An endangered species is a taxonomic group (typically at the species level) that faces a very high risk of extinction in the near future across all or a significant portion of its range, as determined by quantitative assessment criteria such as population size, rate of decline, geographic range, and degree of habitat fragmentation. In conservation biology and environmental policy, endangered status guides prioritization of management actions, legal protections, and resource allocation. Scientific evaluation commonly uses standardized frameworks (e.g., formal Red List–type criteria) based on demographic trends, reproductive rates, and known or projected threats, including habitat loss, overexploitation, invasive species, pollution, and climate change.
The United States government is rolling back conservation policies in a way that demonstrably risks accelerating already at-risk coral reefs around its island territory, Guam, in the Pacific Ocean. Part of the issue is the ...
Ecology
Feb 18, 2026
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18
Corralling a wild rhinoceros into a small chute to give it eyedrops might seem like a crazy plan. But if it's crazy and it works, then it's not crazy.
Ecology
Feb 18, 2026
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12
India's ambitious bid to reintroduce cheetahs received a major boost Wednesday when the environment minister announced the birth of three cubs.
Plants & Animals
Feb 18, 2026
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24
Every living organism has its own genetic "blueprint": the source code for how it grows, functions and reproduces. This blueprint is known as a genome. When scientists sequence a genome, they identify and put in order the ...
Ecology
Feb 17, 2026
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11
New research has revealed the biggest threats driving species toward extinction in northern San José, Costa Rica. Led by Newcastle University, the study found that the greatest potential to reduce species extinction risk ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 16, 2026
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18
A tiny, threatened marsupial not known to have inhabited South Australia's Yorke Peninsula may exist as a relict population and still be clinging to survival, according to new research that has re-examined historical field ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 16, 2026
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25
The U.S.'s ocean regulator plans to make industry-friendly changes to a longstanding rule designed to protect vanishing whales, prompting criticism from environmental groups who cite the recent death of an endangered whale.
Ecology
Feb 15, 2026
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28
A camera-trap survey conducted throughout 2025 has revealed the bewildering breadth of biodiversity hidden within the Annamite Mountains, a largely unexplored forest haven stretching for 1,100 kilometers through Laos and ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 14, 2026
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27
Cape Town, in South Africa, is famous for its dramatic mountains and coastline, but its greatest treasure lies in the plants that carpet its slopes and valleys. Table Mountain National Park and its surrounds are home to 2,785 ...
Ecology
Feb 14, 2026
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37
About 3 million people visit Red Rock Canyon outside of Las Vegas every year, but few have noticed the tiny yellow sunflower that has called it home for centuries. It may face extinction without federal protection, two groups ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 12, 2026
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18
