guardian show environment officials explicitly advised government ministers this summer not to “engage formally” with the controversial Indian zoo Vantara after its lobbyists tried to secure a meeting.
- The main reasons for the advice included “reputational sensitivities” and “ongoing compliance proceedings” involving the zoo. Vantara declined to respond to Mongabay’s questions about U.K. concerns.
- The documents, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, also revealed that Vantara received 152 permits over three years to transfer animals to Vantara. Government officials raised concerns over applications by Vantara to import falcons and falcon hybrids after a 50,000 pounds “donation” from an unnamed source to a U.K. falcon exporter.
- In Geneva, the U.K. is set to chair the Standing Committee of CITES from Nov. 2-6, which will oversee the implementation of the treaty and review compliance cases, including those linked to India’s wildlife imports.
Two public servants in Brazil removed after threatening to poison Indigenous people (November 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/two-public-servants-in-brazil-removed-after-threatening-to-poison-indigenous-people/
Brazil’s Indigenous voters helped reelect incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Oct. 25. Following his win, two officials in the municipality of Tacuru, Mato Grosso do Sul, allegedly sent WhatsApp messages threatening to poison the water supply used by the Guarani-Kaiowá Indigenous people. The officials have been suspended; however, activists argue that’s insufficient […]
Indigenous peoples and local communities solidify decision-making powers at COP17 (November 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/indigenous-peoples-and-local-communities-solidify-decision-making-powers-at-cop17/
At the 2026 U.N. Biodiversity Conference in Armenia (COP17), Indigenous peoples and local communities strengthened their role in the decision-making of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), with the full operationalization of a subsidiary body within the treaty. The Subsidiary body on Article 8(j) (SB8J) was historically created at the 2024 biodiversity summit in Colombia. […]
Diverse forests can better withstand extreme weather events, study finds. Here’s why (November 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/diverse-forests-can-better-withstand-extreme-weather-events-study-finds-heres-why/
- A new study used data from U.S. forests to analyze whether diversity in tree species helped forests weather compound climate extremes, such as drought and high temperatures occurring at the same time.
- The study found that diversity did have a protective effect: More diverse forests were more resilient during compound climate events, and recovered more effectively afterwards.
- However, the study also found that the protective effect of diversity wasn’t equally strong across all types of climate events, and that other factors — like rainfall, soil health and day-to-day temperatures — also played a role in how well these forests handled climate stress.
- Researchers say that the study’s findings give forest managers a good place to start when planning adaptation strategies for the climate extremes that lie ahead.