Wildlife populations monitored across the globe have declined by a massive 69 per cent between 1970 and 2018, according to this WWF's Living Planet Report (LPR) 2022. Monitored wildlife populations - mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish - have seen a devastating 69% drop on average since 1970, according to …
Wildlife populations monitored across the globe have declined by a massive 69 per cent between 1970 and 2018, according to this WWF's Living Planet Report (LPR) 2022. Monitored wildlife populations - mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish - have seen a devastating 69% drop on average since 1970, according to …
This new and updated Wildlife Comeback Report commissioned by Rewilding Europe, which will provide the latest and state-of-the-art insights, opportunities and challenges for wildlife comeback at a European scale. Experts from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), BirdLife International and the European Bird Census Council have been working on this …
An international team of scientists identified the snake and its range, which includes Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Iraq, Iran, and Russia including a small region extending into the corner of Europe. Based on the genetic and morphological data, the researchers were able to say that the Blotched Rat Snake (Elaphe …
Sri Lanka is seeking greater international protection for several lizard species found nowhere else on Earth. The country hosts the next meeting of CITES next month, where it will propose several endemic lizard species for inclusion in the convention’s Appendix I, including the Knuckles pygmy lizard (Cophotis dumbara), considered critically …
New research shows that culling invasive, non-native animals on just 169 islands around the world over roughly the next decade could help save almost 10 percent of island-dwelling animals at risk of extinction. A team of scientists surveyed nearly 1,300 islands where 1,184 threatened native animals have collided with 184 …
An Iowa State University biologist is sounding the alarm for the painted turtle, one of many reptiles for which climate change could prove particularly threatening. Fluctuations in temperature driven by climate change could devastate a range of species for which sex is determined by temperature during critical stages of development, …
Human-induced environmental and climate change are widely blamed for causing rapid global biodiversity loss, but direct estimation of the proportion of biodiversity lost at local or regional scales are still infrequent. This prevents us from quantifying the main and interactive effects of anthropogenic environmental and climate change on species loss. …
The list, which is to be published on the World Environment Day (05 June), mentions the specific condition of each species. This move is a continuation of a work of the Ministry of the Environment with the support of partners. The red list includes three categories: Species that are Extinct, …
When JRR Tolkien completed his sketch “Death of Smaug” for The Hobbit in the early 1930s‚ he was illustrating a work of fiction. But it turns out he was being prophetic‚ too. Tolkien‚ born in Bloemfontein in 1892‚ spent his first three years in the Free State where sungazer lizards …
The strong focus on species extinctions, a critical aspect of the contemporary pulse of biological extinction, leads to a common misimpression that Earth’s biota is not immediately threatened, just slowly entering an episode of major biodiversity loss. This view overlooks the current trends of population declines and extinctions. Using a …
Scientists believe more than 80 percent of the world’s plants and animals remain undiscovered. But as rainforests are cleared, we are losing these species before we even know they exist. 2 new reptiles discovered in Sumatra A newly discovered snake in Takengon, in the highlands of Aceh province, was named …
The oft-repeated claim that Earth’s biota is entering a sixth “mass extinction” depends on clearly demonstrating that current extinction rates are far above the “background” rates prevailing in the five previous mass extinctions. Earlier estimates of extinction rates have been criticized for using assumptions that might overestimate the severity of …
Reptiles being sold openly and illegally in Moroccan markets Several species of lizards, snakes, tortoise and crocodiles are being traded openly in Moroccan markets for use in traditional medicine. Much of the trade is illegal, researchers say. Since this trade is largely unregulated, scientists are yet to understand the effects …
The taxonomy of giant Galapagos tortoises (Chelonoidis spp.) is currently based primarily on morphological characters and island of origin. Over the last decade, compelling genetic evidence has accumulated for multiple independent evolutionary lineages, spurring the need for taxonomic revision. On the island of Santa Cruz there is currently a single …
Climate is recognized as one of the main factors responsible for shaping large-scale species distributions. Global climate change observed over the past decades has produced shifts in the distribution and abundance of numerous species and is responsible for species extinction. Increased levels of global warming are expected to have different …
Solitary nesting of olive ridleys at Gahirmatha rookery occurred almost every month during the nesting season. However, solitary nesting turtles were more frequent between February and April, suggesting this is the main nesting season for the species (Dash and Kar, 1990). As solitary nesting activity of olive ridley turtles on …
Previous studies have shown that the world’s largest reptile – the leatherback turtle Dermochelys coriacea – conducts flexible foraging migrations that can cover thousands of kilometres between nesting sites and distant foraging areas. The vast distances that may be travelled by migrating leatherback turtles have greatly complicated conservation efforts for …
Climate models predict that the global population of lizards will be reduced by 2080 due to climate change. However, a new study revealed that the effects of global warming to the lizards might be worse than what was previously thought. The study, published in the journal Proceedings to the National …
This newly described snake, with a vivid orange and black banding pattern on its body, belongs to the genus Geophis, a group that is commonly referred to as earth snakes. Researchers have named the new species Geophis lorancai in honor of biologist Miguel Ángel de la Torre Loranca, who collected …
The Endangered Species Act was enacted by Congress in 1973 to protect species threatened with extinction. To receive protection, a species must first be listed as endangered or threatened. A two-year timeline for the process was established in 1982 by a Congressional amendment to the ESA. Researchers found that many …
