New York, December 11, 2024 -- Conservationists have succeeded in restoring tiger populations in a region where they were virtually absent for more than 50 years in Russia. This restoration took place from 2012-2021 in the Pri-Amur region of Russia. The techniques used to restore the tiger population are highlighted in a new study in the Journal of Wildlife Management which can be found HERE. In addition to highlighting this Russian success story, the study outlines a pathway for...

New York, December 6, 2024 – An Atlantic puffin chick hatched this summer has now been fully integrated with the rest of the colony in the Central Park Zoo Polar Zone.   Weighing just 2 ounces at hatching on August 11, the chick, known as a puffling, has joined 11 adult Atlantic puffins in the exhibit. The puffling is now the size of an adult bird but has not fully attained its adult plumage. It currently weighs more than 11 ounces. With black-and-white feathers and a large, m...

New York, NY, December 3, 2024 — Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) today announced it has been selected as a winner of the 2024 Amazon Web Services (AWS) IMAGINE Grant, a public grant opportunity open to registered 501(c) nonprofit organizations in the United States who are using technology to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. The grant will enhance WCS’s MERMAID platform, accelerating use of cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) tools t...

New York, Nov. 26, 2024 – The New World screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax), eradicated from Central America, Mexico, and the U.S. over 30 years ago at an approximate cost of $800 million, is making a dangerous comeback. Illegal cattle trafficking has fueled the parasite’s rapid resurgence across Central America, with the recent confirmation of the first screwworm case in Mexico on November 23, 2024. In response, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has temporarily halted l...

Entre Ríos, Argentina, November 26, 2024 – The newly established Islas y Canales Verdes del Río Uruguay Natural Park represents a key milestone in global conservation, aligning with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and its '30x30' target to protect at least 30% of the planet by 2030. Spanning 4,006 hectares of wetlands, islands, riparian forests, and sandy beaches along the Uruguay River, this park is a beacon of collaborative and sustainable conservation efforts....

NEW YORK, NY, November 20, 2024 – The Wildlife Conservation Society issued the following statement regarding the new Scientific Opinion ‘One Health Governance in the European Union’ by the Group of Chief Scientific Advisors. WCS welcomes this scientific opinion by the Group of Chief Scientific Advisors (GCSA), which provides recommendations to support the successful implementation of European Union (EU) policies deriving from a One Health approach. This o...

BAKU, Azerbaijan (November 15, 2024)—Rio Tinto has committed $16 million to the Makira Natural Park REDD+ Project in northern Madagascar, through a new partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Everland. This commitment complements Rio Tinto’s investment in nature-based solutions in the south-east of the country.   The Makira Natural Park REDD+ Project encompasses 372,000 hectares of dense primary forest. One of the largest remaining rainforests in the...

BRONX, N.Y. — November 12, 2024 — Today, the Bronx Zoo announced that Idina Menzel, Tony Award-winner, actress, philanthropist and multi-platinum-selling singer/songwriter, will perform in the 98th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade® on the zoo’s new “Wondrous World of Wildlife” float. As part of the Bronx Zoo’s monumental debut in the Macy’s Parade, Menzel will perform “Great Escape” – a song from her new Broadway musical, &ldquo...

NEW YORK, NY, Nov. 12, 2024—A groundbreaking study released today reveals the alarming state of African elephant populations over the last 50 years. Both forest and savanna elephant species have experienced widespread declines due to overexploitation and habitat loss, mirroring the global trend affecting large-bodied animals. The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, analyzed hundreds of population surveys from 475 sites across 37 African countries ...

New York, New York, November 11, 2024 -- The sounds of barking elephant seals are again in the air along the breeding grounds of Península Valdés, Argentina—but it’s quieter. Almost exactly a year after a massive outbreak of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza killed more than 17,000 elephant seals, including about 97% of their pups, scientists estimate that only about a third of the elephant seals normally expected here returned. “It’s beautiful to w...