Reporter’s Journal: Disappearing Home
By Melati Kaye A boy takes in the sunset on Barang Lompo, one of the Spermonde Islands in Indonesia. The loss of local reef cover from destructive fishing practices and soil runoff from the nearby city of Makassar exposes islands like Barang Lampo to extreme weather. Over the last thirty years, this tiny island, like others in the region, has lost a tenth of its landmass from the erosive force of storm surges and increasingly larger...
Banana plantation threatens rainforest valley (video)
Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains were recently spared a titanium mine, however now the region faces a new peril: bananas. The Australian firm Indochina Gateway Capital Limited has proposed a banana plantation in the Southern Cardamom Mountains. The plantation would likely destroy an elephant corridor for one of Cambodia’s last wild elephant populations. In addition, pesticides used in the plantation could pollute local...
Activism: save Southeast Asia’s last major primary lowland rainforest
Note: as a news organization, mongabay.com does not endorse the action below, but believes its readers may be interested in taking action or discussing the issue further. Villagers from Prey Lang forest area rally in Cambodia’s capital against continuing destruction of their forest. Protestors dressed as ‘avatars’ to gain more attention to their plight. Photo courtesy of: Prey Lang Network. Cambodia’s Prey Lang...
Rising hope for Asia’s vultures?
Saving Asia’s Vultures from Extinction from The RSPB on Vimeo. Vultures may not get a lot of love, or respect for that matter, from the public, but they play a vital role in cleaning up and recycling nature’s waste, which also helps prevent diseases from spreading. Vultures were once abundant throughout Asia, but that was until veterinary drug diclofenac became common. Used on cattle and livestock, researchers discovered...
Girl Scouts fighting palm oil receive wider media coverage (video)
After five years of campaigning, two Girl Scouts fighting palm oil in Girl Scout cookies are receiving wider media coverage this week after meeting with heads of Girl Scouts of the US. The organization has now agreed to research different options, such as sustainably-grown palm oil or using another ingredient, reports the Wall Street Journal. Above, the Girl Scout activists are interviewed on the CBS Early Show. For more information:...
Pictures of baby animals with their mothers for Mother’s Day
Mother tarsier and baby on the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Mother and baby orangutan in tree in Sumatra. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Mother Panamanian golden frog with green baby. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Southern Tree Hyrax with baby in Kenya. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Baby crowned lemur clinging to its mother in Madagascar. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Mother Agouti (Dasyprocta punctata) with babies...
Photos: ugly is the new adorable when it comes to saiga babies
A pair of saiga calves. Photo by: Igor Shpilenok. Few species have seen a worse decline in the past 15 years than the Asian antelope, the saiga. Once known for making up one of the world’s largest migrations, the saiga population has dropped from 1.25 million in the 1990s to 50,000 animals today, plunging over 90% and landing itself on the Critically Endangered species list. The Saiga Conservation Alliance (SCA), which is...
Photos: up close and personal with Sumatran elephants
Baby Sumatran elephant on the run. Photos of Sumatran elephants at Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park on the island of Sumatra. These Sumatran elephants are patrol elephants; they’ve been recently domesticated and are used to reduce human-wildlife conflict. All photos by Rhett A. Butler. Meeting of the minds. Sumatran elephant with mahout. Trunk tricks. Traveling. Big male. Fountain. Modern world. To see more photos of Sumatran...
Researcher brings home new species of Malaysian gecko (video)
Herpetologist Lee Grismer discovers a new species of gecko sporting lovely colors and lines. Dr. Lee Grismer from the La Sierra University in Riverside, California, shows off the world’s newest gecko, captured in a cave in...
Young sun bear takes to the trees (video)
A five-month old orphaned sun bear, Natalie, at the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Center explores the trees. The sun bear (Ursus malayanus) is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List. It is threatened by deforestation, the illegal pet trade, poaching, and the trade for traditional Chinese...
Camera trap catches snow leopards in Mongolia
Video is from an ongoing study by Panthera and the Snow Leopard Trust. It is the first comprehensive long-term study on snow leopards. This video was taken in August 2010 at the Tost Mountain study area in South Gobi, Mongolia where Panthera and the Snow Leopard Trust are collaborating. This film clip is actually 61 images taken about a half second apart by one of our remote automated cameras. We believe it is a mother and her nearly...
Photos: Bornean gliding leopard tree frog
The Bornean gliding leopard tree frog (Rhacophorus pardalis). Shots taken from a recent visit to Gunung Palung National Park in Kalimantan. Photos by Rhett A. Butler,...
Activism: dams on the Mekong River
Note: mongabay.com does not endorse the action below, but believes its readers may be interested in taking action or discussing the issue in comments. Fishing on the Mekong. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. A coalition of NGOs, lacademics, journalists, artists and local people have started a petition against a series of dams planned by Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand. According to the organization, the massive dams will upend the river’s...
Video: bizarre purple frog sounds like a squeaky toy
Native to India, the purple frog (Nasikabatrachus sahyadrensis) is listed as Endangered by the IUCN Red List. The species is also a focal amphibian for the innovative ZSL EDGE program, which selects the species it works with based on their evolutionary uniqueness and threat level. According to the EDGE website: “The purple frog is the sole representative of an ancient lineage of frogs that has been evolving independently for...
Photos: some of our best rainforest shots
Sunset over Borneo rainforest . Photo by Rhett A. Butler. Fast-flowing creek forming the border of Bwindi park in Uganda. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. Kapok tree towering over the forest in Costa Rica. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. Giant dipterocarp tree on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. Brownsberg reserve in Surianme. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. Rainforest waterfall in Malaysian Borneo . Photo by Rhett A. Butler....
Activism: titanium mine approved in Cambodia
Note: mongabay.com does not endorse the action below, but believes its readers may be interested in taking action or discussing the issue in comments. Asian elephants in Cambodia. Photo courtesy of Wildlife Alliance. Cambodia has approved a controversial titanium mine in the heart of the Cardamom Mountain forests. Home to many endangered species, critics say the open-pit mine will pollute waterways, destroy over 20,000 hectares of...
Photos: green vine snake
Green Vine Snake (Ahaetulla prasina) on the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia. This species is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN Red List. Photos by Rhett A....
Photo: world’s most threatened forest
Forest along the Nam Ou river in Laos. Photo by Rhett A. Butler Deforestation for a rubber plantation in Laos. Photo by Rhett A. Butler Yesterday, Conservation International (CI) released a top 10 list of the world’s most threatened biodiverse forest. Number one were the forests of Indo-Burma, including Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar (Burma), and parts of China and India. This landscape includes the forests in Laos...
Pictures: Falling water on six continents
NORTH AMERICA Waterfall in the Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. Photo by Rhett A. Butler Forest waterfall in Arenal, Costa Rica. Photo by Rhett A. Butler SOUTH AMERICA Waterfall on the summit of Auyantepui, Venezuela. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. Jungle waterfall in Suriname. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. EUROPE Waterfall near Skogar in Iceland. Photo by Tina A. Butler. ASIA Tad Lo waterfall in Laos. Photo by Rhett A. Butler....