Last year the Christmas Island shrew, slender-billed curlew, and three Australian bandicoots were among the species formally declared extinct. None has been seen in at least 30 years, but bureaucracy takes a while. They may be joined in the next decade or so by the vaquita and the Sumatran rhino. A child born today may grow up knowing them through archival footage of the last few animals or AI-generated simulations. But biodiversity loss isn’t only about species extinction. The death of a single elder elephant can have consequences for the entire herd. Her knowledge of water sources, for example, can be critical in a drought. And the disappearance of that herd can have knock-on effects on a forest. Seeds lose their dispersal mechanisms, and clearings maintained by elephants may fill in. The result is a less resilient ecosystem even if the change isn’t immediately apparent. Forest elephants in Dzanga Bai, Central African Republic. Image by Rhett A. Butler/Mongabay. Delegates gathering in Yerevan, Armenia, for the U.N.’s COP17 biodiversity talks will assess countries’ progress toward goals to slow these kinds of losses. Under the Kunming-Montreal biodiversity framework, adopted in 2022, governments pledged to conserve 30% of land and seas by 2030 and restore degraded ecosystems. Only four years remain before that deadline. The previous agreement doesn’t inspire much hope: not a single one of the 20 Aichi biodiversity targets had been fully achieved globally by 2020. Implementation of these agreements is also entirely at the mercy of whoever holds office.…This article was originally published on Mongabay

Thousands of delegates are now gathering in Yerevan to discuss the future of life on Earth as we know it at the U.N.’s COP17 biodiversity summit. Countries have made considerable progress in developing national conservation plans under the biodiversity framework agreed to at COP15 in Montreal in 2022, but most remain well off pace to meet the overall goals set for 2030, according to an assessment published by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity on Thursday. The report finds that nearly 90% of the Convention on Biological Diversity’s 196 parties have established national biodiversity targets, close to 60% have completed national biodiversity strategies and action plans, and more than 70% have submitted national reports. However, fewer than half of the national targets assessed by governments are on track. The U.S. is not a party to the treaty. Graphical representation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. From State of Biodiversity Action: Global Report on Collective Progress in the Implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework The framework set 23 targets aimed at halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030. They include conserving 30% of the world’s land and seas, restoring 30% of degraded ecosystems, reducing pollution and invasive species, slowing species extinctions, reforming subsidies that damage nature, and mobilizing $200 billion a year for biodiversity. Most countries have incorporated much of that agenda into national policy. At the time the report was prepared, 162 parties (83%) had established targets aligned with the global framework, covering an average of 22…This article was originally published on Mongabay

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen to the lowest level on record. Data released today by Brazil’s national space research institute, INPE, shows that forest clearing in Earth’s largest rainforest over the 12 months ended July 31, 2026, amounted to 3,335 square kilometers (1,288 square miles), an area smaller than the Spanish island of Mallorca. That is 42% below the previous year’s figure. INPE PRODES data for 1988-2026. Deforestation in the Cerrado, the wooded savanna next to the Amazon rainforest, fell 24% to 5,516 sq km, also the lowest tally on record. The Cerrado has been the fastest-deforested biome in Brazil in recent decades, as vast areas have been converted to ranchland and industrial agriculture.  The reduction has accelerated since President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took office in 2023. Lula restored environmental law enforcement, expanded conservation programs, and resumed efforts to establish protected areas and recognize Indigenous territories. He faces a tough re-election bid later this month, raising concerns about whether recent progress in reducing Amazon forest loss will continue. Seven of the nine governors of Amazon states are allied with Flávio Bolsonaro, the frontrunner, who has campaigned on reducing protections for the Amazon. Beyond the political dynamics, the near-term outlook for the Amazon is challenged by the super El Niño brewing in the Pacific. El Niño events are associated with drought in the southern Amazon, and fires typically increase in the year after a strong event. INPE PRODES data for 1988-2026. Deforestation in the Amazon now amounts…This article was originally published on Mongabay

In recent years, there has been a steady stream of ocean conservation pledges, from French Polynesia extending marine protection across its nearly 5 million-square-kilometer exclusive economic zone, including more than 1 million square kilometers of highly or fully protected waters, to the Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Corridor (CMAR), where Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama agreed to establish a contiguous, transboundary safe passage of more than 500,000 square kilometers (193,000 square miles) for migratory species. There is also much greater recognition of the contributions made by traditional stewards, including Indigenous communities, artisanal fishers, and other coastal communities. On paper, at least, this would seem to bode well for progress toward protecting 30% of the ocean by 2030. Yet at the same time that these announcements are being made, we also hear about “paper parks” — those protected in name only — industrial fishing vessels entering protected areas, boats turning off their transponders, and abandoned fishing gear drifting through supposedly protected waters. Coral reef in the Pacific. Photo by Rhett Ayers Butler / Mongabay Over the summer, looking across academic literature and Mongabay’s multilingual coverage, I tried to pin down what the evidence actually shows about marine conservation outcomes in the Americas. Merging peer-reviewed datasets with field reporting has its limitations, but it helps bridge a common divide: studies document broader ecological trends, while journalists track the political compromises and enforcement lapses that shape what happens on the water. Unsurprisingly, the central takeaway is that marine conservation is most likely to…This article was originally published on Mongabay

Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. The jaguarundi was recently recategorized from least concern to near threatened on the IUCN Red List, reports contributor Sean Mowbray for Mongabay. The small cat, which ranges from Mexico to southern Brazil and Argentina and lives in a variety of habitats, is in decline due to human-wildlife conflict, dangerous roadways, attacks by dogs, and infectious disease, according to researchers. The reclassification of the jaguarundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi) to a higher threat category may be surprising because it’s one of the most frequently seen small cats in the Americas, as it’s active during the daytime and often lives in open areas. “It’s easier to be seen and because of that, people perceived it as common,” said Tadeu de Oliveira, who led the assessment as co-chair of the Cat Specialist Group at the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. “But when you quantify it data-wise, it shows to be otherwise.” Conservationists say they hope the reclassification will give the jaguarundi more attention. Its otter-like appearance, color variants, and wide range of vocalizations make it an especially charismatic species. Read the full story by Sean Mowbray here. Banner image: Jaguarundis are sometimes known as the “otter cat” due to their distinctive, uncat-like appearance. They’re unique for their wide range of vocalizations, including “chirping” like a bird. Image by Wild Cats Brazil-Americas Conservation Program/Gatos do Mato.This article was originally published on Mongabay

Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. For the first time in the modern history of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a local nongovernmental organization will co-manage a protected area in the country with its wildlife authority, reports Mongabay’s Elodie Toto. Strong Roots Congo will co-manage Itombwe Nature Reserve in South Kivu province with the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature (ICCN) under a public-private partnership. “It is an honor,” Dominique Bikaba, founder of Strong Roots Congo, told Toto. “I think the government chose us because they have observed the work we have done in the biodiversity corridor and the way we have put local communities at the center of conservation.” Strong Roots has secured nearly 600,000 hectares (roughly 1.5 million acres) of community land to create a corridor between Kahuzi-Biega National Park and Itombwe Nature Reserve. It aims to secure 1 million hectares (about 2.5 million acres). The development comes three months after the DRC adopted a National Forest Policy that recognizes the rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities to manage forest areas. The measures are significant because many protected areas in the country were created through the eviction of Indigenous populations, exacerbating conflict between local communities and park authorities. Read the full story by Elodie Toto here. Banner image: Critically endangered Grauer’s gorillas live in Itombwe Nature Reserve. Image courtesy of Strong Roots Congo.  This article was originally published on Mongabay

Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. In Clayoquot Sound, in the Canadian province of British Columbia, a partnership between the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation, the Redd Fish Restoration Society, and West Coast Kelp is helping rebuild degraded kelp forests, reports contributor Jennifer Cole for Mongabay. The initiative, launched in early 2026, has established a nursery to grow young bull kelp (Nereocystis luetkeana) and giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) beyond the reach of grazers such as sea urchins. Sections are then harvested and transplanted to sites around Clayoquot Sound. So far, the area replanted is small — 4,200 square meters (45,208 square feet), or the size of about 10 basketball courts — but the project may help show how kelp forests can be restored more effectively. “We know that kelp creates habitat, but we don’t have numbers to associate with that, and we want to be able to determine the actual benefit,” Emily Fulton, the marine program manager for the Redd Fish Restoration Society, told Mongabay. Fulton said traditional knowledge preserved in Tla-o-qui-aht oral history has helped the project identify where to plant. “My ancestors had a system of reciprocity where they knew not to take too much, and we were always giving back,” said Tatt Charlie, a tribal guardian of the Tla-o-qui-aht. “So, to have that balance is what we’re trying to achieve with our territories. It’s really interesting to see that these are the baby steps we need to take…This article was originally published on Mongabay