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.
A newly established alliance, comprising leading researchers and conservation experts, has mobilized to safeguard the Atlantic Ocean's leatherback turtle populations. The Wilkes Atlantic Leatherback Turtle Alliance is led ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 16, 2026
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A young mother remains in hospital after being bitten by a shark at Coogee Beach in Sydney on Saturday morning. Leah Stewart, 35, was swimming about 30 meters (33 yards) offshore when the shark—believed to be a 3- to 4-meter ...
Ecology
Jun 15, 2026
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Porpoises that strand in the Netherlands have, on average, a lower BMI than their counterparts in Scotland and elsewhere, according to an international study led by Utrecht University in collaboration with the Scottish Marine ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 15, 2026
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The vaquita (Phocoena sinus), an elusive porpoise found only in the shallow waters of Mexico's northern Gulf of California, is one of the rarest and most endangered marine mammals on Earth. Measuring about 5 feet (1.5 meters) ...
Biotechnology
Jun 15, 2026
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Darin McNeil, Ph.D., an assistant professor of wildlife management in the University of Kentucky Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, is partnering with the University of Pittsburgh and others to help ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 15, 2026
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A collaborative study has provided the most comprehensive assessment to date of the endangered Bornean ferret badger (Melogale everetti). Weighing only around one kilogram (2.2 pounds), the Bornean ferret badger is a small, ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 10, 2026
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To the scientists and ecologists working to save them, Australia's Euastacus crayfish species are fascinating, living relics from a time long ago.
Plants & Animals
Jun 10, 2026
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Climate change-fueled landslides wiped out nearly one in 10 remaining members of the world's rarest great ape species on Indonesia's Sumatra island, scientists said Wednesday.
Plants & Animals
Jun 10, 2026
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16
There are encouraging signs for the endangered Maugean skate, with a new monitoring report finding that a new cohort of skates born in Macquarie Harbor has reached adulthood.
Ecology
Jun 10, 2026
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A shift toward more precise, measurable conservation goals could hold the key to protecting vulnerable species, according to the findings of a new study looking at African elephants. Conservationists are often faced with ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 9, 2026
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