wildlife

A wolf from the Snake River Pack passes by a remote camera in eastern Wallowa County, Ore. A wolf advocate group in Colorado is challenging the model for U.S. wildlife management.

Colorado Voters Are Set To Decide If Wolves Should Be Reintroduced To The State

7:53pm February 11, 2020

by Sam Brasch

In November, Coloradans are set to vote on whether to return wolves to the state. The ballot initiative may be the first time voters in any state could force reintroduction of an endangered species.

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A guide walks past a sign asking for silence near the winter home of monarch butterflies in El Rosario reserve near Ocampo, Michoacán, in Mexico on Friday.

Sadness And Worry After 2 Men Connected To Butterfly Sanctuary Are Found Dead

7:28pm February 03, 2020

by Laurel Wamsley

Millions of monarch butterflies migrate to the mountains of Mexico each winter. Authorities are now investigating the apparent murders of an activist and tour guide at the Michoacán reserve.

A white-tailed deer emerges from the brush. The Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge has some of the richest biological diversity in North America--with 1,200 plants, 300 butterflies, and 700 vertebrates, of which 520 are birds.

National

Border Wall Threatens National Wildlife Refuge That's Been 40 Years In The Making

10:11am January 14, 2020

Construction of the Trump administration's border wall has been slowed by difficulties acquiring private land, so the government is prioritizing construction inside federal nature sanctuaries.

A deserted beach in Gorgona National Park, an island 21 miles off Colombia's Pacific coast.

World News

Colombia's Former Prison Island Gorgona Is Open For Tourists — And Snakes

9:00am December 08, 2019

by John Otis

Nature has taken over this onetime penal colony turned national park, surrounded by waters popular with divers for their sharks, rays and whales. A resort manager calls it a "mini-Galápagos."

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Pack goat breeder Ann Summerton on a trail in Montana's Bitterroot Mountains with her goats, Bannack and Joker. Goats are affordable, easy to care for, and a full-grown male can carry about 70 pounds.

National

As Backcountry Travelers Shift Load To Goats, National Forests Eye Risks

4:59pm November 12, 2019

by Nick Mott

Hikers and hunters have long relied on horses, mules and llamas to carry gear on long backcountry trips. Now, many are getting into goats. Many say they're superior, but critics see risks to wildlife.

A marijuana plant grows in California's Shasta-Trinity National Forest. This plant is part of an illegal growing operation by highly organized drug cartels that take advantage of the forests' thick canopy to help hide their operations.

National

Illegal Pot Operations In Public Forests Are Poisoning Wildlife And Water

12:39pm November 12, 2019

by Eric Westervelt

Insecticides and other chemicals found at the sites threaten long-term damage to ecosystems. California law enforcement, ecologists and others are cracking down.

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Many seized species die during transportation, such as these Zebra fish - Hypancistrus Zebra - seized by Brazil's Federal Police airport officers.

World News

Worldwide Smuggling Crackdown Rescues Endangered Wildlife

4:13pm July 10, 2019

by Dani Matias

In a joint operation organized by the World Customs Organization and Interpol, thousands of protected animals, plants and wildlife products were seized in more than 100 countries.

A coyote runs down the road in Wyoming's Yellowstone National Park. In 2018, more than 68,000 coyotes were killed in the U.S., including 5,600 just in Wyoming, under an Agriculture Department program.

Killing Coyotes Is Not As Effective As Once Thought, Researchers Say

1:59pm June 14, 2019

by Melodie Edwards

Government agencies kill more than 68,000 coyotes a year to keep them from preying on livestock and big game. But scientists say tracking them might be a better solution.

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'A Million Elephants' No More: Conservationists In Laos Rush To Save An Icon

8:01am May 12, 2019

by Ashley Westerman

The Laos government and conservationists estimate there are only about 800 elephants left in all of Laos, just half of them living in the wild.

Kim Seung-ho (left), the director of the DMZ Ecology Research Institute, counts birds of the DMZ with intern Pyo Gina.

In Korean DMZ, Wildlife Thrives. Some Conservationists Worry Peace Could Disrupt It

6:14pm April 20, 2019

by Claire Harbage

The heavily fortified no man's land separating North and South Korea, largely untouched by humans, has become an ecological niche for the region's flora and fauna, including endangered species.