In a video posted on YouTube on February 6, 2017, a woman fishes a juvenile shark out of the waters of the Fernando de Noronha, an archipelago-cum-national park off Brazil's…
Scientists have discovered the first-ever fluorescent frog. Under normal light, the South American polka dot tree frog (Hypsiboas punctatus) -- widespread in South America -- appears a dull brownish-green with…
Roads have been described as “an enormous net over the land” and “the largest human artifact on earth.” There are more than four million miles of roads in the United…
A species has just three options in the face of environmental change: move, adapt or die. As global temperatures rise many species are shifting their ranges, particularly towards the cooler…
Biologist Jennifer Serrano was in the Amazonian rainforests of the Manú Biosphere Reserve in southeast Peru one night a few years ago when she came across a poison dart frog…
Amphibians around the world are in a state of crisis. Over 40 percent are threatened with extinction. Chytrid fungus, a disease fatal to most amphibians, is decimating populations already threatened…
You don’t have to travel far to discover a new species – just head to the natural history museum. At least that’s how Chris Barratt, a doctoral student at the…
Indian scientists have discovered seven new species of frogs in the Western Ghats, a biodiversity-rich mountain range in India. All the newly described species belong to the genus Nyctibatrachus, commonly known as…
Galagos have a reputation among scientists for being one of the more mysterious primates, in large part because they're so tough to study. Endearingly known as bush babies, they stick…
The legal commercial exotic animal trade is a booming enterprise that ships ornamental fish, mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians around the world. These pets, livestock and other animals can carry…
On the latest episode of the Mongabay Newscast, we welcome journalist Sue Branford, a regular contributor to Mongabay who has been reporting from Brazil since 1979 when she was with…
Romer's tree frog is, in every respect, an animal that keeps out of the way. Start with its size: averaging just 1.5 to 2.5 centimeters (0.6 to 1 inches) in…
In November last year, the Philippines declared its largest critical habitat yet. Located in the long, narrow Philippine island of Palawan, the new Cleopatra’s Needle Critical Habitat (CNCH) is spread…
Scientists have discovered a new species of poison frog on the Amazonian slopes of the Andes in southeastern Peru. The species was found in just nine locales in the buffer…
Many internationally traded species are on the verge of extinction in their native countries. In some cases, traded animals have managed to escape -- or have been deliberately introduced --…
Discovering a new species is always exciting -- it shows that much of our world remains to be explored and described. This year, too, scientists discovered and described several thousand new…
The governor of a province in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo approved the boundaries of a 1,477-square-kilometer (570-square-mile) natural reserve on Wednesday. “This is the first protected area to…
Brazil is forging ahead with plans to build a vast hydropower dam complex in the heart of the Amazon that would convert the now remote and wild Tapajós river system…
Natives from some parts of the Amazon region have long believed that a deadly pit viper, the bushmaster (Lachesis muta), can sing. But the venomous snake, which can grow up…
Many amphibians worldwide are facing extinction, but one frog in California’s Yosemite National Park is defying the trend. Researchers in the park were surprised to witness a large-scale recovery of…
The Philippine Islands have long been known as a hotspot of biodiversity. Until recently, though, scientists had an incomplete understanding of the extent of reptile and amphibian diversity in Mindanao,…
From the remote mountains of Oaxaca in Mexico, scientists have described three new species of miniature salamanders that are smaller than a matchstick. These tiny creatures belong to the elusive…
In a swamp, just six miles away from the Newcastle airport in New South Wales, Australia, scientists have discovered a new species of frog that is only slightly bigger than a…
Global average temperatures have risen by about 1°C since 1880. But just one degree of human-induced warming has impacted nearly all aspects of life on our planet, concludes a new…
If current trends persist, the population abundance of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish could decline an average of 67 percent by 2020. That’s one of several sobering findings detailed…
A rare tree frog species is believed to be extinct after the death of its last living member. “Toughie,” the last-known Rabbs' fringe-limbed tree frog, was found dead in his…
Deforestation is pressing further into a protected area in central Peru, finds a recent analysis by the Monitoring the Andean Amazon Project (MAAP). Satellite data and images show areas of…
The world of amphibians has a new official member, with a species of rain frog discovered recently in and near Tingo Maria National Park in Peru's central Andes. The new…
India is home to iconic wildlife like tigers, dholes and even lions, as well as many species found nowhere else in the world. But they share the subcontinent with the…
Japan's natural hot springs, or onsen, are frequented by locals and visitors alike, who relax in the year-round steaming water in public bathhouses. As it turns out, they’re not the…
