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	<channel>
		<title>Conservation news</title>
		<atom:link href="https://news.mongabay.com/feed/?location=southern-africa&#038;type=post" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/southern-africa/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2026 12:47:59 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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	<title>Southern Africa environmental news</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/southern-africa/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>Steve Smit, South Africa’s “Monkey Man,” has died</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/steve-smit-south-africas-monkey-man-has-died/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/steve-smit-south-africas-monkey-man-has-died/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Aug 2026 21:18:30 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/15211254/steve-smit-header-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=326312</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Founder's briefs]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Monkeys, Obituary, Primates, Wildlife Rehabilitation, and Wildlife Rescues]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In 2015 Steve Smit badly injured his right eye while trying to round up rescued chickens in his garden in Westville, near Durban. A branch struck him and almost cost him his sight. Doctors told him to rest. Within weeks he had gone on more than 20 wildlife rescues, wearing an eye patch. For three [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In 2015 Steve Smit badly injured his right eye while trying to round up rescued chickens in his garden in Westville, near Durban. A branch struck him and almost cost him his sight. Doctors told him to rest. Within weeks he had gone on more than 20 wildlife rescues, wearing an eye patch. For three decades Smit climbed trees, crossed roofs, crawled under buildings, and entered gardens to retrieve vervet monkeys that had been shot, shocked on power lines, hit by cars, bitten by dogs, or caught in wire. Around KwaZulu-Natal he became known simply as the “Monkey Man.” He died on August 12th after a battle with cancer. He was 70. Before rescuing monkeys became his full-time occupation, Smit spent roughly 25 years in South Africa’s intelligence services. He had first joined the police after objecting to military conscription, and later moved through the Bureau of State Security and National Intelligence Service. In an oral-history interview in 2007, he recalled being troubled by the conduct and culture of some of the institutions in which he worked. His involvement with animals began while he was still in government service. In 1985 he founded FALCON, the Front for Animal Liberation and Conservation of Nature, described as South Africa’s first animal-rights organization. It later became Justice for Animals. Smit campaigned against vivisection, recreational hunting, circuses, wildlife trade, and other uses of animals that he regarded as exploitation. His position often put him at odds with conservationists. Smit was concerned not only with&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/steve-smit-south-africas-monkey-man-has-died/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/steve-smit-south-africas-monkey-man-has-died/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-326312</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>&#8216;To speak of agroecology is to speak of farmers’ autonomy&#8217;: Interview with Olga Muthambe</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/to-speak-of-agroecology-is-to-speak-of-farmers-autonomy-interview-with-olga-muthambe/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/to-speak-of-agroecology-is-to-speak-of-farmers-autonomy-interview-with-olga-muthambe/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Aug 2026 12:34:37 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Far Vubil]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/14152821/Olga-corte-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=326233</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, agribusiness, Agriculture, Agroecology, Business, Conflict, Conservation, Economics, Environment, Food, Food Industry, food security, Governance, Natural Resources, and Social Conflict]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In Mozambique, southeast Africa, more than 1,600 women participate in agroecological practice programs across the provinces of Maputo and Gaza (both in the south), Tete (central region) and Cabo Delgado (far north). These initiatives are led by Hikone Moçambique, a civil society association founded in 2013 that seeks to empower rural women. The organization’s work [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In Mozambique, southeast Africa, more than 1,600 women participate in agroecological practice programs across the provinces of Maputo and Gaza (both in the south), Tete (central region) and Cabo Delgado (far north). These initiatives are led by Hikone Moçambique, a civil society association founded in 2013 that seeks to empower rural women. The organization’s work focuses primarily on Mozambican women facing social vulnerability. The displacement of local populations, with resulting impacts on livelihoods, along with expropriation and concentration of land and resources, are some of the most common adverse effects associated with extractive industries that often amount to appropriation of nature through labor exploitation. According to Hikone Moçambique, extractive industries also undermine food sovereignty and exacerbate inequalities, disproportionately affecting women, who lose their income-generating alternatives. Hikone was co-founded by Mozambican social activist and current executive director Olga Muthambe. A feminist, community development practitioner, self-taught educator and mother of seven, she has over 30 years of experience with rural communities. In the 1990s, Muthambe worked with women and youth rehabilitation projects following the civil war in Mozambique (1977-1992), where she led initiatives to ensure food security. Decades later, in 2021, in the midst of another armed conflict in Cabo Delgado, the NGO expanded its work to support women affected by violence and forced displacement, which impacted around one million people in that province alone. Throughout its history, the organization has worked with more than 5,000 women across various activities, including training, community gatherings and seminars throughout Mozambique. In 2025, Muthambe also&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/to-speak-of-agroecology-is-to-speak-of-farmers-autonomy-interview-with-olga-muthambe/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/to-speak-of-agroecology-is-to-speak-of-farmers-autonomy-interview-with-olga-muthambe/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-326233</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>A mine polluted a Zambian river in 2025: Residents continue to live with the impacts</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-mine-polluted-a-zambian-river-in-2025-residents-continue-to-live-with-the-impacts/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-mine-polluted-a-zambian-river-in-2025-residents-continue-to-live-with-the-impacts/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Aug 2026 16:13:34 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/13112856/b.-AP25218405123384-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=326147</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Southern Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Environment, Governance, Health, Illegal Mining, Mining, Natural Resources, Pollution, Waste, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[One and a half years after the collapse of a large tailings dam in Zambia’s Copperbelt Province, the environmental and human impacts of the toxic spill continue to affect residents, civil society members have told Mongabay. The dam, which is used to store mining waste and is owned by Chinese copper company Sino-Metals Leach Zambia, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[One and a half years after the collapse of a large tailings dam in Zambia’s Copperbelt Province, the environmental and human impacts of the toxic spill continue to affect residents, civil society members have told Mongabay. The dam, which is used to store mining waste and is owned by Chinese copper company Sino-Metals Leach Zambia, failed on Feb. 18, 2025, in the town of Chambishi in north-central Zambia. It released millions of liters of acidic mining waste into waterways connected to the Kafue River. Stretching 1,576 kilometers (979 miles), the Kafue is the longest river lying entirely within Zambia and a lifeline for millions of people in the country. A study by researchers at Zambia’s Copperbelt University published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials Advances in May 2026 is the first independent scientific assessment of the ecological impacts of the incident. The researchers found severely compromised water quality, high concentrations of heavy metals in water, fish, sediments and pastures, and evidence that toxic substances had entered the food chain. The larger Kafue River system provides water to around half of Zambia&#8217;s population. It feeds into the Zambezi River and sustains biodiverse wetland ecosystems including the Lukanga Swamp and the Kafue Flats. For the study, the scientists collected water samples from five sites in the affected area and one in the unaffected area as a control in the days following the accident. Their analysis of the samples showed that heavy metal concentrations, including of copper, iron, zinc, lead and arsenic, exceeded&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-mine-polluted-a-zambian-river-in-2025-residents-continue-to-live-with-the-impacts/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-mine-polluted-a-zambian-river-in-2025-residents-continue-to-live-with-the-impacts/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-326147</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>On ivory, follow the trafficking networks and not the headlines (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/on-ivory-follow-the-trafficking-networks-and-not-the-headlines-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/on-ivory-follow-the-trafficking-networks-and-not-the-headlines-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Aug 2026 22:47:08 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mary Rice]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/02/25133056/image1-e1786130110289-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325640</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Central Africa, Global, Southern Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Business, Charismatic Animals, Commentary, Conservation, Crime, Elephants, Environment, Governance, Illegal Trade, Ivory, Mammals, Organized Crime, Poaching, Trade, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In early March 2026, acting on intelligence shared by my organization, the Environmental Investigation Agency UK, Zambian authorities seized a consignment of more than 500 kg (over 1,100 pounds) of ivory and arrested a suspect with long-standing links to regional ivory trafficking operations. One of the suspects involved in the case was convicted in 2019 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In early March 2026, acting on intelligence shared by my organization, the Environmental Investigation Agency UK, Zambian authorities seized a consignment of more than 500 kg (over 1,100 pounds) of ivory and arrested a suspect with long-standing links to regional ivory trafficking operations. One of the suspects involved in the case was convicted in 2019 for possession of more than 200 kg (almost 441 lbs) of ivory and was sentenced to five years in prison in 2020. He was released after a matter of months and has continued trading ivory ever since. So, Zambia, which has been exploited by criminal networks operating with relative impunity since at least 2002, is under the spotlight once again. Of particular concern is the involvement of Congolese criminal groups, which continue to operate across Zambia and the wider region, sourcing and moving wildlife products including elephant ivory, rhino horn, pangolin scales and big cats along complex transnational routes toward Asia, with Vietnam often serving as a key transit hub to other destinations. Exploiting the lack of political will, weak enforcement, corrupt officials and marginalized communities to facilitate their trade, these networks have been orchestrating poaching expeditions into neighboring countries, using Zambian intermediaries to supply their illicit trade chains. This recent interception in Zambia — alongside two other large-scale seizures made in Tanzania and Botswana in April and May respectively — brings the minimum total of ivory seized globally since 2023 to approximately 29 tons, nearly 64,000 pounds. That’s the equivalent of at least 4,000&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/on-ivory-follow-the-trafficking-networks-and-not-the-headlines-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/on-ivory-follow-the-trafficking-networks-and-not-the-headlines-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325640</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>From small cats to pangolins: Detection dogs help track elusive species</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/from-small-cats-to-pangolins-detection-dogs-help-track-elusive-species/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/from-small-cats-to-pangolins-detection-dogs-help-track-elusive-species/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>08 Aug 2026 08:30:57 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[María de los Ángeles Orfila]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/06191544/MichelleSchroederWithLyka_BenfonteinNatureReserveSouthAfricaAug2021_VeerBills-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325496</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Namibia, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animal Intelligence, Animals, Biodiversity, Cats, Conservation, Environment, Habitat, Mammals, Small Cats, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In the grassy dwarf shrublands of South Africa&#8217;s Karoo, Michelle Marie Schroeder is looking for a very specific kind of poo. Black-footed cats spend most of the day hidden in burrows and emerge mainly under the cover of darkness, making them notoriously difficult to study. That&#8217;s why the conservation biologist relies unconventional assistants: Lyka and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In the grassy dwarf shrublands of South Africa&#8217;s Karoo, Michelle Marie Schroeder is looking for a very specific kind of poo. Black-footed cats spend most of the day hidden in burrows and emerge mainly under the cover of darkness, making them notoriously difficult to study. That&#8217;s why the conservation biologist relies unconventional assistants: Lyka and Sebala, two German Shorthaired Pointers trained to detect the cats&#8217; scat by scent. When the dogs find a sample, they lie down and remain still to alert Schroeder, who works with the non-profit Canines for African Nature. Working on her own, Schroeder found just four scats in more than a year. Ten-year-old Lyka, by contrast, has located hundreds of samples in just a few months, providing the basis for non-invasive genetic monitoring of Felis nigripes. “I probably wouldn’t have found more than 90% of the scats without help,” she tells Mongabay. “And it’s also very difficult to distinguish them from those of other small carnivores. The dogs are much more accurate.” Lyka has located hundreds of black-footed cat scat samples, making non-invasive monitoring of the elusive species possible. Image courtesy of Veer Bills. On the trail of the black-footed cat Hal Brindley, a researcher at the Institute for Communities and Wildlife in Africa at the University of Cape Town, also studies these small, cryptic predators. “Studying the black-footed cat is incredibly difficult without resorting to invasive methods like trapping and collaring,” he says. “More common non-invasive approaches, such as camera trapping, are often ineffective. Fecal&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/from-small-cats-to-pangolins-detection-dogs-help-track-elusive-species/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/from-small-cats-to-pangolins-detection-dogs-help-track-elusive-species/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325496</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Global hunger levels fall but Africa still lags behind, UN report finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/global-hunger-levels-fall-but-africa-still-lags-behind-un-report-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/global-hunger-levels-fall-but-africa-still-lags-behind-un-report-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Aug 2026 13:22:06 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Charles Mpaka]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/04112439/HarvestingSorghum_Sudan2011_AfricaRenewalFlickrBYNCSA2.0-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325306</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[agribusiness, Agriculture, Commodity agriculture, Economics, Environment, Farming, Fertilizers, Governance, Industrial Agriculture, Research, and Subsistence Agriculture]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In its latest report on food security and nutrition around the world, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization says the number of people facing hunger globally has declined for the third consecutive year, but Africa still has the highest number of people with insufficient food. The FAO report estimated that 20% of Africans faced hunger [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In its latest report on food security and nutrition around the world, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization says the number of people facing hunger globally has declined for the third consecutive year, but Africa still has the highest number of people with insufficient food. The FAO report estimated that 20% of Africans faced hunger in 2025, compared to just 6% in Asia, and nearly 5% in Latin America and the Caribbean. The FAO report says the number of people facing hunger globally fell from 8.6% in 2022 to 7.8% in 2025. It further estimates that in 2025, hunger affected 14 million people less than in 2024 and 43 million less people than in 2022. In 2030, the report projects between 510 and 520 million people will be food insecure worldwide and more than half of them (56%) will be in Africa. Dry lakebed in Mabalane district, Mozambique: climate shocks are amongst the reasons for food insecurity in Africa. Image by Aurélie Marrier d&#8217;Unienville / IFRC via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0). “While the prevalence rate of undernourishment slightly stabilized at 20.0% in 2025, demographic pressure actually pushed the absolute number of hungry people [in Africa] to a record 309 million, surpassing Asia for the first time,” David Laborde, director of the FAO’s Agrifood Economics Division, told Mongabay via email. Laborde said that severe cuts to development aid, armed conflict, and climate shocks have hindered food production on the continent over the past decade. Erratic rains and rising temperature have affected&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/global-hunger-levels-fall-but-africa-still-lags-behind-un-report-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/global-hunger-levels-fall-but-africa-still-lags-behind-un-report-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325306</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Documentary captures impacts of diamond mining along South Africa’s West Coast</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/documentary-captures-impacts-of-diamond-mining-along-south-africas-west-coast/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/documentary-captures-impacts-of-diamond-mining-along-south-africas-west-coast/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Aug 2026 15:27:00 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/03110215/Photo-1-John-Yeld-Screenshot-2025-03-28-at-22.17.18-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325174</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Business, Critical Minerals, Ecosystems, Environment, Environmental Law, Fisheries, Fishing, Governance, Law, Mining, Natural Resources, and Oceans]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Stretching 450 kilometers (280 miles) from Cape Columbine, two hours north of Cape Town, to the Orange River which marks the country’s natural border with Namibia, South Africa’s West Coast is vast, remote and sparsely populated and, moving north, characterized by a harsh, arid climate. In the very north, not far inland, lies the Richtersveld, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Stretching 450 kilometers (280 miles) from Cape Columbine, two hours north of Cape Town, to the Orange River which marks the country’s natural border with Namibia, South Africa’s West Coast is vast, remote and sparsely populated and, moving north, characterized by a harsh, arid climate. In the very north, not far inland, lies the Richtersveld, which is the only remaining area in South Africa where the Nama people maintain their semi-nomadic traditions. It is also home to an extraordinary range of succulents and plant diversity, some only occurring there. The Richtersveld region, parts of which were declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 2007, is a unique biodiversity hotspot and has one of the highest density of succulent species. The region is rich not just in diamonds, but also other mineral deposits whose presence has turned the region into one of South Africa&#8217;s most intensively mined landscapes over the past century. A new documentary, Out of Mined, examines the legacy of mining along the West Coast at a time when the region is facing a renewed interest from the mining sector for its heavy minerals, found in terrestrial reserves, but also in heavy mineral sands along the coast and as offshore deposits. The entrance of a diamond mine in Hondeklipbaai that closed its doors in the early 2000’s; many local people lost their jobs and livelihoods. Image courtesy of Gary van Wyk. Cape Town-based director Arthur Neumeier started working on Out of Mined after social media posts about a wave&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/documentary-captures-impacts-of-diamond-mining-along-south-africas-west-coast/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/documentary-captures-impacts-of-diamond-mining-along-south-africas-west-coast/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325174</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Climate shocks hit hydropower in Southern Africa, reviving interest in coal</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/climate-shocks-hit-hydropower-in-southern-africa-reviving-interest-in-coal/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/climate-shocks-hit-hydropower-in-southern-africa-reviving-interest-in-coal/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Jul 2026 14:19:41 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Chisapi Kumbutso]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/31093919/The_Kariba_Dam_wall_from_the_middle-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325029</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Southern Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate, Climate Science, Coal, Development, Economics, Ecosystems, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, Governance, Hydroelectric Power, Natural Resources, Research, Solar Power, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[LUSAKA —For years, Zambia and Zimbabwe have boasted of enviable success in harnessing hydropower. More than 80% of Zambia’s power supply and about half of neighboring Zimbabwe’s supply came from hydropower sources in 2024. But climate change has continued to expose the fragility of this dependence. Successive droughts, linked to the 2023-24 El Niño, caused [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[LUSAKA —For years, Zambia and Zimbabwe have boasted of enviable success in harnessing hydropower. More than 80% of Zambia’s power supply and about half of neighboring Zimbabwe’s supply came from hydropower sources in 2024. But climate change has continued to expose the fragility of this dependence. Successive droughts, linked to the 2023-24 El Niño, caused water levels in Lake Kariba, formed by a dam on Zambezi River, to drop, drastically reducing electricity generation. It precipitated one of the region’s worst energy crises in decades. Against this backdrop, coal re-emerged as an attractive, although controversial, option. According to the Global Energy Monitor&#8217;s Boom and Bust Coal 2026 report, Zambia and Zimbabwe accounted for more than two-thirds of all new coal power proposals announced in Africa in 2025. Some energy experts argue that coal offers the quickest route to stabilizing electricity supplies and sustaining industrial growth, particularly for the mining sector. Electricity systems in Zimbabwe and Zambia power mining activities, industries and help meet the needs of growing urban populations. However, others warn that expanding coal-fired power risks locking both countries into decades of carbon emissions at a time when renewable energy technologies — especially solar — are becoming increasingly affordable. For Zimbabwe, however, coal has never completely disappeared from that country&#8217;s energy landscape. Power Shift Africa Campaigns Manager Kudakwashe Manjonjo said Zimbabwe&#8217;s reliance on coal is rooted in history. “Zimbabwe has always been a significant coal-producing country. I live in Hwange, home to one of the largest coal mines on the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/climate-shocks-hit-hydropower-in-southern-africa-reviving-interest-in-coal/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/climate-shocks-hit-hydropower-in-southern-africa-reviving-interest-in-coal/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325029</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>‘The shape of the land will change:’ South African villages resist heavy sands mine</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-shape-of-the-land-will-change-south-african-villages-resist-heavy-sands-mine/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-shape-of-the-land-will-change-south-african-villages-resist-heavy-sands-mine/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Jul 2026 12:09:18 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Anna Weekes]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/22132058/Phozi-4-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=324290</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Cattle, Conflict, Conservation, Environment, Finance, Fishing, Freshwater, Governance, Land Conflict, Mining, Natural Resources, Oceans, Tourism, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[PHOZI VILLAGE, South Africa — On a grassy mountainside overlooking the Indian Ocean on South Africa&#8217;s Eastern Cape coast, dozens of cattle graze freely. For generations, families in the small rural villages of Tyolomnqa, Phozi, and Qaga, about 30 miles from the nearest city, KuGompo, have relied on these communal lands for food, income, healing [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[PHOZI VILLAGE, South Africa — On a grassy mountainside overlooking the Indian Ocean on South Africa&#8217;s Eastern Cape coast, dozens of cattle graze freely. For generations, families in the small rural villages of Tyolomnqa, Phozi, and Qaga, about 30 miles from the nearest city, KuGompo, have relied on these communal lands for food, income, healing and spiritual connection. Residents of the village say a planned open-cast mine complex spread over thousands of hectares of communal land threatens their way of life. The Tyolomnqa Heavy Mineral Sands Project, proposed by Johannesburg-based Vendicom Minerals Beneficiation Group, is targeting zircon, rutile, ilmenite and leucoxene — heavy mineral ores used in products ranging from ceramic tiles and paint pigments to titanium for aircraft, medical implants and some renewable energy technologies. Though, its initial application to prospect in the area was rejected by the government on procedural grounds, communications from a consultancy hired by Vendicom to conduct the environmental and social impact assessment show that the company is still keen to mine in the region. The area Vendicom is eyeing is spread across up to 18 miles (29 kilometers) of communal grazing land stretching across the Tyolomnqa, Keiskamma and Kiwane estuaries. The three rivers, all of whose names are derived from Indigenous words, flow through rolling grasslands before reaching estuaries fringed by dunes and sandy beaches. The word Keiskamma comes from the Khoekhoe language and is commonly translated as &#8220;place of sweet waters.&#8221; For generations, rural isiXhosa communities have relied on these connected ecosystems for&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-shape-of-the-land-will-change-south-african-villages-resist-heavy-sands-mine/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-shape-of-the-land-will-change-south-african-villages-resist-heavy-sands-mine/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-324290</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Tiny trackers reveal where migratory shorebirds need protection across Africa</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/tiny-trackers-reveal-where-migratory-shorebirds-need-protection-across-africa/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/tiny-trackers-reveal-where-migratory-shorebirds-need-protection-across-africa/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Jul 2026 18:23:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ryan Truscott]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Victoriaschneider]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/20073354/Shorebirds_3-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323989</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Conservation Technology, Environment, Governance, Natural Resources, Research, Science, Technology, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[They have names like Victoria, Makgadikgadi, Wembere and Dwarskersbos — but unlike their namesakes, they’re not landmarks in Africa. Instead, they’re small birds flying halfway across the world, showing conservationists the places that should be protected to sustain them on their journeys. Earlier this year, an international team of scientists and conservationists trapped 20 curlew [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[They have names like Victoria, Makgadikgadi, Wembere and Dwarskersbos — but unlike their namesakes, they’re not landmarks in Africa. Instead, they’re small birds flying halfway across the world, showing conservationists the places that should be protected to sustain them on their journeys. Earlier this year, an international team of scientists and conservationists trapped 20 curlew sandpipers (Calidris ferruginea), small to medium-sized shorebirds characterized by their distinct downward curving bill, and fitted them with tiny, lightweight satellite transmitters. The researchers also captured and fitted GPS tags on three gray plovers (Pluvialis squatarola), birds thought to have similar migratory patterns to the curlew sandpipers. With these trackers, the researchers are recording the birds’ migratory routes, or flyways, from South Africa to their Arctic breeding grounds. “Historically we had supported a large percentage of the global population for both species, but we have seen a marked decline over the last few years,” Jessica Wilmot, BirdLife South Africa’s flyways and migrants project manager, told Mongabay in a video interview. She added the findings provide novel insights into these birds’ migration patterns. Team members attach a micro-telemetry device — a satellite transmitter weighing less than 2 grams — to the back of a curlew sandpiper. Image courtesy of Cassie Carstens. While the threats the birds face at both ends of their migration routes are well-documented, less is known about what they have to deal with at the stopover sites along their 13,000-kilometer (about 8,100-mile) journey. Identifying such sites and determining whether they can be protected,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/tiny-trackers-reveal-where-migratory-shorebirds-need-protection-across-africa/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/tiny-trackers-reveal-where-migratory-shorebirds-need-protection-across-africa/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323989</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>‘Chasing Deforestation’ in Liberia: Behind the scenes with Mongabay</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/chasing-deforestation-in-liberia-behind-the-scenes-with-mongabay/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/chasing-deforestation-in-liberia-behind-the-scenes-with-mongabay/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>16 Jul 2026 21:46:07 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ashoka Mukpo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/15103439/Cocoa-12-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323482</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Chasing Deforestation]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Liberia, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Animals, Biodiversity, Cacao, Conservation, Deforestation, Environment, Governance, Industrial Agriculture, Mongabay investigation, Natural Resources, Tropical Deforestation, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay’s investigation into deforestation in Liberia started with a tip from a source last year. “There’s deforestation, and a migrant rights issue,” they said. Areas along the border with Côte d&#8217;Ivoire were losing vast swaths of rainforest to cacao farming. It was the beginning of a months-long journey that led us from the Liberian jungle [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay’s investigation into deforestation in Liberia started with a tip from a source last year. “There’s deforestation, and a migrant rights issue,” they said. Areas along the border with Côte d&#8217;Ivoire were losing vast swaths of rainforest to cacao farming. It was the beginning of a months-long journey that led us from the Liberian jungle to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, and through the history of West African labor migration. &nbsp; As a features writer for Mongabay’s Africa bureau, my work has brought me across the world. I’ve covered conservation conflicts, climate change, and the legacy of commodity extraction. These stories are always a window into the interconnected forces of modern life: economic inequalities, history, ecological change, geopolitics, and so on. I often joke that environmental reporters are really on every beat at once. Our societies were built on the exploitation of nature, and control over resources is one of the most fundamental expressions of power. Scratch the surface of an environmental story, and you’ll find one about how decisions are made, who gets to sit at the table, and what really matters to them. But few stories I’ve covered in my career pulled as many threads together as this one did. Mongabay Features Writer Ashoka Mukpo interviewing FDA rangers in Grand Gedeh, Liberia. Photo by Ashoka Mukpo for Mongabay. The tip wasn’t the first I’d heard of land deals for cocoa production in southeastern Liberia, an area where I’ve worked and reported in the past. Since 2024, civil society&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/chasing-deforestation-in-liberia-behind-the-scenes-with-mongabay/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/chasing-deforestation-in-liberia-behind-the-scenes-with-mongabay/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323482</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>The vanishing forests on Liberia’s cocoa frontier</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-vanishing-forests-on-liberias-cocoa-frontier/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-vanishing-forests-on-liberias-cocoa-frontier/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>16 Jul 2026 21:38:16 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ashoka Mukpo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/15124037/Banner-image-Cocoa-28-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323492</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Chasing Deforestation]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Liberia, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agroforestry, Biodiversity, Business, Cacao, Conservation, Ecosystems, Environment, Forestry, Forests, Governance, Industrial Agriculture, Mongabay investigation, Natural Resources, Rainforests, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[(GRAND GEDEH, Liberia) – Off in the woods beyond the ekki trees, a sharp crack cuts through the buzzing of insects. “It’s a tree falling,” says George Bowey, a baby-faced community eco-guard who works here in the proposed Kwa National Park, a thick tropical rainforest in southeastern Liberia. There are different ways to grow cacao. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[(GRAND GEDEH, Liberia) – Off in the woods beyond the ekki trees, a sharp crack cuts through the buzzing of insects. “It’s a tree falling,” says George Bowey, a baby-faced community eco-guard who works here in the proposed Kwa National Park, a thick tropical rainforest in southeastern Liberia. There are different ways to grow cacao. In one method, saplings are intercropped with other tree species so they form a diverse ecosystem. Or there’s another method, where plantation land is cleared by pouring gasoline on the base of native trees and setting their roots on fire so they wither and die. This is the method that migrant cacao workers from nearby Côte d’Ivoire have brought into Kwa. The Wild Chimpanzee Foundation&#8217;s George Bowey walks past a burned tree in the proposed Kwa National Park. Photo by Ashoka Mukpo for Mongabay. The sound of more trees falling echoes in the distance as Bowey picks his way through the bush. The other eco-guards and forest rangers here at Kwa call him “Gentle George.” With his upbeat personality, it’s not hard to see why. He bounds up a damp hillside, listing off some of the species found inside Kwa. “We got western chimpanzees, forest elephants, pygmy hippos, giant pangolins, white- and black-belly pangolins, we got a lot of animals in here, like leopards, golden cats, we got Diana monkeys, western black and white colobus, we got three types of crocodiles,” he says. Eventually he reaches his destination. The cool overgrowth suddenly gives way to&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-vanishing-forests-on-liberias-cocoa-frontier/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-vanishing-forests-on-liberias-cocoa-frontier/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323492</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Like ‘climbing Kilimanjaro’ without help: Interview with a Limpopo conservationist</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/like-climbing-kilimanjaro-without-help-interview-with-a-limpopo-conservationist/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/like-climbing-kilimanjaro-without-help-interview-with-a-limpopo-conservationist/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Jul 2026 19:34:18 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Bernard Chiguvare]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Karen Coates]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/15161815/Baobab-Adansonia-digitata-limpopo-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323589</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Conservation leadership, Conservation Solutions, Environment, Fellows, Forestry, Interviews, Interviews with conservation players, Landscape Restoration, Logging, Mongabay.org, Plants, Restoration, Trees, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In Limpopo province, in the far north of South Africa, where much of the population lives in rural areas, environmental conservation is often not considered very often. Instead, the residents spend much of their time trying to make a living either from the forestry around them or from fishing in the Mutale and Limpopo rivers. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In Limpopo province, in the far north of South Africa, where much of the population lives in rural areas, environmental conservation is often not considered very often. Instead, the residents spend much of their time trying to make a living either from the forestry around them or from fishing in the Mutale and Limpopo rivers. But for Mutale resident Tshilidzi Mulugana, degradation of the local environment is a concern, as it will affect the community and endanger biodiversity. Mulugana is the founder of the Niani Youth Development organization whose mission is to educate local youth. He wants to make a change in the community, to help residents conserve the environment. Mulugana is afraid the next generation may not live to know indigenous tree species — yet these trees serve as traditional medicine. He noted several threats to indigenous species such as baobab (Adansonia genus), leadwood (Combretum imberbe), mopani (Colophospermum mopane) and marula (Sclerocarya birrea): recurring floods, the movement of elephant herds from neighboring Zimbabwe or Mozambique through the area, and traders who cut the trees to sell as firewood. In 2019, Mulugana began a grassroots conservation initiative focused on planting indigenous trees. One day, an official from Kruger National Park (KNP) — a walkable distance from where he lives — came across Mulugana, attracted to his project. The official later invited a representative from the forestry and fisheries department, and in 2024, the two groups funded the project. Mulugana also hoped to recruit community members to help with the work,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/like-climbing-kilimanjaro-without-help-interview-with-a-limpopo-conservationist/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/like-climbing-kilimanjaro-without-help-interview-with-a-limpopo-conservationist/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323589</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>South Africa&#8217;s free-roaming cheetahs in steep decline, first national census finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/south-africas-free-roaming-cheetahs-in-steep-decline-first-national-census-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/south-africas-free-roaming-cheetahs-in-steep-decline-first-national-census-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Jul 2026 17:56:26 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/15134921/23-CT-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323543</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Cheetahs, Conservation, Ecosystems, Environment, Forests, Governance, National Parks, Parks, Rainforests, Tropical Forests, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[South Africa&#8217;s free-roaming cheetah population is much smaller than previously thought, according to the first coordinated national census of the species living outside protected areas. Over three and a half years, between 2022 and 2026, researchers from Ashia Cheetah Conservation, the Cheetah Outreach Trust (COT) and the University of Groningen in the Netherlands surveyed almost [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[South Africa&#8217;s free-roaming cheetah population is much smaller than previously thought, according to the first coordinated national census of the species living outside protected areas. Over three and a half years, between 2022 and 2026, researchers from Ashia Cheetah Conservation, the Cheetah Outreach Trust (COT) and the University of Groningen in the Netherlands surveyed almost 100,000 square kilometers (38,610 square miles) of habitat across South Africa’s northern border. Wild cheetahs that inhabit the unprotected areas of South Africa are considered “free roaming.” Using camera traps, GPS collars, landowner surveys, genetic analyses, scat sampling and public sighting records, they compiled the Free-Roaming Cheetah Census (FRCC), which they described as the most comprehensive assessment yet of South Africa&#8217;s free-roaming cheetahs. During this time, they recorded only 83 mature adults, and 119 individual animals in total, which is 70% less than previous, smaller-scale studies suggested using model-based estimates. A young cheetah investigates a monitoring site in North West Province. Image courtesy of Ashia Cheetah Conservation. &#8220;Finding fewer than 100 mature adults is an extremely strong indication of how dramatically smaller the population has become within South Africa over the years,&#8221; Marna Smit, director of Ashia Cheetah Conservation, told Mongabay. Because of a high mortality rate in young cheetahs, which can be up to 90% for wild animals, mature adults — the breeding population —- are important for the survival of the species. Cheetahs in South Africa are currently managed in four separate systems: The free-roaming population, the semi-protected population in Kruger National Park&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/south-africas-free-roaming-cheetahs-in-steep-decline-first-national-census-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323543</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Gus Mills, hyena expert and &#8216;the cheerful pessimist of the Kalahari&#8217;, has died</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/gus-mills-spent-a-lifetime-studying-africas-carnivores/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/gus-mills-spent-a-lifetime-studying-africas-carnivores/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Jul 2026 16:24:17 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/14161941/gus-mills-header-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323402</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Founder's briefs]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Carnivores, Cats, Cheetahs, Mammals, Obituary, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[His nephew recalled that the children were taught to chant, “Hyenas are beautiful!” as often as possible. On visits to Kruger National Park, he got them out of bed at midnight to look for bushbabies and again at five in the morning to search for big cats. Wildlife was often most active at inconvenient hours, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[His nephew recalled that the children were taught to chant, “Hyenas are beautiful!” as often as possible. On visits to Kruger National Park, he got them out of bed at midnight to look for bushbabies and again at five in the morning to search for big cats. Wildlife was often most active at inconvenient hours, and he expected anyone accompanying him to adjust. Michael “Gus” Mills, who died on July 13th, spent more than 40 years studying Africa’s large carnivores, especially hyenas, wild dogs, and cheetahs. He published more than 150 scientific papers, chapters, and reports, advised conservation bodies, and trained younger researchers. Much of his working life was spent in a vehicle on a sandy track, waiting beside an animal that might sleep for most of the day. Gus and Margie Mills. Sourced via the Endangered Wildlife Trust At school he had seemed an unlikely future scientist. He described himself as a “very bad student,” failed South Africa’s high-school leaving examination, and was told that science was beyond him. After passing the examination on a second attempt, he joked that he had earned an MA: “Matric Again.” Three years of psychology persuaded him that he did not want to be a psychologist. Zoology held his attention. A visit to Kruger in 1954, when he was eight, had already pointed him toward field biology. “It did something to me,” he said. From then on he wanted to work in the bush. After studying at the University of Cape Town and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/gus-mills-spent-a-lifetime-studying-africas-carnivores/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/gus-mills-spent-a-lifetime-studying-africas-carnivores/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323402</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Malawi agroecologists see opportunity in Gulf fertilizer supply disruption</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/malawi-agroecologists-see-opportunity-in-gulf-fertilizer-supply-disruption/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/malawi-agroecologists-see-opportunity-in-gulf-fertilizer-supply-disruption/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Jul 2026 14:04:58 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Charles Mpaka]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/03135918/5549095911_375e8f47bf_k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322462</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Malawi, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agroecology, climate finance, Conservation, Environment, Farming, Fertilizers, Finance, Industrial Agriculture, and Subsistence Agriculture]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[As the first rays of the sun streak through the misty morning early in June, James Singano spits into his right hand for a good grip of the hoe handle. With one swing, he brings down a shrub. Malawi’s farming season is five months away, but Singano has started clearing the land where he inter-crops [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[As the first rays of the sun streak through the misty morning early in June, James Singano spits into his right hand for a good grip of the hoe handle. With one swing, he brings down a shrub. Malawi’s farming season is five months away, but Singano has started clearing the land where he inter-crops maize, a staple food here, with pigeon peas. He is one of the more than 4 million smallholder farmers that depend on subsistence farming and contribute significantly to national food security by producing 80% of Malawi&#8217;s annual maize harvest. Most of them farm on less than a hectare. From his farm in the outskirts of Blantyre City in Southern Malawi, Singano’s maize harvest varies between 400kg and 600kg annually, which hardly feeds his family of six for a year. He says the land’s yield has consistently over the last 21 years, since he inherited it from his parents. “They (parents) did not need fertilizer to produce enough maize for our family,” he says, sweeping off the shrub he has cut with his bare foot onto a heap of grass nearby. “These days, farming is a lot of toil for very little harvest because the soil isn’t producing as much and fertilizer is getting harder to afford.” Maize is staple crop in Malawi and its production is heavily dependent on chemical fertilizers. Malawi imports over 90 percent of the over 400,000 tons of fertilizers it consumes annually – Image by Charles Mpaka for Mongabay. Soils losing&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/malawi-agroecologists-see-opportunity-in-gulf-fertilizer-supply-disruption/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/malawi-agroecologists-see-opportunity-in-gulf-fertilizer-supply-disruption/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322462</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Zambia’s bumper harvest masks likely food insecurity amid geopolitics and climate threats</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/zambias-bumper-harvest-masks-likely-food-insecurity-amid-geopolitics-and-climate-threats/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/zambias-bumper-harvest-masks-likely-food-insecurity-amid-geopolitics-and-climate-threats/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Jul 2026 13:12:14 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Chisapi Kumbutso]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/03133435/5433664321_547a088000_k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322469</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Southern Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Climate, Climate Change Denial, Climate Science, El Nino, Environment, Fertilizers, Finance, Food, Food Industry, Food Prices, food security, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Impact Of Climate Change, Natural Resources, Nature-based climate solutions, Nutrition, and Solutions]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[LUSAKA, Zambia — The escalating conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran, has prompted warnings that disruptions to the supply of fuel and fertilizer shipped through the Strait of Hormuz could cause food insecurity in some African countries. While experts say it will take time for the effects of the conflict to be felt in [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[LUSAKA, Zambia — The escalating conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran, has prompted warnings that disruptions to the supply of fuel and fertilizer shipped through the Strait of Hormuz could cause food insecurity in some African countries. While experts say it will take time for the effects of the conflict to be felt in Zambia, they also point to vulnerabilities in the country&#8217;s food system and suggest greater resilience to possible stresses. Zambia&#8217;s food security is generally understood to rest on a single crop: maize. Zambia Statistics Agency reports that the price of a 25-kilogram bag of breakfast mealie meal declined slightly from April to May. In fact, the price of mealie meal is 15% lower than it was this time last year. The FAO&#8217;s April 2026 country briefing for Zambia said good rains since last October point to a second consecutive year of above-average harvests of maize. The rains are also expected to support a rebound of wheat harvest, as full reservoirs mean a steady supply of hydroelectric power that will allow the crop’s growers (primarily large-scale, industrial farmers) to irrigate their fields. The briefing reported that reference prices for maize were 25% lower year-on-year in March, thanks to plentiful domestic supply and a strengthening of the currency. Maize meal prices also declined by 15%, according to the Zambia Statistics Agency. Drawing on the IPC classification, the FAO said the number of Zambians facing &#8220;crisis&#8221; levels of acute food insecurity in the six months to March 2026 was&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/zambias-bumper-harvest-masks-likely-food-insecurity-amid-geopolitics-and-climate-threats/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/zambias-bumper-harvest-masks-likely-food-insecurity-amid-geopolitics-and-climate-threats/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322469</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Three years after Cyclone Freddy, farms remain under water in Malawi’s Elephant Marsh</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/three-years-after-cyclone-freddy-farms-remain-under-water-in-malawis-elephant-marsh/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/three-years-after-cyclone-freddy-farms-remain-under-water-in-malawis-elephant-marsh/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>26 Jun 2026 10:39:27 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Charles Mpaka]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/25170622/original-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321815</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Malawi, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Community Development, Conservation, Disasters, Ecosystems, Environment, Extreme Weather, Farming, Fishing, Flooding, Freshwater, Storms, and Wetlands]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[NSANJE DISTRICT, Malawi — From his canoe, floating in a shallow channel in a corner of southern Malawi’s Elephant Marsh, Fred Nsema points at two palm trees standing knee-deep in a sprawling cover of water lilies and water hyacinth. Nsema used to shelter from the heat under them, sipping a traditional fermented drink prepared from [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[NSANJE DISTRICT, Malawi — From his canoe, floating in a shallow channel in a corner of southern Malawi’s Elephant Marsh, Fred Nsema points at two palm trees standing knee-deep in a sprawling cover of water lilies and water hyacinth. Nsema used to shelter from the heat under them, sipping a traditional fermented drink prepared from millet by his wife. But along with more than a 1,000 other families here in the Lower Shire Valley, home to Elephant Marsh, he and his wife lost their farmland to floods caused by Cyclone Freddy in 2023. “That field was our lifeline,” Nsema says as he uses a long bamboo pole to stop the canoe before it’s drawn into a channel of water rushing past the submerged site of his former farm. “We would harvest half a ton of cabbages there. Beans too, and rice and sweet potatoes. Twice a year for some of the crops. That farm was everything to us.” Fred Nsema’s (left) farm was flooded by Cyclone Freddy in 2023. The waters have still not receded. Image by Charles Mpaka for Mongabay. Hundreds of thousands of people in the Lower Shire Valley rely on the wetland for their livelihoods. According to the 2018 census, the population of the two districts that Elephant Marsh spreads across is 860,000 — a startling five-fold increase from the population figure recorded 10 years earlier. “It’s a vital resource for many people here; but that is also why it is under severe strain, because farming has&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/three-years-after-cyclone-freddy-farms-remain-under-water-in-malawis-elephant-marsh/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321815</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Failed promises to clean air in South Africa’s coal belt take toll on public health</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/failed-promises-to-clean-air-in-south-africas-coal-belt-take-toll-on-public-health/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/failed-promises-to-clean-air-in-south-africas-coal-belt-take-toll-on-public-health/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Jun 2026 06:53:15 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Joe Walsh]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/24064856/Kusile-Power-Station-South-Africas-largest-plant-at-4800MW-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321552</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Air Pollution, Clean Energy, Coal, Energy, Environment, Environmental Policy, Governance, Health, Pollution, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[eMALAHLENI, South Africa — Elisabeth Moutloang, 49, lives in the shadows of Duvha Power Station, a 3,600-MW coal-fired power station owned and operated by Eskom, South Africa’s national energy provider. Between it and her community of Masakhane, in the south of eMalahleni, is a coal mine where she used to work twenty years ago as [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[eMALAHLENI, South Africa — Elisabeth Moutloang, 49, lives in the shadows of Duvha Power Station, a 3,600-MW coal-fired power station owned and operated by Eskom, South Africa’s national energy provider. Between it and her community of Masakhane, in the south of eMalahleni, is a coal mine where she used to work twenty years ago as a weighbridge clerk, monitoring the weight of coal-laden vehicles entering and exiting the mine, before it was abandoned. She left the job after seven months but in that time had developed a serious lung problem, which was detected because the mine conducts a health screening before starting employment and when an employee leaves. “When I went to have my exit medical done, I was told that I have a hole on my left lung. That&#8217;s when I started having sinus problems, that&#8217;s when I started having chest problems. At one stage I had bronchitis,” Moutloang says. “I thought I was going to die.” At the time, she had health insurance from her employer and was able to get the right medicine for the condition. Hers is not a unique story for a resident of eMalahleni (which translates to “place of coal”) located in South Africa’s eastern province of Mpumalanga, 130 kilometers (81 miles) east of Johannesburg. The town lies in the heart of the Highveld Priority Area (HPA), spanning 31,100 km encompassing 12 municipalities, which was designated in 2007 as a priority area for tackling air pollution, because the air quality was very poor. A&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/failed-promises-to-clean-air-in-south-africas-coal-belt-take-toll-on-public-health/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/failed-promises-to-clean-air-in-south-africas-coal-belt-take-toll-on-public-health/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321552</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Rodent-killing baits threaten small wild cats and other wildlife</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/rodent-killing-baits-threaten-small-wild-cats-and-other-wildlife/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/rodent-killing-baits-threaten-small-wild-cats-and-other-wildlife/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Jun 2026 14:29:18 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sean Mowbray]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/18054111/Image_6-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321399</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Australia, Global, North America, Oceania, South Africa, Southern Africa, United States, and Washington]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Carnivores, Cats, Chemicals, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Health, Mammals, Poisoning, Predators, Rodents, Small Cats, Toxicology, Wildlife, and Wolves]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Cat kills rodent. Cat eats rodent. Cat is exposed to potentially lethal rodenticides. That scenario is increasingly likely for many small wild cat species across the globe, and yet, only a handful of researchers are investigating this underrecognized conservation issue. Thus far, researchers confirmed that one wild cat population has declined from exposure to these [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Cat kills rodent. Cat eats rodent. Cat is exposed to potentially lethal rodenticides. That scenario is increasingly likely for many small wild cat species across the globe, and yet, only a handful of researchers are investigating this underrecognized conservation issue. Thus far, researchers confirmed that one wild cat population has declined from exposure to these poisons. That’s a small bobcat (Lynx rufus) living on Kiawah Island off the South Carolina coast in the U.S., which faces imminent local extinction due to rodenticides. Up until 2019, there was a stable population of these beloved cats, which are considered celebrities there, but that year, three cats died. Among them was a female that bled to death while giving birth. Postmortems revealed concoctions of rodenticides in each of the bobcats’ blood and livers. Over the next four years, there were 12 more victims and the bobcats’ overall survival rate fell to 39%. All tested positive for concentrations of anticoagulant rodenticides; some had been acutely poisoned, said Meghan Keating, a doctoral candidate at South Carolina’s Clemson University. That was a troubling sign for a population that now numbers less than 20 individuals. They are regularly exposed to rodenticides, as rodents (including rats) are a major part of their diet, Keating said. Also troubling is that her team found exposure to not just one, but a cocktail of rodenticides. “We haven&#8217;t had a bobcat test positive for less than two rodenticides,” she told Mongabay. Kiawah Island’s rodenticide-driven bobcat decline may be an outlier, given its&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/rodent-killing-baits-threaten-small-wild-cats-and-other-wildlife/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/rodent-killing-baits-threaten-small-wild-cats-and-other-wildlife/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321399</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>South African authorities thwart smuggling of 150 venomous scorpions, arrest man</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-african-authorities-thwart-smuggling-of-150-venomous-scorpions-arrest-man/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-african-authorities-thwart-smuggling-of-150-venomous-scorpions-arrest-man/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>19 Jun 2026 13:42:14 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/18155148/Scorpion3-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321452</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Arachnids, Conservation, Crime, Environmental Law, Illegal Trade, Invertebrates, Law, Pet Trade, Pets, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[South African police arrested a 28-year-old man at Cape Town International Airport on June 12, 2026. Inside his luggage, tucked between his clothing, authorities discovered 150 live venomous scorpions. Each one was individually wrapped in a clear plastic bag, like candies at a supermarket It’s not known where the alleged smuggler intended to take the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[South African police arrested a 28-year-old man at Cape Town International Airport on June 12, 2026. Inside his luggage, tucked between his clothing, authorities discovered 150 live venomous scorpions. Each one was individually wrapped in a clear plastic bag, like candies at a supermarket It’s not known where the alleged smuggler intended to take the scorpions or for what purpose. An intelligence-led operation targeted the suspect: Authorities acted on a tip about a man in possession of wildlife. The bust was conducted by the Kuilsriver Stock Theft and Endangered Species Unit, a special police force, in collaboration with CapeNature, a government agency tasked with environmental protection in the Western Cape. Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg told local media that he was arrested on suspicion of being in “possession of a wild animal under the Nature and Environmental Ordinance Act.” An investigation into the case is ongoing. The commercial value of the seized scorpions is yet to be determined, authorities said. The rescued scorpions are being cared for by the Cape of Good Hope SPCA. In a social media statement, the animal rescue organization said they are ensuring the arachnids receive proper care, and they will try to return them “to their place of origin where possible.” The seized scorpions are being cared for at the Cape of Good Hope SPCA. Image courtesy of Cape of Good Hope SPCA/Facebook. Scorpion trade, like other wildlife, is booming The planet is home to more than 2,900 scorpion species; only 25-30 have venom, a&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-african-authorities-thwart-smuggling-of-150-venomous-scorpions-arrest-man/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-african-authorities-thwart-smuggling-of-150-venomous-scorpions-arrest-man/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321452</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In South Africa, a village learns to live with baboons — but it may be the exception</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-south-africa-a-village-learns-to-live-with-baboons-but-it-may-be-the-exception/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-south-africa-a-village-learns-to-live-with-baboons-but-it-may-be-the-exception/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>17 Jun 2026 08:00:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Barry Christianson]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/16122415/slide-house-rooiels_mb_bc_DSC1072-scaled-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321297</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conflict, Human-wildlife Conflict, Mammals, Monkeys, Primates, Sustainability, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[ROOIELS, South Africa — Baboons aren’t exactly punctual, but Gavin Lundie still expected them to appear in the village around 9 a.m. “They’re coming!” his wife Lesley called. Members of the Rooiels baboon troop had begun to make their way down. Lesley made her way to the sliding doors on their patio and secured it [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[ROOIELS, South Africa — Baboons aren’t exactly punctual, but Gavin Lundie still expected them to appear in the village around 9 a.m. “They’re coming!” his wife Lesley called. Members of the Rooiels baboon troop had begun to make their way down. Lesley made her way to the sliding doors on their patio and secured it with two shoelaces attached to a hook. She remained on the balcony and watched as the troop entered into the village a few properties away. The Lundies live in Rooiels, a small, affluent village on False Bay, approximately 80 kilometers (50 miles) from Cape Town’s city center. The village, scattered from the coastal flats up the slopes of the Klein Hangklip mountain, is part of the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve. The mountain’s cliff faces offer sleeping baboons (Papio ursinus) protection from leopards, their natural predator, but the sparse vegetation doesn’t offer enough for them to eat or drink. In contrast, the lower slopes, where the village has grown up, is still covered with dense fynbos scrub on undeveloped plots, in gardens and along unpaved verges. The baboons forage on a range of flowers, seeds and berries in the warmer months; in winter, when the fynbos is dormant, the baboons eat kikuyu grass from lawns in the village. They also eat limpets in the intertidal zone, and the Rooiels River is a year-round source of freshwater. A juvenile baboon clings to its mother&#8217;s back as she forages in fynbos on the roadside in Rooi Els. Image by&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-south-africa-a-village-learns-to-live-with-baboons-but-it-may-be-the-exception/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321297</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Improved transport opens Mozambique’s forests to new pressures</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/improved-transport-opens-mozambiques-forests-to-new-pressures/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/improved-transport-opens-mozambiques-forests-to-new-pressures/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Jun 2026 09:16:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mkhululi Chimoio]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/09002827/CoalTrain_MuitvazeMozambique2018_MatthiasHilleWikicommonsBY2.0-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320793</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Deforestation, Dry Forests, Environment, Farming, Food, food security, Forests, Governance, Infrastructure, Logging, Politics, Roads, Trees, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Up until 10 years ago, large sections of the road linking Malawi and Zambia to the Indian Ocean port of Nacala would become nearly impassable during the rainy season, with potholes, damaged bridges and traffic bottlenecks causing long delays along this regional transport artery across northern Mozambique. The Mozambique government has carried out major upgrades [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Up until 10 years ago, large sections of the road linking Malawi and Zambia to the Indian Ocean port of Nacala would become nearly impassable during the rainy season, with potholes, damaged bridges and traffic bottlenecks causing long delays along this regional transport artery across northern Mozambique. The Mozambique government has carried out major upgrades to transport infrastructure, but this may have come at the cost of accelerating deforestation across the region. Between 2017 and 2022, the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the World Bank financed major transportation upgrades along the Nacala Corridor, centered on the 912-kilometer (565-mile) rail line linking coal mines in western Mozambique with ports on the Indian Ocean, as well as road upgrades, to lower costs and improve regional trade connections with Malawi and Zambia. “This project reduces the ‘penalty of remoteness’ that poorer households pay,” Romulo Cunha Correa, Mozambique country manager for the African Development Bank, told Mongabay in an interview. The AfDB has prioritized improvements to road and rail infrastructure across the continent, also backing projects linking Cameroon to the cities of Brazzaville and Kinshasa on the Congo River, and South Sudan to Indian Ocean ports in Kenya. But researchers studying this expansion of infrastructure have warned that the road upgrades can intensify deforestation and habitat loss. Women walk past a fish pond in Moatize, in Mozambique’s western province of Tete, in 2011. Image by Peter Fredenburg via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) Manuel Mario Nazare, a conservationist with&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/improved-transport-opens-mozambiques-forests-to-new-pressures/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/improved-transport-opens-mozambiques-forests-to-new-pressures/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320793</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Malawi’s Elephant Marsh: The challenge of protecting a wetland that sustains thousands</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/malawis-elephant-marsh-the-challenge-of-protecting-a-wetland-that-sustains-thousands/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/malawis-elephant-marsh-the-challenge-of-protecting-a-wetland-that-sustains-thousands/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>08 Jun 2026 07:54:24 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Charles Mpaka]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/05103912/14-LARGE-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320638</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Malawi, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Aquaculture, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Deforestation, Economics, Environment, Fish, Fisheries, Fishing, Freshwater, Freshwater Fish, Governance, and Solutions]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[ELEPHANT MARSH, Malawi — At 5:30 am, trader Flora Kumilai is squatting before a heap of smoked catfish at Sorjin Market in southern Malawi’s Elephant Marsh, haggling with sellers over the price. “I found gold in fish,” she chuckles as she fills a third cardboard box. “And Elephant Marsh is the mine.” Kumilai, who has [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[ELEPHANT MARSH, Malawi — At 5:30 am, trader Flora Kumilai is squatting before a heap of smoked catfish at Sorjin Market in southern Malawi’s Elephant Marsh, haggling with sellers over the price. “I found gold in fish,” she chuckles as she fills a third cardboard box. “And Elephant Marsh is the mine.” Kumilai, who has traveled here from Malawi’s commercial capital, Blantyre, will spend a week in the area, visiting other fish markets around the marsh until she has 12 of these boxes, around 900 kilograms (1,990 pounds) of smoked fish. Then she will band together with other traders to hire a truck to transport their goods back to Blantyre, 140 kilometers (87 miles) to the north. But for Kumilai, the final destination for her goods is more than 1,500 km (930 mi) away, at a market in Kasumbalesa on the border between Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. She’s been in business for more than a decade now, mostly trading in produce within Malawi and sometimes importing clothes from Tanzania and South Africa for customers in the city. In October 2024, she changed course, when fellow traders introduced her to the cross-border trade in fish. In Kasumbalesa, most of Kumilai’s customers are from the DRC, she tells Mongabay in Chichewa. “They pay in [U.S.] dollars. When we change it on the black market to Malawi kwacha, it gives us a lot of money. That’s how I’m able to pay for my son’s education [at Chandigarh University in India].”&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/malawis-elephant-marsh-the-challenge-of-protecting-a-wetland-that-sustains-thousands/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320638</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>South Africa’s move away from coal marred by legacy of abandoned mines: Report</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-africas-move-away-from-coal-marred-by-legacy-of-abandoned-mines-report/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-africas-move-away-from-coal-marred-by-legacy-of-abandoned-mines-report/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>08 Jun 2026 07:46:43 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Anna Weekes]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/02115929/251103_Ermelo_Imbabala_CER_dp-13-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320479</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and South Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[charcoal, Coal, Economics, Environment, Governance, Illegal Mining, Mining, Pollution, and Water Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[As South Africa transitions away from coal-fired electricity, hundreds of former coal mines are turning into abandoned dumping sites for waste and polluted water, which a new report warns will continue to contaminate surrounding land and waterways for decades. Nor is the South African government taking action to force mine owners to clean them up, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[As South Africa transitions away from coal-fired electricity, hundreds of former coal mines are turning into abandoned dumping sites for waste and polluted water, which a new report warns will continue to contaminate surrounding land and waterways for decades. Nor is the South African government taking action to force mine owners to clean them up, environmentalists told Mongabay. South African law requires mining companies to set aside money to clean up and restore the land after mining ends &#8211; either in trusts or through bank or insurance guarantees. But a report by the Centre for Environmental Rights found that none of the 412 coal mines that closed between 2006 and 2023 had enough money set aside to pay for the full cost of rehabilitation. The full extent of the problem is unknown as the government has failed to keep any records of mines that closed in 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, and 2021, the report said. Mining companies must clean up and rehabilitate mines, pay for the damage, and remain responsible until the government officially signs off on the closure, according to the regulations. But most mines do not keep enough money aside to cover even a fraction of the rehabilitation costs, according to the report, titled “No More Ghost Towns : Lessons From Mpumalanga’s Mine Closure Crisis” and released May 22 in Johannesburg. With more than 100 coal mines and most of the country’s aging coal-fired power stations, the Mpumalanga region is the center of South Africa’s fossil fuel-based power&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-africas-move-away-from-coal-marred-by-legacy-of-abandoned-mines-report/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320479</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Whale strike risk rises as international shipping reroutes around South Africa</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whale-strike-risk-rises-as-international-shipping-reroutes-around-south-africa/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whale-strike-risk-rises-as-international-shipping-reroutes-around-south-africa/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>05 Jun 2026 06:37:15 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/04104305/IMG_9041-1-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320573</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and South Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Environment, Governance, Science, Shipping, trafficking, Whale Sharks, Whales, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In April this year, two Bryde’s whales washed-up dead-on Dyer Island, a small nature reserve located a few kilometers off the coast of Gansbaai in South Africa’s Western Cape province. Both whales carried severe injuries; their vertebrae had been shattered. “It was very clear that it was [vessel] strikes, because both those whales were snapped [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In April this year, two Bryde’s whales washed-up dead-on Dyer Island, a small nature reserve located a few kilometers off the coast of Gansbaai in South Africa’s Western Cape province. Both whales carried severe injuries; their vertebrae had been shattered. “It was very clear that it was [vessel] strikes, because both those whales were snapped in half, and you can also see the propeller marks,” Loraine Shuttleworth, head of research at the Dyer Island Conservation Trust, told Mongabay. Two whale strandings linked to ship strikes in one month alone is an unusually high number, Shuttleworth said. A new risk assessment has linked the increase in risk of ships striking whales to the rerouting of maritime traffic around South African coast. Due to the Houthi rebels attacks on ships traversing the Red Sea, which started in 2023, and the more recent fallout from the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, many cargo companies have rerouted their vessels around the Cape of Good Hope. With greater shipping traffic comes a growing threat to marine species inhabiting the region: collisions with large, fast-moving vessels. Between December 2023 and December 2024, the number of large vessels traveling through South African waters at average speeds above 15 knots (28 kilometers per hour) has quadrupled, satellite data show. The scale of the increased maritime traffic struck scientist Els Vermeulen from the University of Pretoria’s Mammal Research Institute Whale Unit, on a flight into Cape Town in 2025. “It was a beautiful day, and there were just&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whale-strike-risk-rises-as-international-shipping-reroutes-around-south-africa/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320573</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In Malawi, one woman’s farm shows what’s possible with land and support</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-malawi-one-womans-farm-shows-whats-possible-with-land-and-support/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-malawi-one-womans-farm-shows-whats-possible-with-land-and-support/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Jun 2026 11:34:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Charles Mpaka]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/04111912/1-scaled-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320577</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Malawi, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agroecology, Biodiversity, Community Development, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Environment, Farming, Food, food security, Global Environmental Crisis, and Solutions]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[CHIRADZULU, Malawi — Diana Sitima’s farm on the outskirts of Malawi’s commercial capital, Blantyre, is both example and an exception. Where neighboring farmers have planted mostly maize for food and for sale in nearby markets, people drive out to buy sweet potato, pigeon peas and vegetables, bananas and avocado, and eggs produced on Sitima’s 3.5-hectare [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[CHIRADZULU, Malawi — Diana Sitima’s farm on the outskirts of Malawi’s commercial capital, Blantyre, is both example and an exception. Where neighboring farmers have planted mostly maize for food and for sale in nearby markets, people drive out to buy sweet potato, pigeon peas and vegetables, bananas and avocado, and eggs produced on Sitima’s 3.5-hectare (8.6-acre) property. Sitima started farming in 1993. Unlike her neighbors, farming was a side hustle to begin with: she worked as an office assistant in Blantyre and her husband had a good job with a bank. Over the next seven years, she and her husband took out a series of micro-loans, renting small parcels of land and hiring people from the village to grow tomatoes for sale in the city. Sitima’s efforts went well, and because her family did not have to rely on their harvest for food or an income at that time, she was able to save the money she earned to take a next step. She quit her office job and acquired a farm of her own in Chiradzulu district, 15 kilometers (9 miles) east of the city. “That’s how I made money to be able to buy this land when it was put up for sale in 2006,” she says. While she was still a part-time farmer, Sitima attended several workshops, where she picked up ideas about agroecological farming — an approach combining crops, agroforestry, fish ponds, poultry and livestock, in a self-reinforcing system that protects soil health and reduces the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-malawi-one-womans-farm-shows-whats-possible-with-land-and-support/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320577</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Rhino-poaching suspect, repeatedly freed on bail, shot dead in South Africa</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/rhino-poaching-suspect-repeatedly-freed-on-bail-shot-dead-in-south-africa/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/rhino-poaching-suspect-repeatedly-freed-on-bail-shot-dead-in-south-africa/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 May 2026 02:29:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/22135805/Harry-Skeggs-on-assignment-with-Saving-the-Wild-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=319992</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Black Rhino, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Law Enforcement, Mammals, Poaching, Rhinos, White Rhino, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A former South African police officer who became a notorious alleged rhino-poaching kingpin has been killed by unknown gunmen, police announced. Joseph “Big Joe” Nyalungu was shot dead at his office in the town of Mkhuhlu, near Kruger National Park, at around 2:30 p.m. on May 16, according to authorities. It was the second attempt [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A former South African police officer who became a notorious alleged rhino-poaching kingpin has been killed by unknown gunmen, police announced. Joseph “Big Joe” Nyalungu was shot dead at his office in the town of Mkhuhlu, near Kruger National Park, at around 2:30 p.m. on May 16, according to authorities. It was the second attempt on his life in eight days. He survived the first attack despite being reportedly shot in the shoulder, stomach and thigh. Nyalungu, 62, faced multiple charges related to rhino poaching and trafficking, kidnapping and murder, as well as money laundering and unlawful possession of firearms and explosives. He was arrested at least five times between 2010 and 2024, though he was never convicted of any crimes during that time. His latest arrest came in October 2024, when police found explosives in his offices. At the time of his death, he was reportedly out on bail of 20,000 rand (about $1,140 at the exchange rate at the time), with investigations into his alleged illegal activities ongoing. Police said they haven’t identified the gunmen and are still investigating the motive behind the killing. Nyalungu was declared dead at the scene. Conservationists say the only way to save rhinos from is by creating stronger deterrents through tougher sentences for poaching and trafficking. Image by Thomas D. Mangelsen. ‘Too kind of a death’ Nyalungu was accused of poaching rhinos in the Greater Kruger Area, said Jamie Joseph, director of the South African NGO Saving the Wild. Joseph has tracked&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/rhino-poaching-suspect-repeatedly-freed-on-bail-shot-dead-in-south-africa/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/rhino-poaching-suspect-repeatedly-freed-on-bail-shot-dead-in-south-africa/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-319992</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>New survey methods uncover new insights into Madagascar’s biodiversity</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/new-survey-methods-uncover-new-insights-into-madagascars-biodiversity/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/new-survey-methods-uncover-new-insights-into-madagascars-biodiversity/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 May 2026 08:15:47 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mino Rakotovao]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/19192316/RoyalBluePansy.Junonia.radama_MoramangaMadagascar_AndrianiainaAngeloINaturalistBYNC4.0-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=319759</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Madagascar, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Environment, Forests, Rainforests, Tropical Forests, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Conservation biologist Dimby Raharinjanahary spent years walking through Madagascar’s forests, counting some of the island’s most visible species, such as lemurs and birds. Raharinjanahary was head of monitoring and research for the country’s national parks service from 2012 to 2018, when monitoring still relied largely on tracking a handful of species as indicators of forest [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Conservation biologist Dimby Raharinjanahary spent years walking through Madagascar’s forests, counting some of the island’s most visible species, such as lemurs and birds. Raharinjanahary was head of monitoring and research for the country’s national parks service from 2012 to 2018, when monitoring still relied largely on tracking a handful of species as indicators of forest condition and ecosystem health. “Conservation is based on a few target species. If you don’t see them, you say the forest is degraded,” he tells Mongabay. “But the opposite can also be true: you find them, and the forest is still degraded.” Raharinjanahary, now director of monitoring at the Madagascar Biodiversity Center, is part of a global initiative called LIFEPLAN that is working to improve this. LIFEPLAN expands biodiversity monitoring beyond a few target species to include a much wider range of organisms, including hyper-diverse and still poorly known groups such as arthropods and fungi. Setting up a Malaise trap for insects. Image courtesy of Dimby Raharinjanahary. Building a global picture of biodiversity Across 83 sites worldwide, researchers affiliated with LIFEPLAN simultaneously tracked arthropods, fungi, mammals and birds. Their work built on an earlier effort, the Insect Biome Atlas, which mapped insect biomass in Sweden and Madagascar between 2019 and 2020, before expanding into a broader global program covering multiple groups of organisms. The expanded program is using identical methods, repeated year-round and across continents to compare biodiversity consistently across sites and, in turn, explore how changes in climate or human pressure may shape future&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/new-survey-methods-uncover-new-insights-into-madagascars-biodiversity/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/new-survey-methods-uncover-new-insights-into-madagascars-biodiversity/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-319759</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>World burned less coal in 2025, but built more plants over energy uncertainty</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/world-burned-less-coal-in-2025-but-built-more-plants-over-energy-uncertainty/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/world-burned-less-coal-in-2025-but-built-more-plants-over-energy-uncertainty/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 May 2026 06:46:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ashoka Mukpo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/20102003/24190342154_a7040c07b5_k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=319798</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Central America, East Africa, United States, Zambia, and Zimbabwe]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Coal, Economics, Energy, Environment, Governance, Mining, and Politics]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Coal use across the world continued to drop in 2025, but there was an increase in the capacity to burn it, according to an annual report by data analysis group Global Energy Monitor. Overall power generation from coal declined by 0.6% last year, but the amount that was on call if needed for power grids [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Coal use across the world continued to drop in 2025, but there was an increase in the capacity to burn it, according to an annual report by data analysis group Global Energy Monitor. Overall power generation from coal declined by 0.6% last year, but the amount that was on call if needed for power grids rose by 3.5%. Most of that growth was concentrated in China, where additional coal capacity is increasingly considered a backup option to ensure energy security. While China added 78.1 gigawatts of coal power capacity in 2025, its actual use of coal power fell by 1.2%. This decline was notable as it came amid an overall rise in Chinese energy demand. According to the report, more than 90% of that increased demand was met not with coal, but with wind and solar. While China remains far and away the world’s largest user of coal, more of its energy needs are being met with renewables. India added the second-highest coal power capacity in 2025, but it also showed movement toward a cleaner grid. Along with record solar and wind power additions, renewables made up more than half of the country’s overall power capacity for the first time. Christine Shearer, lead researcher of the report on the global coal power fleet, said most of the new coal capacity added in India and China was commissioned years ago, before the market dynamics around renewables had changed. “By the time all these coal plants began operating in 2025, cheaper alternatives&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/world-burned-less-coal-in-2025-but-built-more-plants-over-energy-uncertainty/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-319798</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Electric fences help farmers and elephants coexist in Zambian borderlands</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/electric-fences-help-farmers-and-elephants-coexist-in-zambian-borderlands/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/electric-fences-help-farmers-and-elephants-coexist-in-zambian-borderlands/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 May 2026 10:46:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ryan Truscott]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/19164707/Elephants.Loxodonta.africana_LiwondeNPMalawi_StGeorgesFlickrBYNCND2.0-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=319713</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Southern Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conflict, Conservation, Elephants, Endangered Species, Environment, Fences, Habitat, Habitat Degradation, Mammals, Protected Areas, Tracking, Wildlife, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[LUNDAZI, Zambia — “It’s not possible [to coexist with elephants], because they are animals and we are human beings — they should have their own home,” says Esnart Banda, a Zambian farmer whose maize and tobacco fields lie 5 meters, just 16 feet, from the boundary of Malawi’s Kasungu National Park. Just two thin strands [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[LUNDAZI, Zambia — “It’s not possible [to coexist with elephants], because they are animals and we are human beings — they should have their own home,” says Esnart Banda, a Zambian farmer whose maize and tobacco fields lie 5 meters, just 16 feet, from the boundary of Malawi’s Kasungu National Park. Just two thin strands of orange, plastic-coated wire now stand between Banda’s crops and Kasungu’s elephants. The wires, known as polywire fencing and supplied by conservation group IFAW and Zambia’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW), are strung taut between straight, evenly cut fence poles that Banda and her helpers erected. To the uninitiated, they hardly seem capable of stopping a herd of elephants. But Banda herself attests to their effectiveness. “It’s strong, it helps us,” she tells Mongabay. “If somebody touches it, they fall.” Farmer Harry Msimuko stands in front of wires that carry a powerful electric charge, protecting his own crops and those of 19 other households from elephants from nearby Kasungu National Park. Image by Ryan Truscott for Mongabay. On a neighboring farm, within sight of the bare granite faces of Malawi’s Miwonde Hills, Harry Msimuko shows off the “power house” in his living room: two solar-powered batteries with wiring snaking up the wall. When he flicks a switch at night, pulses of electricity run along 6 kilometers (nearly 4 miles) of fencing enclosing not only his crops but those of 19 neighbors. The only recent conflict, he says, has been with hyenas crossing from&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/electric-fences-help-farmers-and-elephants-coexist-in-zambian-borderlands/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/electric-fences-help-farmers-and-elephants-coexist-in-zambian-borderlands/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-319713</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Radio and satellite alerts help Zambian farmers live with dangerous wildlife</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/radio-and-satellite-alerts-help-zambian-farmers-live-with-dangerous-wildlife/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/radio-and-satellite-alerts-help-zambian-farmers-live-with-dangerous-wildlife/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 May 2026 18:54:24 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ryan Truscott]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/15184240/Elephants_IFAW_fence-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=319556</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Southern Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Elephants, Endangered Species, Environment, Fences, Habitat, Habitat Degradation, Habitat Loss, Human-wildlife Conflict, Infrastructure, Mammals, Migration, Protected Areas, Tracking, Wildlife, Wildlife Corridors, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[LUNDAZI, Zambia – In a yellow, single-story building in the eastern Zambian town of Lundazi, a radio presenter fields numerous calls from anxious villagers on nearby farms. Sitting across from presenter Joseph Mwale in the air-conditioned studio are two officials from Zambia’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW). One of them, Senior Ranger Mathews [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[LUNDAZI, Zambia – In a yellow, single-story building in the eastern Zambian town of Lundazi, a radio presenter fields numerous calls from anxious villagers on nearby farms. Sitting across from presenter Joseph Mwale in the air-conditioned studio are two officials from Zambia’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW). One of them, Senior Ranger Mathews Mumbi, tells listeners: “Avoid going out at night to avoid the ngozi (accidental harm).” Many of the villagers tuning in to the Thursday evening program live in a transfrontier conservation area (TFCA) straddling eastern Zambia and neighboring Malawi: dangerous encounters with wild animals is a way of life here. The twice-weekly radio show on Chikaya FM, a community radio station, is sponsored by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), which works with the DNPW to promote human-wildlife coexistence across three Zambian farming districts – Lundazi, Lumezi and Chipangali — home to around half a million people. In theory, the TFCA links Kasungu with Zambia’s Lukusuzi and Luambe National Parks, but to reach the Zambian parks, elephants and other wild animals must cross farmland and roads and navigate past schools and homesteads. Zambia Department of National Parks and Wildlife&#8217;s Mwizaso Chipeta (left) and Mathews Mumbi field questions from callers about human-wildlife conflict from callers during a radio show on Chikaya FM, while IFAW’s community engagement manager Alstone Mwanza (right) listens in. Image by Ryan Truscott for Mongabay. During a break in the radio show, the station runs an advert with the sound of an elephant&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/radio-and-satellite-alerts-help-zambian-farmers-live-with-dangerous-wildlife/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-319556</doi>				</item>
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