Nigeria arrests suspected pangolin trafficking kingpin on the run (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/nigeria-arrests-suspected-pangolin-trafficking-kingpin-on-the-run/
Authorities in Nigeria have arrested the suspected kingpin of a transnational pangolin trafficking network, the latest in a series of high-profile wildlife busts in the country. Shamsideen Abubakar was linked to a September 2021 case in which authorities seized 1,009.5 kilograms (2,226 pounds) of scales in Lagos, estimated to have come from at least 5,451 […]
Rare, high-altitude jaguar sighting in Honduras raises hope for conservation (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/rare-high-altitude-jaguar-sighting-in-honduras-raises-hope-for-conservation/
- For the first time in a decade, camera traps set up high in the Sierra del Merendón mountain range in Honduras captured images of a male jaguar.
- The cat was documented at an altitude of 2,200 meters (about 7,200 feet), much higher than their normal range. Jaguars typically live below 1,000 m (3,300 ft).
- These mountains can act as a high-elevation corridor for animals to move between landscapes in Honduras, Guatemala and beyond.
- Jaguars, like all big cats, continue to lose habitat and are targeted by poachers. But this cat moving back into its former territory shows that conservation efforts, such as anti-poaching patrols, land protection and the introduction of prey species, may be working.
Offshore wind’s clean energy potential remains largely untapped, say experts (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/offshore-winds-clean-energy-potential-remains-largely-untapped-say-experts/
- Offshore wind has enormous clean energy potential across the globe. Though the sector has expanded in recent years that potential remains largely untapped.
- Today, China and European nations lead the way in developing offshore wind farms, with the U.S. hampered by the Trump administration, and other nations just beginning to tap into the potential of marine wind.
- Currently, about 80 gigawatts of power is generated by existing marine wind farms. According to some estimates, more than 2,000 GW of offshore wind is needed to meet climate goals, requiring a huge expansion including in deeper waters using floating platforms.
Researchers say remote Lake Superior island’s wolves are thriving as packs prey on moose (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/researchers-say-remote-lake-superior-islands-wolves-are-thriving-as-packs-prey-on-moose/
Wolves on a remote island in Lake Superior appear to be thriving, but they’re making deep dents in the moose population that they rely on as a leading food source, according to a report released Monday. Isle Royale is a 134,000-acre (54,200-hectare) national park in far western Lake Superior between Grand Marais, Minnesota, and Thunder Bay, […]
Peru bets on bamboo to restore nature in its main coca-growing region (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/peru-bets-on-bamboo-to-restore-nature-in-its-main-coca-growing-region/
- Since 2023, Peruvian development agency PROVRAEM has spent nearly $5 million planting almost 1,300 hectares (3,200 acres) of bamboo across the VRAEM, the country’s largest coca-producing region, promoting it as a legal, environmentally restorative alternative to illegal coca cultivation.
- On one farm in Pichari, growing bamboo as a monoculture has created a self-sustaining microclimate that has attracted more than 50 squirrel monkeys and dozens of bird species to what was once degraded land.
- The farm has since expanded into a successful ecotourism venture, and Peruvian authorities are promoting it as a model of success for their program.
- But bamboo is no miracle crop, experts say: It takes up to eight years to reach a first mature harvest, doesn’t bring nearly as much income as high-yielding coca, and its biodiversity benefits only hold when plantations are connected to larger forest corridors.
What it takes to make conservation work in Central Africa: Luis Arranz’s 46-year journey (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/what-it-takes-to-make-conservation-work-in-central-africa-luis-arranzs-46-year-journey/
Luis Arranz arrived in Africa in 1980 with little more than a degree in biology and a determination to work in the field. Without contacts or a clear path, he drove south from Spain in a small Citroën 2CV, crossing the Sahara over several weeks and repairing the car as it failed along the way. […]
A blue-nosed chameleon in Madagascar: Photo of the week (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/a-blue-nosed-chameleon-in-madagascar-photo-of-the-week/
Blue-nosed chameleons, a lizard species found only in northern Madagascar, are known for their colorful noses, which brighten when they get excited. For many years, lack of data meant the blue-nosed chameleon was classified as the species Calumma boettgeri, a chameleon whose nose, while also prominently shaped, isn’t blue. It was only in 2015 that […]
Celebrating the ‘gardeners of the forest’ on World Tapir Day (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/celebrating-the-gardeners-of-the-forest-on-world-tapir-day/
Described as “gardeners of the forest,” tapirs help maintain healthy ecosystems by dispersing seeds and landscaping the vegetation. Yet they remain underfunded for research. All four tapir species — the Asian (Malayan) tapir (Tapirus indicus), Baird’s tapir (T. bairdii), the lowland or South American tapir (T. terrestris) and the mountain tapir (T. pinchaque) — are […]
Heat, fires and agribusiness squeeze traditional Amazon açaí harvesters (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/heat-fires-and-agribusiness-squeeze-traditional-amazon-acai-harvesters/
- Intensive farming of the popular açaí berry grew by 70% since 2015, while community cooperatives reported losses of 35% or more during recent heat waves and fires.
- Industrial açaí crops often rely on artificial irrigation and nonnative honeybees, adapting the Amazon to intensive methods rather than benefiting from the biome’s own systems.
- Market analysis indicates increasing international demand and rising prices, a trend that pushes for high-yield commercial monocultures over forest-based extraction.
After nearly a century, Taiwan’s legless lizard gets its own identity (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/after-nearly-a-century-taiwans-legless-lizard-gets-its-own-identity/
A new study has cleared up a century’s worth of identity confusion surrounding a secretive, legless lizard found in Taiwan’s forests. Researchers from National Taiwan Normal University confirmed the Formosan legless lizard (Dopasia formosensis) is a distinct species endemic to the island, separate from the more widespread Hart’s glass lizard (D. harti), under which it […]
Endangered civet faces local extinction in Cambodian sanctuary (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/endangered-civet-faces-local-extinction-in-cambodian-sanctuary/
The large-spotted civet is an endangered small carnivore found in pockets of forest across Southeast Asia. Now, a new study suggests the nocturnal mammals are heading toward local extinction in Cambodia’s Srepok Wildlife Sanctuary (SWS), once considered a global stronghold for the species. The study, published in Pacific Conservation Biology, analyzed a decade of camera-trap […]
Peter Raven, botanist and advocate for biodiversity, has died, aged 89 (April 27, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/peter-raven-botanist-and-advocate-for-biodiversity-has-died-aged-89/
- Peter Raven was one of the most influential botanists of the 20th century, helping to shape modern understanding of biodiversity and coevolution.
- As director of the Missouri Botanical Garden for nearly four decades, he transformed it into a global center for research, conservation, and education.
- He was an early and persistent voice warning that human activity—through habitat loss, consumption, and population growth—was driving a mass loss of species.
- His work combined science and public engagement, emphasizing that understanding the natural world carries an obligation to sustain it.
Don Janssen, wildlife veterinarian who argued that caring for animals begins with people (April 26, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/don-janssen-wildlife-veterinarian-who-argued-that-caring-for-animals-begins-with-people/
- Don Janssen spent more than three decades at the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park, helping shape modern zoological medicine through clinical work, research, and leadership.
- He came to believe that veterinary care depended as much on trust, relationships, and teamwork as on technical expertise.
- Drawing on his experience, he developed and taught a model of “servant leadership” that emphasized presence, humility, and clarity in times of stress.
- Later in life, a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease reinforced his view that while circumstances cannot be controlled, one’s response to them can.
As Walk for Peace begins in Sri Lanka, activists call for animal rights (April 26, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/as-walk-for-peace-begins-in-sri-lanka-activists-call-for-animal-rights/
- Aloka, previously a stray dog in India, has become a global symbol of compassion, accompanying Buddhist monks on their intercontinental Walk for Peace, which is now in Sri Lanka.
- Concerns were expressed over Aloka’s health and safety due to the prevalence of intense heat in Sri Lanka, with unusually high daytime temperatures and humid conditions prompting special care measures including a trailing ambulance and veterinary support throughout the journey.
- With an estimated 2.5 million stray dogs in Sri Lanka, activists critiqued an initial plan to remove street dogs from the walking path to avoid local dogs threatening Aloka’s safety.
- Animal rights advocates are using the moment to call for the long-delayed Animal Welfare Bill, urging stronger legal protections and humane treatment, replacing the country’s outdated laws to protect wild, domestic and stray animals.
These tiny houses are designed to stand in extreme floods (April 25, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/video/2026/04/how-bangladesh-builds-houses-that-stand-in-extreme-floods/
JAMUNA RIVER, Bangladesh — Bulbul has just married and moved into a small village in northeast Bangladesh, a region battered year after year by severe flooding. During the rainy season, water routinely invades homes, wipes out crops, and turns daily life into a struggle for survival. For families like Bulbul’s, rebuilding after each monsoon has […]
Nan Schaffer, veterinarian who helped unlock the science of rhino reproduction, has died, aged 72 (April 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/nan-schaffer-veterinarian-who-helped-unlock-the-science-of-rhino-reproduction-has-died-aged-72/
- Nan Schaffer, a veterinarian who pioneered the study of rhinoceros reproduction, devoted her career to understanding and overcoming the biological barriers that kept captive rhinos from breeding as wild populations declined.
- Working across zoos and research programs, she developed techniques to manage pregnancies, collect and preserve genetic material, and build the scientific foundation that underpins modern rhino conservation efforts.
- Beyond her scientific work, she was a prominent supporter of LGBTQ+ causes in Chicago, a philanthropist, and a civic figure recognized with induction into the Chicago LGBTQ+ Hall of Fame.
- Guided by a belief that the loss of species would diminish human understanding of the natural world, she argued that extinction was not only a biological crisis but a cultural and moral one, with consequences that extend beyond conservation itself.
AI is a double-edged sword for Indigenous stewardship, say U.N. experts (April 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/ai-is-a-double-edged-sword-for-indigenous-stewardship-say-u-n-experts/
- At the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues 25th session, U.N. experts called attention to the opportunities and dangers of AI-centered conservation efforts.
- A study published by former chair of the permanent forum Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim highlighted that AI can positively contribute to the protection of the environment but also impact efforts, due to its high consumption of energy, water and critical minerals.
- AI can support the protection and management of Indigenous peoples’ lands and resources, such as by monitoring the environment to detect deforestation, fires, or illegal extraction.
- Experts warned that to ensure the protection of Indigenous peoples and their territories, governments must prevent all forms of land-grabbing, water exploitation and mining activities related to data centers and energy sources, and respect Indigenous rights, worldviews and aspirations.
NPFC adopts illegal fishing measures — but no Emperor Seamount protections (April 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/npfc-adopts-illegal-fishing-measures-but-no-emperor-seamount-protections/
- The 10th annual meeting of the North Pacific Fisheries Commission (NFPC) took place April 14-17 in Osaka, Japan.
- While the NPFC members enacted new measures to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, leading NGOs criticized the commission for failing to act on bottom trawling in the Emperor Seamount Chain, a biodiversity-rich volcanic submarine mountain range in the Northwest Pacific.
- Some NPFC members and observers also expressed disappointment about backtracking on stock management and conservation for the Pacific saury, which is targeted by fishing fleets of several member countries.
Investigators eye organized crime links in 3-ton pangolin scale haul at Jakarta port (April 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/investigators-eye-organized-crime-links-in-3-ton-pangolin-scale-haul-at-jakarta-port/
- Customs officers in Jakarta planned to conduct interviews this month in connection with the seizure of more than 3 metric tons of pangolin scales, which inspectors found in a shipping container bound for Cambodia in late February.
- Mongabay Indonesia visited the address registered to the company exporting the container, but it appeared to be a shopfront, while its contact numbers registered in a government database were inactive.
- Indonesian authorities continue to make more pangolin scale seizures: This month, a Navy vessel intercepted a Vietnam-flagged cargo boat off the northwest coast of Java found to be carrying 780 kg (1,720 lbs) of scales.
AI tool tracks spread of illegal gold mining in Amazon protected areas (April 24, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/ai-tool-tracks-spread-of-illegal-gold-mining-in-amazon-protected-areas/
- Gold mining presumed to be illegal caused 6,000 hectares (more than 14,800 acres) of deforestation in Amazonian protected areas and Indigenous territories during the last three months of 2025, according to a new quarterly report from the Amazon Mining Watch platform.
- New mining scars were identified in all nine Amazonian countries, with Brazil, Peru and Guyana suffering the highest levels of mining-linked deforestation.
- Soaring gold prices are driving this destruction, experts say, and call for more monitoring, law enforcement and coordinated action between countries to tackle the issue.
- Using an AI algorithm that’s constantly being improved, the Amazon Mining Watch platform aims to serve as an early-warning tool for authorities and civil society to identify and address new incidences of illegal gold mining, especially in border areas.