Commentary / World Jan 18, 2020
Species' extinction could be a new beginning
by Adam Minter
Beijing is well-positioned to help other developing nations avoid the mistakes it's made in protecting biodiversity.
World / Science & Health Nov 22, 2018
It's a girl: Moscow zoo welcomes rare western lowland gorilla baby
Moscow zoo has welcomed its latest tiny inhabitant, a rare baby lowland gorilla who spends her days nestled in her mother's arms, feeding and sleeping. The baby was born to 23-year-old Kira and 20-year-old Vizuri, weighs 1.5 kg and at just 40 cm tall is ...
World / Science & Health Nov 7, 2018
Four of 6 rare black rhinos die after move to Chad, possibly from starvation
Four out of 6 endangered black rhinos that were relocated to Chad from South Africa have died, possibly of starvation, the two countries and an NGO said. The six rhinos were transferred from South Africa in May, re-introducing the species into Chad for the first ...
National Oct 3, 2018
Japan's sei whale meat sales deemed to be in violation of Washington convention
An international conservation committee ruled on Tuesday that Japan's domestic commercial distribution of meat from sei whales caught for scientific purposes violates the so-called Washington convention and advised the country to take corrective steps. The pact, formally called the Convention on International Trade in Endangered ...
World / Science & Health Aug 29, 2018
About 300 endangered sea turtles found dead in apparent net off Mexican coast
About 300 endangered sea turtles were found dead off the southern coast of Mexico on Tuesday, trapped in fishing nets, shortly after more than 100 dead turtles were recovered. Fishermen in the southern state of Oaxaca discovered the turtles in the seaside community of Barra ...
Asia Pacific Aug 20, 2018
Malaysia seizes rhino horns worth $12 million in largest such haul
Malaysia has seized rhinoceros horns worth nearly $12 million bound for Vietnam, the Southeast Asian nation's largest haul of such contraband, officials said on Monday. Wildlife experts say Malaysia is a major transit point for the illegal trafficking of endangered species to other Asian countries. Officials ...
World / Science & Health Jun 26, 2018
'Paws crossed!' Giant panda may be pregnant at Washington zoo
One of the U.S. capital's resident giant pandas may be pregnant, officials at the Smithsonian Institution's National Zoo said on Monday, but warned fans of the black-and-white mammals not to get baby fever just yet. Mei Xiang, who was artificially inseminated on March 1, is ...
National / Science & Health Apr 24, 2018
Endangered bat, believed to be extinct locally, discovered in former U.S. training area in Okinawa
by Alex Martin
A former U.S. military training site in Okinawa Prefecture provided a precious refuge for a critically endangered bat unseen on the prefecture's main island for 22 years. The Yanbaru whiskered bat (Myotis yanbarensis) was captured by a research team two months ago, Kyoto University ...
World / Science & Health Jan 12, 2018
Rwanda expects census to show surge in ranks of highly endangered mountain gorillas
A census of mountain gorillas due in March will likely show numbers have risen this decade, experts said during a ceremony to mark Rwanda's expansion of its Volcano National Park. The last global survey in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and Rwanda in 2010 ...
National Dec 23, 2017
Environment chief denies claims that Japan is center for illegal ivory trading
Environment Minister Masaharu Nakagawa denies claims that Japan has been a hotbed for illegal ivory exports even after a wildlife watchdog urged Japan to stop fueling the internationally outlawed trade practice. "We have been bolstering distribution management in the market and taking necessary measures," following ...
Reference | FYI Jan 16, 2017
Japanese law for endangered wildlife set for what critics call toothless revamp
by Daisuke Kikuchi
The Law on Conservation of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora is set to be revised once again to further improve government measures to prevent vulnerable animal and plant species from becoming extinct. Conservationists say they scored some victories in 2016, symbolized by the ...
National / Media | MEDIA MIX Dec 3, 2016
How Japanese media have failed endangered species
by Philip Brasor
In October, a new documentary produced by Leonardo DiCaprio premiered on Netflix. "The Ivory Game" is a dramatic study of the illegal trade in elephant tusks that includes conservationists battling poachers, investigative journalists following the money trail and black market merchants in China. Experts say ...