South Africa launched a new wildlife crime unit that will attempt to stop the killings for the animal’s horn. The new crime unit will bring national and provincial wildlife authorities together, who will coordinate with law enforcement to act quickly when new cases of poaching are found.
Read the full story (Redorbit)
U.S. cancels 21$ million of Brazil debt in exchange for Amazon forest protection. The U.S. has done the same also for Bangladesh, Belize, Botswana, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Indonesia, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and the Philippines.
Read the full story (TreeHugger)
For the first time the global deforestation pace is slowing down, according the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). New forests are being created, either through the expansion of forests or more rapidly through the planting of trees.
Read the full story (Independent)
Rare orchid which was last seen in 1986 and was officially declared extinct in 2005 have been rediscovered in Britain. This discovery gives hope that this delicate species will not be gone forever.
Read the full story (Telegraph)
A large group of 44 North Atlantic right whales observed in the Gulf of Maine in recent days. This is a record number for the winter period and a very exiting sight. It is important to know the location of the whales in order to protect them by e.g. slowing ship speeds in near areas.
Read the full story (ScienceDaily)
At Yorkshire Dales, in order to stop the decline of white-clawed crayfish a new breeding program was taking place and produced this year 300 young crayfish. This breeding project began at 2003 by the Natural England, the government’s conservation body, and is now looking to expend it to new 500 crayfish every year.
Read the full story (BBC)
Coral reefs of Indonesia that where damaged by a tsunami four years ago have shown surprising improvement and rapid growth of new corals. Also reefs damaged before the tsunami were recovering thanks to abandoning destructive fishing techniques and even transplanting corals.
Read the full story (BBC)
