Rhett Ayers Butler

Rhett Ayers Butler

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About

Rhett Butler is the founder and CEO of Mongabay.

Rhett founded Mongabay out of his passion for wildlife and wild places.

He has traveled widely in the tropics and enjoys photography, hiking, and scuba-diving.

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Some background on Mongabay's origin:

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1830 stories
Dendrelaphis melanarkys or black net tree snake. Photo by Fred Kraus.

Four new snake species discovered in Papua New Guinea

Rhett Ayers Butler 5 Jun 2025
Greenpeace Brazil conducted an aerial survey in southern Amazonas and northern Rondônia to monitor deforestation and fires in July 2024. Photo © Marizilda Cruppe / Greenpeace.

Climate strikes the Amazon, undermining protection efforts

Rhett Ayers Butler 5 Jun 2025
A Bornean orangutan. Image by Rhett A. Butler/Mongabay.

A new report lists the world’s 25 most endangered primates. Most people have never heard of them.

Rhett Ayers Butler 4 Jun 2025

What does it take to expose 67 illegal airstrips in the Amazon? A year of reporting — and the trust of local communities

Rhett Ayers Butler 2 Jun 2025
Derek Pomeroy. Photo by Andrew Plumptre

Derek Pomeroy, a leading figure in Ugandan ornithology died on May 29th, aged 90

Rhett Ayers Butler 31 May 2025
Valmik Thapar. Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters

Valmik Thapar, India’s tiger man, died on May 31st, aged 73

Rhett Ayers Butler 31 May 2025

Hero rats among the global anti-poaching efforts affected by U.S. funding cuts

Rhett Ayers Butler 29 May 2025
Gopi Warrier in Kerala in May 2025. Photo by Rhett Ayers Butler.

Rigorous, not righteous: How Gopi Warrier helped build Mongabay India’s newsroom

Rhett Ayers Butler 28 May 2025

Indigenous lands & protected areas are barely offsetting emissions from damage in the rest of the Amazon

Rhett Ayers Butler 28 May 2025
Sebastião Salgado. Courtesy of Instituto Terra

Photographer Sebastião Salgado (1944-2025) planted a forest and grew a global movement

Rhett Ayers Butler 25 May 2025
Radheshyam Bishnoi in 2021. From his Instagram.

Radheshyam Bishnoi, protector of India’s wildlife, died on May 24, 2025, aged 28

Rhett Ayers Butler 24 May 2025
Sandhya Sekar in Kerala, India in 2025; Photo by Rhett Ayers Butler.

How Mongabay India took root: Interview with Sandhya Sekar

Rhett Ayers Butler 21 May 2025
Barbara Yeaman. Image courtesy of Delaware Highlands Conservancy.

Barbara Yeaman, aviator and conservation pioneer, died April 6, aged 100

Rhett Ayers Butler 8 May 2025
Alwyn Gentry at work in Ecuador. Image courtesy of Randall Hyman.

Alwyn Gentry died young, but left a forest’s worth of ideas behind

Rhett Ayers Butler 7 May 2025
Ridzki in Jambi in 2022.

How Mongabay Indonesia grew into a trusted environmental voice: Interview with Ridzki Sigit 

Rhett Ayers Butler 6 May 2025

Jim Brandenburg, conservation photographer, died April 4th, aged 79

Rhett Ayers Butler 5 May 2025
Marielle Ramires from Instagram

Marielle Ramires, Brazilian activist and environmental communicator, died on April 29th, aged 45.

Rhett Ayers Butler 2 May 2025

Abel Rodríguez, artist who drew a vanishing forest from memory, died April 9, age unknown

Rhett Ayers Butler 1 May 2025
An indri lemur (Indri indri). Image by Rhett A. Butler.

Indigenous stewardship plays a key role in protecting imperiled primates

Rhett Ayers Butler 30 Apr 2025
Mongabay Founder and CEO Rhett A. Butler. Image by Mongabay.

Reflections on 20 years of Mongabay News (commentary)

Rhett Ayers Butler 30 Apr 2025
Split shot in the waters of San Benedicto, Mexico. Credit: Enric Sala/National Geographic Pristine Seas

Protecting coastal waters may be the best investment you’ve never heard of, says Kristin Rechberger

Rhett Ayers Butler 29 Apr 2025

We can’t plant our way out of climate change

Rhett Ayers Butler 28 Apr 2025
Ex-captive orangutans at Camp Leaky in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Photos by Rhett A. Butler

An interview with orangutan conservationist and advocate Gary Shapiro

Rhett Ayers Butler 25 Apr 2025
Elephants move across the African savannah. Photo by Rhett A. Butler / Mongabay

The wisdom of the elders: Why the oldest animals matter

Rhett Ayers Butler 24 Apr 2025
A Chinese pangolin. Image by Sarita Jnawali of NTNC – Central Zoo via Flickr (CC BY 2.0).

Pangolins help biodiversity recover after fires

Rhett Ayers Butler 23 Apr 2025

Indigenous women in Peru lead wildcat conservation initiative

Rhett Ayers Butler 22 Apr 2025
Auyán-Tepuí in Venezuela. Image by Rhett A. Butler/Mongabay.

In the shadow of Angel Falls: How Auyán-Tepuí sparked my reverence for nature

Rhett Ayers Butler 22 Apr 2025
Canopy platform in Amacayacu National Park, Colombia. Photo: Rhett A. Butler.

Ecologists are spending less time in the field. That could be a problem.

Rhett Ayers Butler 21 Apr 2025
A young orangutan grasps and hangs on to a woody liana.

Nature on the move: How conservation must adapt to survive

Rhett Ayers Butler 18 Apr 2025
Ochieng Ogodo

Ochieng’ Ogodo, science journalist, mentor, and editor, died on April 17th, aged 64

Rhett Ayers Butler 17 Apr 2025

Even in death, Indigenous Fijians protect the sea

Rhett Ayers Butler 17 Apr 2025
The temperate Hoh rainforest in the U.S. Image by Rhett A. Butler/Mongabay.

Proforestation: The case for leaving trees alone

Rhett Ayers Butler 17 Apr 2025

News and Inspiration from Nature's Frontline.

Fungi are our climate allies | Against All Odds
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White rhyolite spires on the shores of Jodogahama Beach in Miyako, Japan. Iwate prefecture. These spires are estimated to be around 45 million years old, and form a natural version of a Japanese garden. This beach is part of the Sanriku Fukkō National Park. It was incorporated into this national park as a reconstruction effort following the Tōhoku Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011. Photo by Mike DiGirolamo/Mongabay.
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