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		<title>Conservation news</title>
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		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/mozambique/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
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	<title>Mozambique environmental news</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/mozambique/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>In Mozambique, four isolated mountains yield four new chameleon species</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/in-mozambique-four-isolated-mountains-yield-four-new-chameleon-species/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/in-mozambique-four-isolated-mountains-yield-four-new-chameleon-species/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>08 May 2026 07:02:50 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/08070207/chameleon-mozambique-768x512.avif" type="image/jpeg" />
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											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Conservation, Ecology, Endangered Species, Environment, Forest Destruction, Forests, Green, Mountains, New Species, Reptiles, Research, Species Discovery, Tropical Forests, Wildlife, and Wildlife Conservation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Scientists have identified four new-to-science species of chameleons inhabiting four distinct, isolated mountains in northern Mozambique. These mountains — Namuli, Inago, Chiperone, and Ribáuè —are granite inselbergs rising sharply from the arid savanna. They act as “sky islands” or ecological oases that have allowed unique species to evolve in isolation for millions of years. The [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Scientists have identified four new-to-science species of chameleons inhabiting four distinct, isolated mountains in northern Mozambique. These mountains — Namuli, Inago, Chiperone, and Ribáuè —are granite inselbergs rising sharply from the arid savanna. They act as “sky islands” or ecological oases that have allowed unique species to evolve in isolation for millions of years. The research team, led by herpetologists Krystal Tolley of the South African National Biodiversity Institute and the University of Johannesburg, alongside Werner Conradie from Port Elizabeth Museum, explored the inselbergs from 2014 to 2018 to survey the chameleons found there. Their analysis of the chameleons’ DNA and physical traits confirmed that each mountain harbors its own distinct species. The newly described species are Nadzikambia franklinae, N. goodallae, N. nubila and N. evanescens. Two of the chameleons’ names pay homage to women scientists: N. franklinae, found on Mount Namuli, is named after British chemist Rosalind Franklin, while N. goodallae, found on Mount Ribáuè, honors late conservation icon Jane Goodall. The other two chameleons were named for their habitat and microclimate: N. nubila is named after the Latin nubilus, meaning cloudy, referring to the clouds that are key for the mid-elevation wet forest on Mount Chiperone. Meanwhile, the species name of N. evanescens means &#8220;vanishing&#8221; in Latin, to reflect the desperate state of its shrinking home on Mount Inago. C-F: N. franklinae, N. goodallae, N. evanescens, N. nubila. Image courtesy of Tolley &amp; Conradie, 2026, Vertebrate Zoology, (CC BY 4.0). All four chameleons are forest specialists that live&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/in-mozambique-four-isolated-mountains-yield-four-new-chameleon-species/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Nearly a million birds shipped from Africa to Asia in 15 years; canaries top the list</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/nearly-a-million-birds-shipped-from-africa-to-asia-in-15-years-canaries-top-the-list/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/nearly-a-million-birds-shipped-from-africa-to-asia-in-15-years-canaries-top-the-list/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Apr 2026 15:04:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
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					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=317571</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Asia, Guinea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Mali, Mozambique, North America, Senegal, Singapore, Southeast Asia, Tanzania, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Conservation, Crime, Environment, Health, Infectious Wildlife Disease, Invasive Species, Nature And Health, Parrots, Pet Trade, Public Health, Regulations, Wildlife, Wildlife Crime, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Zoonotic Diseases]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Worldwide, people buy and hunt nearly half of the 11,000 bird species in existence. In Asia, Europe, and North and South America, songbirds and parrots are highly desired pets. Collectors pay exorbitant sums for rare species or melodious birds to compete in high-stakes singing competitions. Falconers and sport hunters capture or kill raptors. Belief-based rituals [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Worldwide, people buy and hunt nearly half of the 11,000 bird species in existence. In Asia, Europe, and North and South America, songbirds and parrots are highly desired pets. Collectors pay exorbitant sums for rare species or melodious birds to compete in high-stakes singing competitions. Falconers and sport hunters capture or kill raptors. Belief-based rituals in West Africa incorporate vulture parts. Buyers in North America seek dead hornbills and hummingbirds as home décor. The list goes on. This massive commerce threatens more than 200 avian species with extinction. Now, as online marketplaces proliferate, customers can order a bird with a swipe on their phone from anywhere on the planet. Moving birds around the world also spreads deadly diseases, from avian influenza to circovirus, and when non-native birds get loose, they may proliferate, outcompeting residents. “There&#8217;s a lack of awareness and appreciation for the scale of this trade, and little attention on the impacts that this could be having on wild populations or the risks for the spread of invasive species and infectious diseases,” said Rowan Martin, director of bird trade at the nonprofit World Parrot Trust. “If people are not aware that this is even happening, then how are we going to be able to mitigate the risks associated with it?” In an attempt to understand the scale of the live bird trade, Martin and his colleagues used records from U.N. Comtrade, a database that aggregates information on all commodities traded between countries. The team analyzed live bird imports into&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/nearly-a-million-birds-shipped-from-africa-to-asia-in-15-years-canaries-top-the-list/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Honeyguide birds learn local human dialects</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/01/honeyguide-birds-learn-local-human-dialects/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/01/honeyguide-birds-learn-local-human-dialects/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Jan 2026 23:44:51 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ryan Truscott]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/01/23234404/Q-Ks6QVy-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=313288</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Birds, Indigenous Culture, and Mutualism]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In northern Mozambique, local honey-hunters use vocal signals to communicate with wild honeyguide birds to locate and harvest honey. New research finds that human calls used across the region vary, but the birds learn these subtle differences and continue to cooperate with their human partners, guiding them to wild bees’ nests. The study focused on [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In northern Mozambique, local honey-hunters use vocal signals to communicate with wild honeyguide birds to locate and harvest honey. New research finds that human calls used across the region vary, but the birds learn these subtle differences and continue to cooperate with their human partners, guiding them to wild bees’ nests. The study focused on Mozambique’s 42,000-square-kilometer (16,000-square-mile) Niassa Special Reserve, where honey-hunters work with greater honeyguides (Indicator indicator), small brown birds that eat larvae and wax. With a bird’s-eye view, honeyguides locate bees’ nests and lead honey-hunters to them. People then use tools to open the nest for honey and leave behind the exposed wax and larvae for the birds. This ancient partnership can be found in a handful of areas across Africa. Niassa honey-hunters use three distinct calls to attract their bird partners. Two function as “recruitment calls,” attracting the birds’ attention, while a third “coordination call” keeps them engaged once the hunt is underway. Researchers examined recordings of 131 honey-hunters from 13 villages. The three principle calls involved combinations of shrill whoops, low trills and grunts, and the presence or absence of whistles. The calls varied between villages and those differences increased with distance between communities, much like human dialects. If honey-hunters move to live in other villages, they adopt the local calls, behavioral ecologist Jessica van der Wal, the study’s lead author, told Mongabay. “If a certain village is using a different call,” said van der Wal, “it probably means that’s the call to get the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/01/honeyguide-birds-learn-local-human-dialects/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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					<title>UK, Dutch agencies pull funding from Total’s controversial Mozambique LNG project</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/uk-dutch-agencies-pull-funding-from-totals-controversial-mozambique-lng-project/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/uk-dutch-agencies-pull-funding-from-totals-controversial-mozambique-lng-project/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Dec 2025 08:45:19 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/12/10083811/Afungi-Park-construction-site_Borges-Nhamire_Bloomberg-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=310987</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Carbon Dioxide, Climate Change, Conflict, Conservation, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, Governance, Human Rights, Just Transition, Natural Gas, and Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[U.K. and Dutch export credit agencies have withdrawn their financial commitments for French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies’ gas project in Mozambique, in an unprecedented move that marks the latest setback for the controversial project. UK Export Finance (UKEF), a government agency, and Netherlands-based Atradius, both of which provide companies with loans, guarantees and insurance [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[U.K. and Dutch export credit agencies have withdrawn their financial commitments for French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies’ gas project in Mozambique, in an unprecedented move that marks the latest setback for the controversial project. UK Export Finance (UKEF), a government agency, and Netherlands-based Atradius, both of which provide companies with loans, guarantees and insurance for overseas projects, had previously committed a combined $2.2 billion to TotalEnergies’ liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in northern Mozambique. The project has been linked to environmental destruction and human rights violations, and was recently sued in France for alleged links to a massacre near the LNG site. “It&#8217;s a historic decision by the U.K. government that must be commended, because it has not been seen before that an export credit agency pulls out of a project it had previously agreed to support,” said Antoine Bouhey, campaign coordinator at Reclaim Finance, a France-based organization advocating for financial alignment with social and climate justice. “The project is riddled with problems related to climate change, of course, as well as extremely grave allegations of human rights violations,” Bouhey told Mongabay by phone. He added he hopes the agencies’ withdrawal will encourage other financiers to reconsider their involvement. “What we are telling all 29 financiers still involved in the deal who may think they cannot withdraw is that [UKEF and Atradius show] there is a possibility to pull out,” Bouhey said. “They should do the only responsible thing, which is to end their commitment to this project.” Amid&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/uk-dutch-agencies-pull-funding-from-totals-controversial-mozambique-lng-project/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>TotalEnergies faces criminal complaint in France over alleged massacre in Mozambique</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/totalenergies-faces-criminal-complaint-in-france-over-alleged-massacre-in-mozambique/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/totalenergies-faces-criminal-complaint-in-france-over-alleged-massacre-in-mozambique/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Nov 2025 07:30:45 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ashoka Mukpo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/24054929/UN0381287-scaled2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=310013</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Conflict, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Politics, Fossil Fuels, Gas, Governance, Green, Human Rights, Indigenous Communities, Indigenous Peoples, Marine, Natural Gas, and Oceans]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[As French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies prepares to resume work on its multibillion-dollar offshore gas project in northern Mozambique, it faces a criminal complaint back home over its role in funding an army unit accused of torturing and executing dozens of civilians in 2021. The complaint was filed with France’s National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor by [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[As French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies prepares to resume work on its multibillion-dollar offshore gas project in northern Mozambique, it faces a criminal complaint back home over its role in funding an army unit accused of torturing and executing dozens of civilians in 2021. The complaint was filed with France’s National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor by Berlin-based legal nonprofit the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR). It alleges that TotalEnergies knew of human rights allegations leveled at Mozambique’s elite Joint Task Force (JTF), but continued paying it to secure its facilities. “With this complaint, we have requested that the specialized prosecutor opens an investigation into the potential complicity of TotalEnergies,” Chloé Bailey, a senior legal adviser with the ECCHR, told Mongabay. The French prosecutor&#8217;s office has the authority to issue indictments that could include criminal charges against both the company and individual TotalEnergies executives.  The ECCHR’s complaint focuses on events that took place in 2021 around the town of Palma, near TotalEnergies’ onshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities. In March 2021, jihadist militia al-Shabaab captured Palma in a shocking attack that displaced tens of thousands of people. Last year, U.S.-based outlet Politico published an investigation alleging that after recapturing the town, soldiers with the JTF rounded up civilians from nearby villages, accused them of ties to al-Shabaab, and imprisoned them in shipping containers for months. According to Politico, at least 97 detainees were executed or died inside the containers, based on a door-to-door survey of the villages. Between 2020&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/totalenergies-faces-criminal-complaint-in-france-over-alleged-massacre-in-mozambique/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Construction of TotalEnergies pipeline cuts through coral reefs in Mozambique</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/construction-of-totalenergies-pipeline-cuts-through-coral-reefs-in-mozambique/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/construction-of-totalenergies-pipeline-cuts-through-coral-reefs-in-mozambique/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Nov 2025 15:20:32 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</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/20/2025/11/18104327/coral-reef-mozambique-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=309730</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Business, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Coral Reefs, Corporate Environmental Transgressors, Corporate Responsibility, Corporations, Environment, Environmental Law, Gas, Industry, Infrastructure, Marine Conservation, Marine Crisis, Natural Gas, and Oceans]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Over the past year, a dredger operated by Dutch company Van Oord cut through a coral reef off the coast of northern Mozambique, part of the construction of French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies’ troubled liquefied natural gas project in Cabo Delgado. Data scientists analyzing satellite imagery and vessel data have found that a massive [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Over the past year, a dredger operated by Dutch company Van Oord cut through a coral reef off the coast of northern Mozambique, part of the construction of French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies’ troubled liquefied natural gas project in Cabo Delgado. Data scientists analyzing satellite imagery and vessel data have found that a massive chunk of coral has been dredged out of the ecologically sensitive reef. The 32 islands of the Quirimbas Archipelago extend from the mouth of the Rovuma River, on the Mozambique-Tanzania border, to Pemba Bay in the south. The archipelago is home to a high number of endemic and threatened species, including coelacanths (Latimeria chalumnae), dugongs (Dugong dugon) and hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) and green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas). Its coastal and littoral zone have estuaries and mangrove forests. “Of all the tropical oceans, the Indian Ocean by the Mozambique Channel is the ocean with the highest surface temperature increase, so corals are under stress,” said Daniel Ribeiro from the environmental justice organization Justiça Ambiental (JA!). “The ability to recover after damage is much lower because of these factors.” There are four major gas projects in the Rovuma Basin, including ENI’s Coral North floating liquefied natural gas project, which is the only one currently operational. TotalEnergies’ Mozambique LNG project was suspended in 2021, following an attack on facilities by insurgents. TotalEnergies and Exxon stopped work on their gas projects while regional troops joined the Mozambican army in battling the insurgents. In October 2025, the French company announced&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/construction-of-totalenergies-pipeline-cuts-through-coral-reefs-in-mozambique/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>TotalEnergies moves to restart Mozambique LNG project despite security, eco concerns</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/totalenergies-moves-to-restart-mozambique-lng-project-despite-security-eco-concerns/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/totalenergies-moves-to-restart-mozambique-lng-project-despite-security-eco-concerns/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2025 14:23:11 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/13141351/Afungi-Park-construction-site_Plataforma-do-gas-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=309479</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conflict, Conservation, Energy, Energy Politics, Environment, environmental justice, Environmental Politics, Fossil Fuels, Gas, Governance, Green, Industry, and Natural Gas]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Four years after suspending operations at a liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique’s Afungi Peninsula following insurgent attacks in the nearby village of Palma, French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies and its partners have decided to lift their force majeure, local media reported. The company communicated the decision to the Mozambican government on Oct. 24. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Four years after suspending operations at a liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique’s Afungi Peninsula following insurgent attacks in the nearby village of Palma, French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies and its partners have decided to lift their force majeure, local media reported. The company communicated the decision to the Mozambican government on Oct. 24. It also requested some amendments to the project plan, including a 10-year extension on its production license. TotalEnergies’ resumption of work on the LNG plant still awaits government approval of its proposed timeline and budget. Still, activity around the planned LNG site has been ramping up over the past year, said Daniel Ribeiro of the Mozambican environmental organization Justiça Ambiental, in a phone interview with Mongabay. He estimated that around 1,000 people — including subcontractors, private firms and TotalEnergies staff — are already working in the area. Observers and civil society organizations say the security situation remains precarious at the site. They also warn that major issues persist, including environmental impacts, unresolved land compensation for resettled communities, and the exposure of nearby villages to heightened security risks. “Total has gone to a closed enclave setup where they want to increase the security of their project area, the Afungi site, in which they have a lot of security. But that model will expose the communities to the insurgents more,” Ribeiro said. He added that TotalEnergies receives security support from the Mozambican army as well as forces from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Rwanda. Ribeiro&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/totalenergies-moves-to-restart-mozambique-lng-project-despite-security-eco-concerns/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/totalenergies-moves-to-restart-mozambique-lng-project-despite-security-eco-concerns/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
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					<title>Mozambique reserve found to host rare Taita falcon’s largest refuge</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/10/mozambique-reserve-found-to-host-rare-taita-falcons-largest-refuge/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/10/mozambique-reserve-found-to-host-rare-taita-falcons-largest-refuge/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Oct 2025 10:11:35 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shanna Hanbury]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/10/03101100/Falcon_male_perch_AvZ--768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=307035</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Birds, Birds Of Prey, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Governance, Wildlife, and Wildlife Conservation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The world’s largest-known population of Taita falcons has been recorded in Mozambique’s Niassa Special Reserve, where researchers estimate up to 76 breeding pairs live among its isolated island of rocky hills and woodlands, Mongabay contributor Ryan Truscott reported. The vulnerable Taita falcon (Falco fasciinucha) is smaller than a pigeon and has been called a “stunningly [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The world’s largest-known population of Taita falcons has been recorded in Mozambique’s Niassa Special Reserve, where researchers estimate up to 76 breeding pairs live among its isolated island of rocky hills and woodlands, Mongabay contributor Ryan Truscott reported. The vulnerable Taita falcon (Falco fasciinucha) is smaller than a pigeon and has been called a “stunningly cute little raptor.” With fewer than 500 breeding pairs globally, it is one of the rarest and most specialized birds of prey, but human degradation of their habitat has caused their populations to dwindle across their range in eastern Africa, from southern Ethiopia to northeastern South Africa. Most known Taita falcon sites today host fewer than 10 breeding pairs. “Finding Niassa as a [Taita] stronghold still, where hopefully there’s still good genetic diversity, is quite encouraging,” Hanneline Smit-Robinson, co-author of the recently published study and head of conservation at BirdLife South Africa, told Truscott. In 2021, the research team surveyed 35 potential Taita territories within a 75-kilometer (46-mile) radius of Niassa’s administrative camp to confirm the presence of the falcon, reaching some sites by foot and others by helicopter. They found 14 breeding pairs and combined that information with remote-sensing data to model other potential nests across the 4.2-million-hectare (10.4-million-acre) reserve. They estimate between 68 and 76 breeding pairs live in the area. Taita falcons nest on the peaks of granite rock hills in Mozambique’s Niassa Special Reserve. Image courtesy of Anthony van Zyl. With this discovery, the Niassa Special Reserve hosts the world’s biggest-known&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/10/mozambique-reserve-found-to-host-rare-taita-falcons-largest-refuge/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/10/mozambique-reserve-found-to-host-rare-taita-falcons-largest-refuge/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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					<title>Mass vulture poisonings expose need for cross-border action in Southern Africa</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/mass-vulture-poisonings-expose-need-for-cross-border-action-in-southern-africa/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/mass-vulture-poisonings-expose-need-for-cross-border-action-in-southern-africa/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Sep 2025 16:15:05 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sean Mowbray]]>
						</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/20/2025/09/18122618/Image_2-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=306186</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, South Africa, Southern Africa, and Zimbabwe]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Birds, Birds Of Prey, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Poaching, Poisoning, Predators, Raptors, Scavengers, Vultures, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A cluster of mass vulture poisonings earlier this year has drawn attention to an alarming, ongoing problem in the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area that straddles South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. According to the African Wildlife Poisoning Database, more than 2,400 vultures have died from poisoning in the GLTFCA, including in South Africa’s famed Kruger [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A cluster of mass vulture poisonings earlier this year has drawn attention to an alarming, ongoing problem in the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area that straddles South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. According to the African Wildlife Poisoning Database, more than 2,400 vultures have died from poisoning in the GLTFCA, including in South Africa’s famed Kruger National Park, in the past decade. As wide-ranging, slow-breeding keystone species of this landscape’s ecology, vultures need urgent action to protect them, conservation authorities say. Other raptors, as well as mammal carnivores like hyenas, leopards and lions, have also been poisoned. The Endangered Wildlife Trust, which operates the poisoning database in cooperation with the Peregrine Fund, says approximately 53 lions have been killed by poison in this vast cross-border protected area since 2015. In just the past two years, 14 lions are known to have died from poisoning and a further 10 more caught in snares and then killed by poachers. John Davies, project coordinator of raptor conservation and research at the Endangered Wildlife Trust, says the series of mass poisonings in May and June triggered meetings involving South Africa National Parks (SANParks), conservation NGOs and other authorities to assess where systems were lacking and could be improved. “I think that&#8217;s a big positive,” Davies tells Mongabay. André Botha, co-chair of the Vulture Specialist Group at the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority, also expresses cautious optimism. “We have witnessed similar meetings in the past, with limited results, but I trust that the current high&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/mass-vulture-poisonings-expose-need-for-cross-border-action-in-southern-africa/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/mass-vulture-poisonings-expose-need-for-cross-border-action-in-southern-africa/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Mozambican reserve harbors largest documented breeding population of rare falcon</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/mozambican-reserve-harbors-largest-documented-breeding-population-of-rare-falcon/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/mozambican-reserve-harbors-largest-documented-breeding-population-of-rare-falcon/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Sep 2025 09:59:25 +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/20/2025/09/17093302/d25f31ec-d6f1-4fb4-a754-cf3fe5cd5233-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=306111</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Birds, Birds Of Prey, Conservation, Deforestation, Dry Forests, Environment, Extinction, Forests, Protected Areas, Raptors, Research, Surveying, Trees, Tropical Forests, Wildlife, and Wildlife Conservation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A new study reports that the Niassa Special Reserve, a 4-million-hectare (10-million-acre) wilderness in northern Mozambique, harbors the largest documented breeding population of Taita falcons. A survey that focused on 35 of the reserve’s towering granite inselbergs found 14 pairs of the birds. The study authors estimate the entire reserve could harbor up to 76 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A new study reports that the Niassa Special Reserve, a 4-million-hectare (10-million-acre) wilderness in northern Mozambique, harbors the largest documented breeding population of Taita falcons. A survey that focused on 35 of the reserve’s towering granite inselbergs found 14 pairs of the birds. The study authors estimate the entire reserve could harbor up to 76 pairs. It&#8217;s an astonishing number for a species whose other known breeding sites host fewer than 10 pairs. Taita falcons (Falco fasciinucha) are stocky birds with russet chests, white throats, and black facial stripes. One of the world’s rarest birds of prey, they survive in isolated, fragmented populations scattered along the eastern side of Africa, from southern Ethiopia to northeastern South Africa. The IUCN estimates their total number at up to 1,000 mature individuals, but this estimate is uncertain due to a scarcity of data from regions north of Zimbabwe and Mozambique. A young Taita falcon, recently fledged from a nest in Blyde River Canyon, South Africa: Falco fasciinucha has been recorded across a wide expanse of East and Southern Africa, but limited systematic surveys means its distribution and population numbers are uncertain. Image courtesy of Anthony van Zyl. Taita falcons hunt small, fast insect-eating birds such as flycatchers, swifts and bee-eaters. Hunting from Niassa’s inselbergs that rise above surrounding woodlands appears to give the raptors an edge over larger peregrine (Falco peregrinus) and lanner falcons (Falco biarmicus), which occupy this same territory in smaller numbers but must fly further in search of grain-eating prey&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/mozambican-reserve-harbors-largest-documented-breeding-population-of-rare-falcon/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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					<title>Marc Stalmans, ecologist who helped restore Gorongosa’s wildlife, dies at 66</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/marc-stalmans-ecologist-who-helped-restore-gorongosas-wildlife-dies-at-66/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/marc-stalmans-ecologist-who-helped-restore-gorongosas-wildlife-dies-at-66/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Aug 2025 21:02:30 +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/20/2025/08/31205412/Marc-Stalmans-25x9-header-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=305227</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Founder's briefs]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Ecological Restoration, Ecosystem Restoration, Environment, Green, Landscape Restoration, Obituary, and Restoration]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Marc Stalmans, who died of natural causes on August 30th at 66, spent much of his life restoring life to a landscape once stripped of it. As the science director at Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park, he was central to one of Africa’s most ambitious ecological experiments: the attempt to bring back an ecosystem gutted by [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Marc Stalmans, who died of natural causes on August 30th at 66, spent much of his life restoring life to a landscape once stripped of it. As the science director at Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park, he was central to one of Africa’s most ambitious ecological experiments: the attempt to bring back an ecosystem gutted by war. Gorongosa had been a battlefield during Mozambique’s civil conflict from 1977 to 1992. By the time peace came, its buffalo had fallen from 14,000 to fewer than 100, wildebeest from 6,000 to 15, elephants from 2,500 to under 200. Lions and wild dogs had almost vanished. The park, once a stronghold of African wildlife, was close to ecological collapse. When Stalmans began working with the Gorongosa Restoration Project in 2006, he saw not just absence but possibility. “On the plant side, it was obvious when we first started that the general habitat was in very good shape. It was just the animals that were missing,” he recalled. With its rich soils, seasonal floods, and high productivity, Gorongosa had the conditions to rebound. What it lacked was the scientific guidance to ensure recovery took hold. In 2012, he joined full-time as science director, providing the data and ecological grounding for decisions about reintroductions, species balance, and land management. Born in Kinshasa to Belgian parents, Stalmans moved to Belgium as a teenager and trained as a forestry engineer before emigrating to South Africa in 1984. He earned a master’s in botany and later a PhD in&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/marc-stalmans-ecologist-who-helped-restore-gorongosas-wildlife-dies-at-66/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Roberto Zolho, conservationist who helped restore Mozambique’s wildlife following its civil war, has died at 65.</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/roberto-zolho-conservationist-who-helped-restore-mozambiques-wildlife-following-its-civil-war-has-died-at-65/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/roberto-zolho-conservationist-who-helped-restore-mozambiques-wildlife-following-its-civil-war-has-died-at-65/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Jul 2025 18:09:46 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/07103927/Roberto-Zolho-bw-256x90-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=301991</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Ecological Restoration, Environment, Green, Landscape Restoration, Obituary, Protected Areas, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[For a man who spent his life studying the movements of wildlife, Roberto Zolho was most at peace when not moving at all—drifting in a kayak down the Guacheni channels, pausing to admire an egret, a kingfisher, or a sunlit curve in the reeds. In these secluded corners of Mozambique’s wetlands, he was not a [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For a man who spent his life studying the movements of wildlife, Roberto Zolho was most at peace when not moving at all—drifting in a kayak down the Guacheni channels, pausing to admire an egret, a kingfisher, or a sunlit curve in the reeds. In these secluded corners of Mozambique’s wetlands, he was not a former government official or a decorated scientist. He was simply a witness, content to observe the “amazing birdlife,” as he once wrote with characteristic understatement. Zolho&#8217;s legacy lies most visibly in Gorongosa National Park, once a paradise gutted by civil war. Appointed its administrator in 1996, he inherited a landscape where over 90% of large mammals had vanished. Rather than despair, he set about recovery with meticulous care—counting what was left, building systems for what might return, and working closely with the local community. It was his 2005 proposal for species reintroduction that laid the groundwork for one of the most remarkable wildlife restorations in history. By 2025, Gorongosa’s plains were again teeming with tens of thousands of animals, its predators prowling and its forests mending. Zolho saw conservation not as an exercise in nostalgia, nor as a fortress to be built against humanity. His career, spanning more than three decades across Mozambique, Tanzania, South Africa, and Australia, reflected a broader conviction: that biodiversity could only endure if local communities shared in its benefits. Whether coordinating climate resilience programs or leading cross-border conservation corridors, he insisted on integrating ecological goals with the aspirations of rural&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/roberto-zolho-conservationist-who-helped-restore-mozambiques-wildlife-following-its-civil-war-has-died-at-65/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>To reduce rhino poaching — by a lot — cut off their horns, study says</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/06/to-reduce-rhino-poaching-by-a-lot-cut-off-their-horns-study-says/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/06/to-reduce-rhino-poaching-by-a-lot-cut-off-their-horns-study-says/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>17 Jun 2025 12:48:38 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Dann Okoth]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/06/17124318/dehorned-white-rhino-and-calf-2-scaled-768x512-1.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=300908</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Black Rhino, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Governance, Mammals, Research, Rhinos, White Rhino, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Poaching has decimated rhino populations across Africa, but a new study finds that dehorning the animals, or surgically removing their horns, drastically reduces poaching. The study focused on 11 reserves in the Greater Kruger ecosystem that sprawls across the border of South Africa and Mozambique. Poachers killed nearly 2,000 rhinos here, 6.5% of the reserves’ [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Poaching has decimated rhino populations across Africa, but a new study finds that dehorning the animals, or surgically removing their horns, drastically reduces poaching. The study focused on 11 reserves in the Greater Kruger ecosystem that sprawls across the border of South Africa and Mozambique. Poachers killed nearly 2,000 rhinos here, 6.5% of the reserves’ population, from 2017-2023, reducing populations of both black (Diceros bicornis) and white (Ceratotherium simum) rhinos, according to Tim Kuiper, study lead and conservation scientist at Nelson Mandela University. Poachers target rhinos for their keratin horns, incorrectly believed in traditional Asian medicine to hold medicinal properties. To deter poachers, many African reserves have tried dehorning, a procedure where veterinarians tranquilize rhinos and saw off their horns, leaving only a stump behind. In eight of the 11 reserves the study examined, park authorities and researchers (some involved in the study) have dehorned rhinos in batches since 2017. This allowed the researchers to compare the impact of dehorning on poaching rates over time, against the three reserves where rhinos weren’t dehorned, and against conventional measures implemented prior to dehorning. The study found a 78% reduction in poaching rates in the parks after dehorning — and it was cost-effective, too. From 2017-2023, the reserves spent $74 million on antipoaching measures, including rangers, tracking dogs, cameras, better fences and access control. But dehorning accounted for just 1.2% of the budget, the study found. “So, it&#8217;s very clear that our study demonstrated massive declines in poaching in response to dehorning,” Kuiper&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/06/to-reduce-rhino-poaching-by-a-lot-cut-off-their-horns-study-says/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Pandemic-era slump in ivory and pangolin scale trafficking persists, report finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/pandemic-era-slump-in-ivory-and-pangolin-scale-trafficking-persists-report-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/pandemic-era-slump-in-ivory-and-pangolin-scale-trafficking-persists-report-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>17 Jun 2025 08:31:03 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/06/17082738/White-belliedPangolin_Gabon_BureaubenjaminINaturalistBYNC4.0-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=300838</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Angola, Asia, Cameroon, Central Africa, China, Democratic Republic Of Congo, East Asia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Uganda, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Bushmeat, China wildlife trade, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Ecology, Elephants, Endangered Species, Environment, Forests, Hunting, Ivory, Ivory Trade, Law Enforcement, Mammals, Over-hunting, Pangolins, Poaching, Rainforest Animals, Rainforests, Tropical Forests, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Crime, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A recent report surveying seizures of pangolin scales and elephant ivory over the past decade has found a sharp decline following the COVID-19 pandemic. Using data from media reports, public documents, and criminal intelligence and investigations, analysts at the Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC) found authorities seized more than 370 metric tons of pangolin scales and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A recent report surveying seizures of pangolin scales and elephant ivory over the past decade has found a sharp decline following the COVID-19 pandemic. Using data from media reports, public documents, and criminal intelligence and investigations, analysts at the Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC) found authorities seized more than 370 metric tons of pangolin scales and 193 metric tons of elephant ivory between 2015 and 2024. Seizures began to ramp up in 2015, peaked in 2019, and then declined sharply in 2020. The report found that the pandemic disruption to trade and travel, coinciding with increased enforcement based on intelligence, prompted these declines. Post-pandemic, the decline in trade has continued to hold as countries intensify law enforcement and intelligence gathering. “The report was motivated by a need to present up-to-date findings and offer a current assessment of the evolving criminal dynamics surrounding ivory and pangolin scale trafficking,” Olivia Swaak-Goldman, WJC’s executive director, told Mongabay by email. “From our investigations, we knew there had been some major changes since our last reports … so it was timely to publish updated analysis and highlight these shifts.” Pangolin scales act as armor to protect their body. The WJC report estimates that the 370 tons of pangolin scales seized over the past decade would have come from anywhere between 100,000 and a million pangolins. Image by flowcomm via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0). Pangolin scales, used in traditional medicine, are in high demand in East Asia. Over the past decade, as Asian pangolin numbers plummeted,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/pandemic-era-slump-in-ivory-and-pangolin-scale-trafficking-persists-report-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>After terror attacks, Mozambique nature reserve faces ‘new reality’</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/after-terror-attacks-mozambique-nature-reserve-faces-new-reality/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/after-terror-attacks-mozambique-nature-reserve-faces-new-reality/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Jun 2025 15:21:13 +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/20/2025/06/02125138/lions-mozambique-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=300053</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, Mozambique, and Sub-Saharan Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conflict, Conservation, Crime, Environment, Environmental Law, Forests, Governance, Organized Crime, Protected Areas, Social Conflict, Terrorism, Violence, Wildlife Conservation, and Wildlife Rangers]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[BERLIN — Islamist fighters affiliated with ISIS have left a Mozambican wildlife reserve following a series of deadly attacks that claimed the lives of at least 10 people, including two wildlife rangers, according to the head of the country’s National Administration of Conservation Areas. “We still have a challenging environment, but we have clear indications [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[BERLIN — Islamist fighters affiliated with ISIS have left a Mozambican wildlife reserve following a series of deadly attacks that claimed the lives of at least 10 people, including two wildlife rangers, according to the head of the country’s National Administration of Conservation Areas. “We still have a challenging environment, but we have clear indications that the insurgents are moving out of the reserve,” Pejulo Calenga told local press last week. The attacks on April 29 targeted tourism and conservation facilities in northern Mozambique’s Niassa Special Reserve, forcing their closure as units of the Mozambican army deployed. Two rangers working with the Niassa Carnivore Project (NCP) remain missing. More than 30 Islamist fighters attacked the Mariri Environmental and Skills Training Centre, which houses the NCP, a conservation group that’s worked inside the reserve for more than 20 years. Most of the group’s staff had already been evacuated following a separate attack on a hunting safari camp 10 days earlier, but a contingent of rangers and Mozambican soldiers were still there when the rebels arrived. In an email to Mongabay, Colleen Begg, the NCP director, said she wasn’t sure when project staff would be able to return to work. “It seems like the insurgents have withdrawn from the Niassa Province portion of Niassa Reserve, but it is not known whether they are still in the eastern sections of Niassa Reserve across the Lugenda River in Cabo Delgado [province], or whether they intend to return,” she wrote. The fighters are members of&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/after-terror-attacks-mozambique-nature-reserve-faces-new-reality/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Mozambique announces petrochemical city on sensitive Inhambane seascape</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/mozambique-announces-petrochemical-city-on-sensitive-inhambane-seascape/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/mozambique-announces-petrochemical-city-on-sensitive-inhambane-seascape/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>08 May 2025 05:01:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/05/08044728/1440px-Dugong_Marsa_Alam-768x512-1.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=298773</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Energy, Environment, Green, Infrastructure, Marine, Marine Biodiversity, Mining, Oceans, Plastic, Pollution, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In April this year, Mozambican President Daniel Chapo announced the launch of a national petrochemical city project in Mavanza village in Vilankulo district of Inhambane province. The coastline of Inhambane province, or the Inhambane seascape, is a globally important area that conservation groups have previously urged the government of Mozambique to protect for its threatened [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In April this year, Mozambican President Daniel Chapo announced the launch of a national petrochemical city project in Mavanza village in Vilankulo district of Inhambane province. The coastline of Inhambane province, or the Inhambane seascape, is a globally important area that conservation groups have previously urged the government of Mozambique to protect for its threatened marine mammals, seabirds and sharks. The $2 billion petrochemical city project, expected be completed by 2028, will be built by the Hong Kong-based Phoenix International Group, Chapo said at the launch. The project will include thermal power stations, refineries, maritime terminals, units to produce polymers and fertilizers and residential areas with schools and hospitals, Chapo said. “The fact that a quarter of the way through the 21st century a ‘national petrochemical city’ is being planned in a globally significant and highly sensitive area for biodiversity is shocking enough,” Tim Davenport, Africa director of the nonprofit Re:wild, told Mongabay by email. “But a development of this magnitude … demonstrates abject short-termism, a failure to understand the true value of nature, and a grave disregard for some of the region’s most disadvantaged communities.” The Inhambane seascape is globally recognized as a critical area for conservation. The seascape includes islands of the Bazaruto Archipelago National Park and the Vilanculos Coastal Wildlife Sanctuary, home to more than 2,000 species of fish and several threatened species of sharks, rays, skates, sawfish and sea turtles. The Bazaruto Archipelago also hosts the last known viable population of dugong (Dugong dugon) in East&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/mozambique-announces-petrochemical-city-on-sensitive-inhambane-seascape/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Mozambique’s farmers pay the price of Europe’s paper packaging demands</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/mozambiques-farmers-pay-the-price-of-europes-paper-packaging-demands/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/mozambiques-farmers-pay-the-price-of-europes-paper-packaging-demands/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 May 2025 22:14:43 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kristine Sabillo]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/04/02150557/PaperIndustry_Mozambique_Portrait_Mugabe-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=298768</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Mozambique, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Agriculture, Biodiversity, Conservation, Deforestation, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Politics, Forests, Green, Land Rights, Logging, Plantations, Pollution, Pulp And Paper, Timber, Timber Laws, timber trade, Trees, and wood]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The rise in e-commerce has created a commensurate rise in demand for single-use paper packaging. Fast-growing, high-yield eucalyptus has become a popular choice for paper but farming communities in Mozambique are paying the price for cheap paper according to a Mongabay documentary produced by Boaventura Monjane, Davide Mancini and Juan Maza. Portugal used to be [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The rise in e-commerce has created a commensurate rise in demand for single-use paper packaging. Fast-growing, high-yield eucalyptus has become a popular choice for paper but farming communities in Mozambique are paying the price for cheap paper according to a Mongabay documentary produced by Boaventura Monjane, Davide Mancini and Juan Maza. Portugal used to be Europe’s main source of cellulose for paper, made from eucalyptus. But locals became concerned about the Australian tree’s effect on the environment and fire risk. Indeed, compared with native oak trees, in eucalyptus plantations, “the fire spreads very rapidly due to the mass of flammable material,” forest engineer Domingo Patacho told Mongabay. Central Portugal still grows a lot of eucalyptus, but in the 1980s, following protest in the north of the country, several paper companies began looking for alternative locations. “The people don’t want eucalyptus in Portugal. Well, we go and [bring it] to the [former] colonies,” Sergio Baffoni, Environmental Paper Network’s campaign coordinator, told the documentary team. Baffoni said 3 billion trees are cut down each year to produce packaging, mostly single-use for e-commerce. When the European Commission proposed legislation to reduced single-use packaging, the pulp and paper industry lobbied “massively,” Baffoni, said. Instead of reducing single-use packaging, there’s just been “a shift of the materials from plastic to paper, presenting paper as green, renewable and perfect for the environment,” he said. The pulp and paper company Portucel is 80% owned by the Portuguese company Navigator and 20% owned by the International Finance Corporation&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/mozambiques-farmers-pay-the-price-of-europes-paper-packaging-demands/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Malice or memory lapse? Why honeyguides sometimes lead hunters to danger</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/malice-or-memory-lapse-why-honeyguides-sometimes-lead-hunters-to-danger/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/malice-or-memory-lapse-why-honeyguides-sometimes-lead-hunters-to-danger/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 May 2025 09:59:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ryan Truscott]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/05/06095032/Mzee_hg_female-scaled-768x512-1.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=298677</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animal Intelligence, Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Environment, Indigenous Communities, Indigenous Peoples, Mutualism, Research, Traditional Knowledge, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Researchers may have finally cracked the centuries-old mystery of why African honeyguide birds sometimes lead human honey-hunters to dangerous animals instead of bees: they could just be recall errors. Honeyguides (Indicator indicator) are famed for guiding honey-hunters to wild bees’ nests in exchange for rewards of beeswax. But since the 1600s, Indigenous accounts have described [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Researchers may have finally cracked the centuries-old mystery of why African honeyguide birds sometimes lead human honey-hunters to dangerous animals instead of bees: they could just be recall errors. Honeyguides (Indicator indicator) are famed for guiding honey-hunters to wild bees’ nests in exchange for rewards of beeswax. But since the 1600s, Indigenous accounts have described the birds occasionally leading hunters to snakes, lions, leopards and buffaloes, with some believing this was punishment for not sharing beeswax after previous hunts. Some Western scientists have been skeptical about honeyguides’ ability to deliberately guide people to “non-bee” animals, researchers say in the new study. In Mozambique’s Niassa Special Reserve, the researchers confirmed that honeyguides led them and Yao honey-hunters to non-bee animals four times in 2018. These included a puff adder (Bitis arietans) and a black mamba (Dendroaspis polylepis) — two of Africa’s most venomous snakes — a rock python (Python natalensis) and a dead galago (Otolemur garnettii), a small nocturnal primate. All three snakes were basking in the open when encountered. Each time, the birds switched to the same distinctive “indication” calls, typically used to signal that a bees’ nest is close, and swooped down toward the snakes, as they do when nests are near the ground, said David Lloyd-Jones, the study’s lead author from the University of Cape Town. “That’s what gave us a level of confidence [to believe] that what we were observing was a deliberate behavior,” he said, adding the study supports what honey-hunters have said for generations. Despite&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/05/malice-or-memory-lapse-why-honeyguides-sometimes-lead-hunters-to-danger/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>The price of Europe&#8217;s paper packaging boom</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/video/2025/04/the-price-for-europes-packing-paper-boom/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/video/2025/04/the-price-for-europes-packing-paper-boom/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Apr 2025 16:28:10 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Boaventura MonjaneDavide ManciniJuan Maza]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Lucia Torres]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/04/02150557/PaperIndustry_Mozambique_Portrait_Mugabe-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=videos&#038;p=296960</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Europe, Mozambique, and Portugal]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Colonialism, Consumption, Crops, Environment, Industry, Plantations, and Pulp And Paper]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The rapid rise of e-commerce and food delivery services has transformed consumption patterns worldwide. In an effort to reduce plastic waste, the European Union introduced policies such as the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, aimed at a shift from single-use plastics to single-use paper products. While these initiatives aim to address the environmental crisis, they [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The rapid rise of e-commerce and food delivery services has transformed consumption patterns worldwide. In an effort to reduce plastic waste, the European Union introduced policies such as the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, aimed at a shift from single-use plastics to single-use paper products. While these initiatives aim to address the environmental crisis, they have fueled a surge in demand for cellulose, intensifying pressures on global forests and rural communities. For years, Portugal was a primary source of cellulose in Europe, producing it from vast plantations of eucalyptus trees. But due to concerns over the fire risk and ecological impact of eucalyptus plantations, the Portuguese government put a halt to their expansion. This decision prompted several European companies to seek alternative locations for large-scale plantations. Mozambique, a former Portuguese colony with vast rural landscapes and economically deprived communities, emerged as a new frontier for the industry. Promises of employment and development initially enticed local communities to support these projects. Yet, more than a decade later, many residents feel betrayed. They are now demanding the return of their lands, arguing that the economic benefits have been minimal while the environmental consequences have been severe. Through on-the-ground reporting and interviews, this documentary sheds light on the impact of these plantations on vulnerable communities. To piece together the full picture, our investigative team examined official records, academic studies, reports from government bodies and corporations, as well as employment contracts and land concession agreements. Mongabay’s Video Team wants to cover questions and topics&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/video/2025/04/the-price-for-europes-packing-paper-boom/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>17 dead as Cyclone Jude wreaks havoc in East Africa</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/03/17-dead-as-cyclone-jude-wreaks-havoc-in-east-africa/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/03/17-dead-as-cyclone-jude-wreaks-havoc-in-east-africa/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>19 Mar 2025 21:02:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kristine Sabillo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/03/19205556/Jude_2025-03-13_MODIS-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=296135</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, Madagascar, Malawi, and Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Typhoons]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Sixteen people died in Mozambique and one in Madagascar after Cyclone Jude pivoted through the region last week, according to the latest European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) report. More than 130 people were injured while four were recorded missing as of March 18. ECHO estimates more than 10,500 people were displaced in [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Sixteen people died in Mozambique and one in Madagascar after Cyclone Jude pivoted through the region last week, according to the latest European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) report. More than 130 people were injured while four were recorded missing as of March 18. ECHO estimates more than 10,500 people were displaced in Madagascar and almost 5,000 in Malawi. In all, at least 400,000 people were affected across the three hit African countries. Cyclone Jude first made landfall in northern Madagascar on March 8, displacing thousands who had to stay in temporary shelters, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported. After gaining strength as it moved westward over the Mozambique Channel, the cyclone made landfall in Mozambique’s coastal district Mossuril in Nampula province on March 10, bringing maximum sustained winds of 140 kph (about 87 mph) and gusts of up to 195 kph (121 mph), weather reports show. It also brought exceptionally heavy downpours as it hovered over Nampula, with rainfall exceeding 250 millimeters (9.8 inches) in 24 hours, causing flooding in the coastal districts. Flights were canceled and delayed while 900 houses were destroyed in Mozambique, according to The Guardian. The World Food Programme also recorded the flooding of 49,593 hectares (122,547 acres) of cropland in Monapo, Nampula. Also in Nampula, a cholera outbreak was observed in Larde, OCHA wrote. A UNICEF spokesperson told Bloomberg that the river basins and dams in Nampula were already full, which made the flooding worse. The news&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/03/17-dead-as-cyclone-jude-wreaks-havoc-in-east-africa/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>From Kenya to Madagascar, massive effort aims to put seagrasses on the map</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/03/from-kenya-to-madagascar-massive-effort-aims-to-put-seagrasses-on-the-map/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/03/from-kenya-to-madagascar-massive-effort-aims-to-put-seagrasses-on-the-map/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Mar 2025 08:19:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Malavika Vyawahare]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/03/04081206/Desroches-atoll-Seychelles-scaled-768x512-1.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=295254</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, Indian Ocean, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Seychelles, and Tanzania]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Blue Carbon, Climate Change, Conservation, Environment, Fish, Governance, Green, Marine, Marine Biodiversity, Marine Conservation, Marine Ecosystems, Oceans, Oceans And Climate Change, and Seagrass]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In 2019, scientists set out to map the extent of seagrass in Seychelles, an island nation off the eastern coast of Africa. There, they hit upon a startling number: More than 90% of the country’s “blue carbon,” or the carbon stored in marine ecosystems, is contained within seagrass meadows. Under the Large-scale Seagrass Mapping and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In 2019, scientists set out to map the extent of seagrass in Seychelles, an island nation off the eastern coast of Africa. There, they hit upon a startling number: More than 90% of the country’s “blue carbon,” or the carbon stored in marine ecosystems, is contained within seagrass meadows. Under the Large-scale Seagrass Mapping and Management Initiative (LaSMMI), the seagrass mapping effort is now expanding to Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and Madagascar, covering 2 million square kilometers (772,200 square miles) of seas hugging 9,500 km (5,900 mi) of coastline in the Western Indian Ocean. LaSMMI is a collaboration involving the Pew Charitable Trusts in the U.S., the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association based in Tanzania, the University of Southampton in the U.K. and regional research organizations in participating countries. “Currently, there is no standardized seagrass map for the [Western Indian Ocean] region, and the ecosystem is not widely included in management or policy,” Stacy Baez, a senior officer with Pew’s advancing coastal wetlands conservation campaign, told Mongabay by email. Baez added that less than a fifth of the world’s seagrasses are fully mapped. Seagrasses are not actually grasses but a group of flowering marine plants, with 72 known species, growing close to shorelines everywhere except in Antarctica. Like plants on land, seagrasses store carbon both as biomass and in the soil that they help bind. However, unlike their more glamorous marine cousins, mangroves and coral reefs, seagrasses are often overlooked in conservation efforts and carbon accounting. The team that mapped&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/03/from-kenya-to-madagascar-massive-effort-aims-to-put-seagrasses-on-the-map/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>In Australia’s little-known rainforests, tradition and science collaborate for good</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/in-australias-little-known-rainforests-tradition-and-science-collaborate-for-good/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/in-australias-little-known-rainforests-tradition-and-science-collaborate-for-good/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Feb 2025 21:37:36 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Nick Rodway]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Morgan Erickson-Davis]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/02/28210327/Black_Flying_Fox_eating_figs_-_AndrewMercer_-_DSC11029-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=295147</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Regenerative landscapes]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Australia, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, and Oceania]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Dry Forests, Endangered Species, Environment, Extinction, Fire Management, Fires, Forest Fires, Forests, Green, Habitat Loss, Indigenous Communities, Indigenous Culture, Indigenous Cultures, Indigenous Groups, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Rights, Mammals, Marsupials, Rainforests, Savannas, Trees, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The Kimberley, the northernmost region of Australia’s largest jurisdiction, Western Australia, is remote and difficult to access due to its rugged terrain. With a permanent population of just 40,000 in an area roughly the size as California, it has become internationally renowned for its dramatic landscapes: researchers say the Kimberley houses the largest, most intact [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The Kimberley, the northernmost region of Australia’s largest jurisdiction, Western Australia, is remote and difficult to access due to its rugged terrain. With a permanent population of just 40,000 in an area roughly the size as California, it has become internationally renowned for its dramatic landscapes: researchers say the Kimberley houses the largest, most intact savanna on Earth, and is bounded by some of the most pristine oceans in the world. However, the Kimberley is also home to a habitat that’s far less known: seasonally dry tropical rainforest.  Located in patches embedded in a mosaic pattern within eucalypt savanna, these species-rich ecosystems are collectively known as Kimberley Monsoon Rainforests (KMR). They’re intrinsically linked to the culture and livelihoods of local First Nations communities who have harvested from and cared for the patches for millennia.  A Kimberley Monsoon Rainforest (wulo) in Wunambal Gaambera Country. Image courtesy of the Wunambal Gaambera Aboriginal Corporation. Evolving in isolation upon nutrient-rich substrates and in areas largely protected from incursions by the threat of wildfire, the KMR hold significant biodiversity. Despite this, less than one-tenth of KMR patches have been comprehensively scientifically researched.  There’s now a push to expand global awareness of how important these sites are from both biological and cultural standpoints.  In 2023, Kevin Kenneally, a botanist and biogeographer at the University of Western Australia, published a general interest book about KMR in which he sought to expand knowledge of their existence into the common sphere. Islands in a Sea of Savanna, released by&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/in-australias-little-known-rainforests-tradition-and-science-collaborate-for-good/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Birds guide honey-hunters to most of their harvest in Mozambican reserve</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/birds-guide-honey-hunters-to-most-of-their-harvest-in-mozambican-reserve/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/birds-guide-honey-hunters-to-most-of-their-harvest-in-mozambican-reserve/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Feb 2025 09:16:17 +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/20/2025/02/07084021/IahaiaBuanachique.CarvalhoIssaNanguar_NiassaSRMozambique_ClaireSpottiswoode-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=294059</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animal Intelligence, Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Conservation, Environment, Indigenous Communities, Indigenous Cultures, Indigenous Peoples, Mutualism, Natural Resources, and Traditional Knowledge]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Honey-hunters in northern Mozambique rely on honeyguide birds to locate three-quarters of their harvest each year, a new study says, underscoring the economic value these wild birds play in the lives of one of the country’s remotest communities. Honey-hunters in all 47 villages in the 4.2-million-hectare (10.4-million-acre) Niassa Special Reserve get help from the birds [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Honey-hunters in northern Mozambique rely on honeyguide birds to locate three-quarters of their harvest each year, a new study says, underscoring the economic value these wild birds play in the lives of one of the country’s remotest communities. Honey-hunters in all 47 villages in the 4.2-million-hectare (10.4-million-acre) Niassa Special Reserve get help from the birds to find wild bees’ nests, says study lead author and behavioral ecologist Jessica van der Wal. “It’s quite a vital income and an addition to other livelihood options they have, such as fishing and farming,” Van der Wal says. The honey-hunters use unique calls to attract greater honeyguides (Indicator indicator), small brown birds a little bigger and leaner than sparrows, that lead them to the nests of African honey bees (Apis mellifera scutellata). The hunters then subdue the bees with smoke and prise open the nests to extract the honeycombs, leaving beeswax and larvae as a reward for their honeyguide companions. The researchers interviewed 141 honey hunters in 13 villages in Niassa in 2019, and combined that data with figures on honey hunting collected by community wildlife guardians in 46 of the reserve’s 47 villages. For nearly 20 years these guardians, who include both men and women recruited in the villages where they were born and raised, have collected information ranging from baboon raids on people’s crops, to the size and type of fish caught in Niassa’s rivers. But they have also, since 2021, documented quantities of honey collected by honey-hunters with help from honeyguides. A&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/birds-guide-honey-hunters-to-most-of-their-harvest-in-mozambican-reserve/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Floods devastate tortoise sanctuary in southern Madagascar</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/01/floods-devastate-tortoise-sanctuary-in-southern-madagascar/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/01/floods-devastate-tortoise-sanctuary-in-southern-madagascar/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Jan 2025 13:08:00 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Shanna Hanbury]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/01/23122910/WhatsApp-Image-2025-01-16-at-10.30.42-AM-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=293298</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Indian Ocean, Madagascar, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Illegal Trade, Poaching, Reptiles, Turtles And Tortoises, Wildlife Conservation, and Wildlife Trade]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Hundreds of tortoises have died following severe floods at a sanctuary in southwestern Madagascar that houses and protects more than 12,000 of the critically endangered animals. On Jan. 16, Tropical Cyclone Dikeledi swept through the Atsimo-Andrefana region, where the Lavavola Tortoise Center is located, dumping torrential rains that caused water levels to rise as high [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Hundreds of tortoises have died following severe floods at a sanctuary in southwestern Madagascar that houses and protects more than 12,000 of the critically endangered animals. On Jan. 16, Tropical Cyclone Dikeledi swept through the Atsimo-Andrefana region, where the Lavavola Tortoise Center is located, dumping torrential rains that caused water levels to rise as high as 1.4 meters (4.6 feet) across an area of 10 hectares (25 acres). A total of 784 radiated tortoises (Astrochelys radiata) and spider tortoises (Pyxis arachnoides) have since been found dead due to drowning. While most of the tortoises could float in the water and be rescued, others were trapped by rocks or washed away. &#8220;It was less than 20 hours of rain, and the whole area was flooded,” Hery Razafimamonjiraibe, country director for Turtle Survival Alliance Madagascar, which runs the center, told Mongabay by phone. “It is unprecedented. We have never encountered this kind of flooding before.&#8221; The heavy rains devastated the Lavavola Tortoise Center’s infrastructure, with the organization estimating damages and veterinary care costs at up to $150,000. The region has struggled with drought conditions over the past year, with temperatures exceeding 40° Celsius (104° Fahrenheit), which left the dry, compacted soil less able to absorb heavy rains, thus exacerbating the impacts from the flood. Almost all the surviving tortoises have now been moved to elevated enclosures by staff and volunteers with Turtle Survival Alliance Madagascar. But prolonged exposure to the wet, cold floodwaters increases the risk for pneumonia among the tortoises, Razafimamonjiraibe&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/01/floods-devastate-tortoise-sanctuary-in-southern-madagascar/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Thousands feared dead as Cyclone Chido devastates southeast Africa</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2024/12/thousands-feared-dead-as-cyclone-chido-devastates-southeast-africa/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2024/12/thousands-feared-dead-as-cyclone-chido-devastates-southeast-africa/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Dec 2024 19:55:17 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kristine Sabillo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/12/18195420/Chido_2024-12-13_0600Z_off_of_Madagascar_MODIS-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=291941</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Indian Ocean, Mauritius, and Mozambique]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Climate Change And Extreme Weather, Environment, Extreme Weather, Green, Impact Of Climate Change, Infrastructure, Islands, and Storms]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Intense Tropical Cyclone Chido, which developed in the southwest Indian Ocean, left a trail of destruction in the French island territory Mayotte and nearby countries in southeast Africa like Mozambique, possibly leaving thousands dead and many more without homes and livelihood. “Cyclone Chido underwent rapid intensification before landfall in Mauritius, weakened slightly, and then regained [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Intense Tropical Cyclone Chido, which developed in the southwest Indian Ocean, left a trail of destruction in the French island territory Mayotte and nearby countries in southeast Africa like Mozambique, possibly leaving thousands dead and many more without homes and livelihood. “Cyclone Chido underwent rapid intensification before landfall in Mauritius, weakened slightly, and then regained its Category 4-equivalent intensity before reaching Mayotte and continuing to Mozambique,” Alex Baker, a meteorologist at the University of Reading in the U.K., said in a statement. Local authorities in Mayotte said that while they are uncertain about the full extent of the disaster, the death toll could reach several hundreds or even thousands.  Hospital reports recorded at least 22 people dead and more than a thousand injured but many parts of the island are still inaccessible. Reuters reported that some casualties were also buried before their deaths could be counted. A curfew has been imposed by the French government to stabilize the situation in Mayotte as planes are sent daily with up to 50 tons of food, water and medicine, the Associated Press reported. Aid group Médecins du Monde (MDM) said in the report that cholera is already circulating on the island. “It might turn into an epidemic if there is no way to ensure efficient access to water,” MDM director Jean-François Corty was quoted as saying. In Mozambique, at least 34 people have died, recent reports said. In Mayotte’s neighboring archipelago Comoros, a week of national mourning was declared as authorities anticipate deaths reaching&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2024/12/thousands-feared-dead-as-cyclone-chido-devastates-southeast-africa/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Meet the Miombo, the largest forest you’ve never heard of</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/09/meet-the-miombo-the-largest-forest-youve-never-heard-of/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/09/meet-the-miombo-the-largest-forest-youve-never-heard-of/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Sep 2024 16:20:07 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ruth Kamnitzer]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Jeremy Hance]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/08/29092238/Thatch2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=286629</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Angola, Democratic Republic Of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Deforestation, Dry Forests, Environment, Featured, food security, Forest Products, Forests, Sustainable Forest Management, Trees, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Growing up in the village of Domboshava in central Zimbabwe, Edwin Tambara, the African Wildlife Foundation’s director of global leadership, recalls how the surrounding Miombo woodland was a pharmacy, hardware store and supermarket, all rolled into one. “You get a cough or sneeze or you have a headache, I remember my grandmother would just say, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Growing up in the village of Domboshava in central Zimbabwe, Edwin Tambara, the African Wildlife Foundation’s director of global leadership, recalls how the surrounding Miombo woodland was a pharmacy, hardware store and supermarket, all rolled into one. “You get a cough or sneeze or you have a headache, I remember my grandmother would just say, ‘OK, let me go into the forest,’ and she&#8217;ll come back with some leaves. . . It&#8217;s either they&#8217;re boiled and you have to sniff them or something — and you&#8217;d be sorted,” Tambara says. The Miombo woodlands are a special type of semi-deciduous forest, dominated by trees in the legume family from the genera Brachystegia, Julbernardia and Isoberlinia. The ecoregion covers a broad swath across Central and Southern Africa, making it the most extensive dry tropical forest type in the world. But the woodlands are shrinking, which is bad news for communities in the region who depend on them for an astounding array of goods. Miombo woodlands in the Niassa Special Reserve in Mozambique, one of Africa’s largest protected areas. The miombo woodlands are dominated by trees in the legume family from the genera Brachystegia, Julbernardia and Isoberlinia, and interspersed with a mosaic of habitats including rocky outcrops and seasonally flooded grassy areas called dambos. Image by Natalie Ingle, courtesy of Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). Thatching grass collected in the miombo woodlands. Thatching grass is used to roof homes, woven into fences and for other purposes, and is one of the numerous non-timber forest&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2024/09/meet-the-miombo-the-largest-forest-youve-never-heard-of/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>‘Explorer elephants’ in transfrontier conservation area offer solution to tree damage</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/06/explorer-elephants-in-transfrontier-conservation-area-offer-solution-to-tree-damage/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/06/explorer-elephants-in-transfrontier-conservation-area-offer-solution-to-tree-damage/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Jun 2024 12:52:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ryan Truscott]]>
						</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/20/2024/06/28121018/ElephantsRundeRiver_Gonarezhou_AndrewAshtonFlickrBYNCND2.0-TIGHT-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=283859</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Mozambique, South Africa, Southern Africa, and Zimbabwe]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Charismatic Animals, Conservation, Corridors, Elephants, Environment, Habitat, Habitat Loss, human-elephant conflict, Human-wildlife Conflict, Mammals, Migration, Research, Wildilfe, Wildlife Conservation, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Elephants are known to be “ecosystem engineers,” altering habitats to suit their own needs, but this sometimes comes at a cost to other species. Hedging, or stem snapping, is the term used to describe how elephants (Loxodonta africana) reduce dominant trees to low-level shrubs, bringing the trees’ leaves within easy reach of mother-and-calf herds while [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Elephants are known to be “ecosystem engineers,” altering habitats to suit their own needs, but this sometimes comes at a cost to other species. Hedging, or stem snapping, is the term used to describe how elephants (Loxodonta africana) reduce dominant trees to low-level shrubs, bringing the trees’ leaves within easy reach of mother-and-calf herds while depriving other animals of homes and food. “They [elephant bulls] do work an area over time [and] reduce all the trees to a certain sort of height,” says Tim O’Connor, lead author of a recent study that shines a light on the hedging of dominant hardwood trees known as mopanes (Colophospermum mopane) in Zimbabwe’s Gonarezhou National Park, in the southeastern corner of the country. “They snap the stems; [the trees] grow as a thicker, smaller plant and therefore give it a hedge appearance.” Mopane hedging by hungry, constrained elephants has been well documented in other national parks in Botswana, South Africa and Zambia. The Chilojo Cliffs in Zimbabwe&#8217;s Gonarezhou National Park. Image by Richard Droker via Flickr ((CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) A blue-tailed skink (Mabuya quinquetaenia) in Gonarezhou. Image by Brian Gratwicke via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) At the study site in the north of Gonarezhou, near to where the Runde River flows beneath ancient sandstone cliffs, O’Connor and colleagues found that elephants had snapped more than half of all the trees measuring some 10 meters (33 feet) in height. Although the canopy volume of the coppiced mopanes remained healthy, it severely compromised living conditions for&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2024/06/explorer-elephants-in-transfrontier-conservation-area-offer-solution-to-tree-damage/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Big problems for little animals when floodwaters rise, study finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/03/big-problems-for-little-animals-when-floodwaters-rise-study-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/03/big-problems-for-little-animals-when-floodwaters-rise-study-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Mar 2024 14:22:27 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Charles Mpaka]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/03/14131429/Ourebia_ourebi-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=279815</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, Mozambique, and Sub-Saharan Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Conservation, Environment, Flooding, Forests, Impact Of Climate Change, Mammals, National Parks, Protected Areas, Research, Wildlife, and Wildlife Conservation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Blantyre, MALAWI — When Cyclone Idai stormed Mozambique in 2019, researchers at Gorongosa National Park rode the current to test a long-held theory that the vulnerability of wildlife species to flooding is linked to their body size, dispersal ability and habitat preference. Idai made landfall on March 15, bringing strong winds and rapidly rising floodwaters [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Blantyre, MALAWI — When Cyclone Idai stormed Mozambique in 2019, researchers at Gorongosa National Park rode the current to test a long-held theory that the vulnerability of wildlife species to flooding is linked to their body size, dispersal ability and habitat preference. Idai made landfall on March 15, bringing strong winds and rapidly rising floodwaters that killed more than 1,600 people and caused more than $3.2 billion worth of infrastructure damage across Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi. Staff and vehicles from Gorongosa National Park were deployed to help with rescuing and supporting affected communities in the surrounding area. Parts of the park itself, which lies in the Pungwe River Basin in central Mozambique, flood annually, and the animals there are adapted to these seasonal events. But with the cyclone, the extent of flooding in the park expanded from 24 to 117 square kilometers (9 to 45 square miles) in the space of a week. As wildlife populations scrambled to avoid the swiftly rising floodwaters and then survive in the storm’s aftermath, scientists working in the park found themselves with an opportunity to observe the vulnerability of different species. “In Gorongosa, we were in a unique position to do the study, because we had a group of researchers running simultaneous projects on a variety of different species for different reasons — including animals equipped with GPS collars to track their locations, detailed information on the animals’ prior movements, diets, and body condition, and data on their patterns of abundance before the cyclone,”&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2024/03/big-problems-for-little-animals-when-floodwaters-rise-study-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/03/big-problems-for-little-animals-when-floodwaters-rise-study-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
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					<title>New ecoregion proposed for Southern Africa’s threatened ‘sky islands’</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/03/new-ecoregion-proposed-for-southern-africas-threatened-sky-islands/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/03/new-ecoregion-proposed-for-southern-africas-threatened-sky-islands/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2024 04:09:28 +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/20/2024/03/12121217/An-endemic-chameleon_ChristopheBernier.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=279738</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Malawi, Mozambique, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Conservation, Deforestation, Drivers Of Deforestation, Endangered Species, Environment, Farming, Featured, Forests, Habitat Degradation, Habitat Destruction, Habitat Loss, Herps, Lizards, New Discovery, New Species, Protected Areas, Reptiles, Research, Species Discovery, Tropical Forests, Wildlife, and Wildlife Conservation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[There is an “inland archipelago” of mountains stretching across southern Malawi and northern Mozambique — a chain of hard granite inselbergs lifted high above the surrounding landscape as it weathered down over millions of years. These “sky islands”, as they’re also known, are topped with high-altitude grasslands and evergreen forests and watered by cool moist [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[There is an “inland archipelago” of mountains stretching across southern Malawi and northern Mozambique — a chain of hard granite inselbergs lifted high above the surrounding landscape as it weathered down over millions of years. These “sky islands”, as they’re also known, are topped with high-altitude grasslands and evergreen forests and watered by cool moist winds from the Indian Ocean to the east. A group of researchers is now making the case to declare a new &#8220;ecoregion&#8221; that will strengthen protection for these inselbergs, whose forest patches, thought once to have been linked to those in Central Africa, still host unique communities of animals and plants. Researcher Julian Bayliss discovered one new species of snake by stepping on it. Both the snake, a 45-centimeter-long (1.5 foot-long) bush viper, and Bayliss, a biodiversity and protected area management specialist, were unharmed, and the snake was collected and later described as new to science and given the name Mabu bush viper (Atheris mabuensis) in honor of the mountain where he found it. The incident was one of Bayliss’ many highlights over 20 years spent documenting the rich diversity of plants and animals of this region. He and 25 colleagues he has worked alongside are now proposing Mabu and the other 30 or so mountains in this transboundary biological treasure be declared a brand new ecoregion: —the South East Africa Mountain Archipelago (SEAMA) — to support landscape-wide conservation initiatives. “Instead of single-site [conservation] initiatives you can now have ecoregion-wide conservation initiatives targeting many of&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2024/03/new-ecoregion-proposed-for-southern-africas-threatened-sky-islands/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Return of the lions: Large protected areas in Africa attract apex predator</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/return-of-the-lions-large-protected-areas-in-africa-attract-apex-predator/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/return-of-the-lions-large-protected-areas-in-africa-attract-apex-predator/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Jun 2023 17:17:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Petro Kotzé]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/06/13152428/6-African-Parks-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=269719</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Chad, Mozambique, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Anti-poaching, Big Cats, Cats, Conservation, Corridors, Ecosystem Restoration, Endangered Species, Environment, Habitat Destruction, Happy-upbeat Environmental, Lions, Mammals, National Parks, Poaching, Predators, Protected Areas, Reintroductions, Saving Species From Extinction, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Lions are returning on their own to parks in Mozambique and Chad thanks to the creation of vast landscape mosaics that include core protected areas, corridors and cooperating communities through which the big cats roam.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[When Bernard van Lente, the Peace Parks Foundation project manager for Zinave National Park, first arrived at the Mozambican conservation area in 2015, he was struck by the silence. Zinave was stunningly beautiful, he recalls, with huge trees and tall grasses, but it was deathly quiet — like a graveyard. Zinave had been protected just before the outbreak of the Mozambican civil war in 1977, and the ensuing chaos caused the new national park to collapse. Few animal species survived as insects, birds, antelopes and top predators were extinguished. Things have changed dramatically since then, van Lente says. In 2021, a lion appeared in Zinave for the first time in many decades, the crowning jewel of renewed conservation efforts. But Zinave isn’t the only place lions are making a comeback. Examples are emerging at protected areas across Africa, from Mozambique to Chad, Zambia to Senegal. The successes come at a critical time for conservation of the species. Lion populations are declining in Africa, plummeting to around 20,000 in the past five decades or so, says Kim Young-Overton, director of Panthera’s KAZA program. According to the IUCN Red List, Panthera leo is vulnerable, with the global lion population shrinking by about 43% over the past 21 years (a timespan covering just three lion generations, from 1993 to 2014). The young male lion that settled in Zinave National Park, Mozambique. Image courtesy of the Peace Parks Foundation. Lions need to roam The decline is partly precipitated by too widely scattered conservation areas.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/return-of-the-lions-large-protected-areas-in-africa-attract-apex-predator/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Will clean-energy minerals provoke a shift in how mining is done in Africa?</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/03/will-clean-energy-minerals-provoke-a-shift-in-how-mining-is-done-in-africa/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/03/will-clean-energy-minerals-provoke-a-shift-in-how-mining-is-done-in-africa/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Mar 2023 08:43:40 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Malavika Vyawahare]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Latoya Abulu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/03/29125601/cobalt-mine-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=266964</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Land rights and extractives]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Democratic Republic Of Congo, Madagascar, Mozambique, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Business, Clean Energy, Climate Change, Climate Change Negotiations, Climate Change Policy, Climate Change Politics, Energy, Environment, Environmental Law, Governance, Human Rights, Industry, Mining, Pollution, and Social Justice]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[While in some corners of the world, the clean energy revolution conjures up images of electric vehicles and expansive wind farms, in countries with mineral reserves critical for producing that clean energy, the transition entails more than switching from a gasoline-powered car to an EV. Demand for transition minerals like the lithium, cobalt, nickel and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[While in some corners of the world, the clean energy revolution conjures up images of electric vehicles and expansive wind farms, in countries with mineral reserves critical for producing that clean energy, the transition entails more than switching from a gasoline-powered car to an EV. Demand for transition minerals like the lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite needed for the batteries that power EVs and energy storage projects could swell fourfold by 2040 and pull $1.7 trillion in investments. On the cusp of this mining boom, businesses have never been more clear-eyed about the profitability of these minerals, and states have never been so bold in pursuing and securing mineral supplies deemed critical to decarbonization. In the geopolitical arena, the U.S. government is straining to counter China’s hold over critical minerals mining and processing while promising that the scramble for essential minerals in Africa will not turn into a “race to the bottom.” But civil society organizations in Africa warn of the dangers of packaging mining as a cure for the climate crisis or a “climate solution” without fundamentally changing how mining is done on the continent. They say a real shift in how minerals are extracted and used is needed for a sustainable and just energy transition. Speaking at the Mining Indaba, one of the largest mining events in the world, in South Africa in February, a top U.S. official, Jose W. Fernandez, declared that “we are all in on Africa.”  With good reason: the continent hosts about a fifth&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/03/will-clean-energy-minerals-provoke-a-shift-in-how-mining-is-done-in-africa/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>‘Locals want their resources to last’: Q&#038;A with marine ecologist Vilma Machava-António</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/02/locals-want-their-resources-to-last-qa-with-marine-ecologist-vilma-machava-antonio/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/02/locals-want-their-resources-to-last-qa-with-marine-ecologist-vilma-machava-antonio/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Feb 2023 13:37:13 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Malavika Vyawahare]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rebecca Kessler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/02/27145734/measuring-tree-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=265980</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, Mozambique, and Sub-Saharan Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biology, Coastal Ecosystems, Community Development, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Deforestation, Education, Environment, Environmental Education, Forests, Interviews, Interviews With Young Scientists, Mangroves, Marine Biodiversity, Marine Conservation, and Oceans]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Ocean Revolution Mozambique (ORM) was one of the winners of the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Equator Prize for 2022, awarded to recognize community-led efforts in conservation and sustainability that lead to poverty alleviation. The nonprofit works at the grassroots level to protect coastal ecosystems like mangrove forests and seagrass meadows in Mozambique’s Inhambane Bay. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Ocean Revolution Mozambique (ORM) was one of the winners of the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Equator Prize for 2022, awarded to recognize community-led efforts in conservation and sustainability that lead to poverty alleviation. The nonprofit works at the grassroots level to protect coastal ecosystems like mangrove forests and seagrass meadows in Mozambique’s Inhambane Bay. One of the ways it promotes coastal conservation is by supporting young Mozambicans in their pursuit of higher education. Vilma Machava-António, an ORM scholarship recipient, completed her master’s degree in marine sciences at Maputo’s Eduardo Mondlane University and is now a doctoral student at the University of Lisbon in Portugal. The marine ecologist spoke to Mongabay about her research and what factors contribute to success for community-led efforts in the East African nation. Vilma Machava-António, an ORM scholarship recipient, completed her master’s degree in marine sciences and is now a doctoral student. Image courtesy of Vilma Machava-António. Machava-António spoke to Mongabay over video call and over email. These excerpts from the conversation have been edited for clarity and length. Mongabay: What sparked your interest in marine biology? Why mangroves, in particular? Vilma Machava-António: I was born and grew up in Inhambane. Inhambane city has a bay, there are mangroves up and down the city’s shoreline. My family did not depend on the mangroves, but in the surrounding areas people go into the mangroves and cut them. In Inhambane province, they use the trees for constructing houses and building boats. When I was going to write&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/02/locals-want-their-resources-to-last-qa-with-marine-ecologist-vilma-machava-antonio/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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