Find the poison frog!
Look closely to spot the Green and black poison dark frog (Dendrobates auratus in the rainforest canopy in Colombia. See more photos below of the frog in Colombia. Unlike many Neotropical frogs, this species is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN Red List. Photos by Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of poison dart...
Last chance to see: Visit Tanzania before “The Migration” is destroyed
With the government bent on building a road that scientists say will reduce the wildebeest herd by 500,000 animals, 2011 is the year to visit Tanzania to witness one of the world’s most incredible wildlife spectacles: the migration of more than a million wildebeest, zebra, and other animals across the Serengeti.
Wildlife crossings can be designed to be safer for humans and animals
The ARC International Wildlife Crossing Infrastructure Design Competition, the first international competition of its kind, says collisions between wildlife and cars in the U.S. have increased by 50 percent in the past 15 years. Not only do these collisions take a huge toll on both wildlife and people, but they also cost the U.S. some $8 billion per year.
Photo: young hippos
Young hippos in Kenya. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of hippos.
What happens when you cross a giraffe with a beetle?
You get the giraffe-necked weevil (Trachelophorus giraffa) of course! This strange insect is native to Madagascar. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of the giraffe-necked weevil (Trachelophorus...
Hyena spotted in Armenia
Hyena in Tanzania. Photo by Rhett A. Butler 2007 Remains of a striped hyena have been found in southern Armenia, representing the country’s first confirmed hyena observation in over 60 years. Hyenas discovered in Armenia? Researchers find carcass,...
Picture: Christmas chameleon
Male panther chameleon near Maroantsetra, Madagascar.
Picture: Arctic musk oxen in defensive posture
The musk ox was extinct in Alaska as recently as the 1880s but was re-introduced into Alaska’s Arctic in the 1970s and today, approximately 3500-4000 musk oxen exist there. According to Joel Berger, a conservationist at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), says that only 10-30 of the animals remain in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge–down from more than 400 that lived in the refuge in the 1990s.
The unmissable Shoebill
A shoebill (Balaeniceps rex) in Uganda. This swamp-loving large bird is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List due to habitat loss, hunting, and nest disturbance. Researchers estimate that there are around 5,000-8,000 left in the wild. Populations in the Sudan still need to be determind, however. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of Uganda’s...
What a face!
A Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) makes a face. Listed as Critically Endangered the Sumatran orangutan is largely threatened by habitat loss to plantations, such as wood pulp and palm oil, and logging. After losing their forests, many orangutans, such as this one, are now housed in rehabilitation centers. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of...
Hairy elephant-relative with baby
This bizarre animal, resembling a rodent, in Kenya is a southern tree hyrax (Dendrohyrax arboreus). Although the size of rabbit, the hyrax is actually closely related to the elephant and belongs to the Afrotheria clade that includes not only elephants, but manatees, sengis, tenrecs, and aardvarks. Four species of hyrax survive today. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of...
Find the chameleon playing dead
Somewhere in this photo is the horned leaf chameleon (Brookesia superciliaris) playing dead. Native to Madagascar, Brookesia chameleons are among the world’s tiniest reptiles. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. To learn more about Brookesia chameleons, including just how small they really are, and see more photos: Brookesia chameleons. If you can’t find the chameleon, it is revealed...
Rarely seen: a baby bat
A baby bat, referred to as a pup, in Brazil. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of this bat pup.
Elephant pair at the Chobe River
As the day ends numerous herds of Africa elephants (Loxodonta africana) come down to the Chobe River to drink and socialize. African elephants are listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List. They are threatened by habitat loss, poaching, and human-elephant conflict. On the positive side, African elephant populations are viewed as increasing on the continent. Photo by: Tiffany Roufs. Click to see more photos of...
Orphaned baby sloth
Orphaned baby three-toed sloth in the village of the Trio indigenous tribe in Suriname. The sloth was clinging to a stuffed panda bear. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of the baby...
Songbirds to eat
While attention in the bushmeat trade is often given to mammals, birds–such as these songbirds for sale as food in Laos–are also eaten in many parts of the world. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of the wildlife trade in Laos. Related Article: Laos Emerges as Key Source in Asia’s Illicit Wildlife...
Face to face
The Wolf Guenon (Cercopithecus wolfi) is native to central Africa. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of the Wolf Guenon.
Orangutan Awareness and Caring Weeks Collide
post by by Melanie J. Martin, special to mongabay.com Sumatran Orangutan in Gunung Leuser National Park. Photo by Rhett A. Butler in May 2010 The Orang Utan Republik Foundation (OURF) and other conservation NGOs are celebrating November 7-13, 2010 as Orangutan Caring Week. The theme this year is “Back to Green,” which, according to OURF, implies returning orangutans to the wild while becoming more ecologically conscious. Meanwhile,...
Golden-fronted woodpecker
A lovely golden-fronted woodpecker (Melanerpes aurifrons) in Guatemala. This species is also present in Texas and Oklahoma of the US. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. Click to see more photos of...
Woolly monkey hanging out
A woolly monkey hangs out in Amacayacu National Park, Colombia. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler . Click to see more photos of woolly monkeys.
