Indian Ocean tuna regulator eases yellowfin fishing curbs amid sustainability concerns (May 22, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/indian-ocean-tuna-regulator-eases-yellowfin-fishing-curbs-amid-sustainability-concerns/
- During its annual meeting this month, the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) reframed management measures for yellowfin tuna following a determination that the species’ stock health has improved.
- Industry representatives welcomed the decision, but conservationists are urging caution, citing the long history of yellowfin overfishing and the difficulties in monitoring and curbing overexploitation.
- The IOTC also moved on regulating the swordfish fishery in the Indian Ocean by determining enforceable catch limits for members.
- Manta and devil rays are especially at risk in tuna fisheries; the IOTC adopted guidelines for their handling and release to reduce bycatch mortality.
Above an Australian highway, a bridge reconnects wilderness for quolls, koalas and other animals (May 22, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/above-an-australian-highway-a-bridge-reconnects-wilderness-for-quolls-koalas-and-other-animals/
- A new wildlife overpass that spans a major highway south of Sydney is reconnecting habitat between Heathcote National Park and Royal National Park, helping animals safely cross one of Australia’s busiest road corridors.
- The retrofitted bridge includes features for a wide range of species, from rope crossings for gliding marsupials to vegetated pathways for ground-dwelling animals such as wombats, echidnas and amphibians.
- Ecologists say reconnecting fragmented habitat is increasingly important as roads, urban expansion, extreme weather events and climate-driven bushfires isolate wildlife populations and reduce genetic diversity.
- Research from Australia and elsewhere shows that wildlife crossings can significantly reduce animal deaths and help species move, forage and breed, but only when these structures are carefully designed around animals’ behavior and habitat needs.
AI listens for endangered orcas to help reduce underwater noise exposure (May 22, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/ai-listens-for-endangered-orcas-to-help-reduce-underwater-noise-exposure/
Artificial intelligence is listening to orca calls in real time and helping to reduce their exposure to underwater noise. The effort is focused on an endangered orca subspecies in the Salish Sea, off the coasts of the northwestern U.S. and western Canada, reports Mongabay writer Abhishyant Kidangoor. The southern resident orcas (Orcinus orca ater), made […]
‘Same dangerous project’: Fury after Indonesia revives disputed mine (May 22, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/same-dangerous-project-fury-after-indonesia-revives-disputed-mine/
- Indonesia’s environment ministry has reapproved a controversial zinc and lead mine in North Sumatra, less than a year after the Supreme Court forced it to revoke the project’s earlier environmental approval over disaster-risk concerns.
- The revised environmental assessment replaces a proposed tailings dam with a plan to bury mining waste underground, but critics and independent experts say the mining company cannot realistically bury all of its waste and will still require a dangerous aboveground storage facility.
- Residents, activists and legal advocates argue the new approval is legally flawed because it relies on a framework already annulled by the Supreme Court, and say the company failed to conduct meaningful public consultation or provide key documents to affected communities.
- Communities opposing the mine say previous company activities have already caused environmental damage, flooding and water disruptions, and vow to continue fighting a project they fear could threaten lives and farmland in the earthquake-prone region.
What drives the trafficking of gibbons? Conservationists shed light on demand (May 22, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/what-drives-the-trafficking-of-gibbons-conservationists-shed-light-on-demand/
As gibbon seizures reached a record high in 2025, conservationists warn that dismantling the illegal trade requires a deep understanding of the diverse motivations driving consumer demand, contributor Ana Norman Bermúdez reports for Mongabay. In 2025, authorities confiscated 336 gibbons between January and August alone, representing approximately 20% of all recorded seizures since 2016, according […]
Slow lorises struggle to survive in the wild after captivity (May 22, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/slow-lorises-struggle-to-survive-in-the-wild-after-captivity/
The wild can be a “death trap” for rescued slow lorises, one of the world’s most trafficked primates, according to a recent study, reports Mongabay’s Carolyn Cowan. Researchers followed the fate of nine confiscated Bengal slow lorises (Nycticebus bengalensis) released into Lawachara National Park in Bangladesh. Six months later, only two individuals were surviving; several […]
Gunmen kill two rangers in latest deadly attack in DRC’s Virunga National Park (May 22, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/gunmen-kill-two-rangers-in-latest-deadly-attack-in-drcs-virunga-national-park/
Gunmen have killed two rangers in Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the latest deadly attack in a region roiled by militia violence. Park sources said a heavily armed group opened fire on a control post at Kamuhororo, on the southern shore of Lake Edward inside Virunga, early on May 21. Kasereka […]
Three Thai nationals suspected of smuggling Galápagos iguanas arrested in Ecuador (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/three-thai-nationals-suspected-of-smuggling-galapagos-iguanas-arrested-in-ecuador/
The Ecuadorian National Police arrested three Thai nationals on May 19, 2026, at the José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport in Guayaquil on suspicion of wildlife trafficking. They seized 12 marine iguanas (Amblyrhynchus cristatus), endemic to the Galápagos. The reptiles were found stuffed in handbags with their legs tightly bound. One was dead and those […]
Ebola outbreak reaches major cities in DR Congo, Uganda amid fears of regional spread (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/ebola-outbreak-reaches-major-cities-in-dr-congo-uganda-amid-fears-of-regional-spread/
The Ebola hemorrhagic fever virus outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was officially confirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO) on May 15. Less than a week later, the death toll is rising with at least 600 suspected cases and 139 suspected deaths linked to the disease, as well as 51 […]
Wild animal consumption on the rise in Central Africa, study finds (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/wild-animal-consumption-on-the-rise-in-central-africa-study-finds/
A new study has shed light on the scale of wild meat consumption across Central Africa. According to research led by CIFOR-ICRAF, a roughly 50% increase in the amount of wild meat being consumed is driven largely by growing demand from rapidly expanding urban populations. Published in the journal Nature, the study analyzed data from […]
Nine killed at illegal mine in latest Sumatra landslide tragedy as gold surge continues (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/nine-killed-at-illegal-mine-in-latest-sumatra-landslide-tragedy-as-gold-surge-continues/
- A mining accident in Indonesia’s West Sumatra province buried 12 miners on May 14, nine of whom were killed, following a period of heavy rain.
- The disaster is the latest fatal accident at an unpermitted mining site in the interior of Sumatra in recent years, with officials and civil society analysts saying the sustained high price of gold, which at the time of writing was threefold higher than six years ago, is drawing more people to illegal mines.
- Walhi, Indonesia’s largest environmental NGO, said at least 48 people were killed in West Sumatra, one of Indonesia’s 38 provinces, in the last 15 years.
- The green group said the true number could be much higher owing to the remote nature of the illegal industry.
Amazon resilient to fire, but diversity loss still a threat, study finds (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/amazon-resilient-to-fire-but-diversity-loss-still-a-threat-study-finds/
- A two-decade study conducted in the southeastern Brazilian Amazon found that while degraded forests show high ecological resilience and no sign of transitioning to savanna, species diversity at forest edges halved.
- Repeated disturbances are replacing fire-resistant specialist trees with fast-growing, generalist species, which have repercussions for the biome’s biodiversity.
- Although researchers say the forest’s response is a sign of hope, they warn that the new ecosystems that emerge from that forest recovery process can be vulnerable to new climate disturbances.
Mangroves are ‘powerful and undervalued’ for curbing nitrogen pollution, study finds (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/mangroves-are-powerful-and-undervalued-for-curbing-nitrogen-pollution-study-finds/
Mangrove forests could help sequester more than five million metric tons of nitrogen pollution from coastal ecosystems across the Earth if they are restored and protected, a recent study found. Nitrogen pollution typically comes from synthetic fertilizers largely used in agriculture or from human waste seeping into water sources. Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for […]
Artisanal mines in Brazil a front for gold laundering, investigation shows (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/artisanal-mines-in-brazil-a-front-for-gold-laundering-investigation-shows/
Nearly half of permitted small-scale gold mines in a corner of the Brazilian Amazon are likely fronts for laundering gold mined elsewhere, including protected areas and Indigenous territories, a new investigation suggests. Between 2022 and 2026, 263 of the 540 licensed artisanal mining operations in the Tapajós River Basin, or 49%, reported gold sales not […]
Norlan Pagal, fisherman and guardian of Tañon Strait, died on May 14th, aged 56 (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/shot-for-defending-the-sea-norlan-pagal-kept-watching-from-shore/
- Norlan Pagal spent more than a decade defending the waters of Tañon Strait from illegal fishing.
- He survived dynamite, beatings and a 2015 ambush that left him paralyzed from the waist down.
- From his wheelchair, he continued watching the sea with binoculars and reporting violations to patrols.
- His work helped inspire other fishers to protect their waters and earned him recognition as an Ocean Hero.
More than 1,000 uncharted coral reefs mapped in vast, understudied northern Australia (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/more-than-1000-uncharted-coral-reefs-mapped-in-vast-understudied-northern-australia/
Scientists have layered hundreds of satellite images to reveal more than 1,000 previously uncharted coral reefs in the turbid waters of northern Australia. The number is comparable to the Great Barrier Reef, though many reefs are smaller in size, researchers say. The reefs of northern Australia, while probably known to locals, had previously largely remained […]
Bangladesh’s energy crunch highlights the promise — and limits — of solar (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/bangladeshs-energy-crunch-highlights-the-promise-and-limits-of-solar/
- As Bangladesh struggles with gas shortages, fuel import costs and power plant outages, solar power plants have continued generating electricity during daylight hours, helping reduce pressure on the national grid.
- Although renewables account for only a small share of Bangladesh’s electricity mix, solar plays a particularly important role in the northern Rangpur region, where it provides most daytime electricity generation.
- Major gas-fired plants, including the 1,200-MW Ghorashal facility near Dhaka, have been shut down because of fuel shortages, highlighting Bangladesh’s dependence on imported fossil fuels.
- Experts say Bangladesh could reduce its exposure to volatile global fuel markets by expanding solar energy, though challenges including land availability, policy support and slow implementation continue to limit growth.
In flood-prone Bangladesh, tiny homes are built to move with the river (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/in-flood-prone-bangladesh-tiny-homes-are-built-to-move-with-the-river/
In the northeast of Bangladesh, residents living along the Jamuna River face a relentless cycle of environmental upheaval. Every rainy season, severe flooding routinely invades homes and wipes out crops, turning daily life into a struggle for survival. For families in these areas of low-lying sand beds, locally known as char areas, land is affordable […]
New survey methods uncover new insights into Madagascar’s biodiversity (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/new-survey-methods-uncover-new-insights-into-madagascars-biodiversity/
- LIFEPLAN tracks arthropods, fungi, mammals and birds simultaneously using identical methods repeated year-round across continents, generating one of the largest standardized biodiversity data sets ever assembled.
- A forthcoming study found that geographic distance is a key driver of endemism in Madagascar’s arthropods.
- Entomologists use LIFEPLAN data to identify new priority areas for insect conservation that are not represented in the current protected area network.
- Researchers say they hope LIFEPLAN methods can support long-term biodiversity monitoring in Madagascar’s protected areas in collaboration with different partners.
Climate change triples chance of deadly 2026 South Asia pre-monsoon heatwave: Report (May 21, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/climate-change-triples-chance-of-deadly-2026-south-asia-pre-monsoon-heatwave-report/
From mid-April through May 2026, India and Pakistan were gripped by a heatwave that saw daily maximum temperatures soar above 46° Celsius (114.8° Fahrenheit) in numerous cities. This ongoing period of intense heat has resulted in at least 10 reported deaths in Karachi, Pakistan and 6 reported cases of deaths from heat stroke in India, […]