Green sea turtles are a popular resource for coastal communities in Nicaragua, but due to overfishing their populations are facing a decline.

20-year study finds large decrease in green turtle catch rates Study authors recommend limits on artisanal fishingNew York (April 16th, 2014)—A 20-year assessment of Nicaragua’s legal, artisanal green sea turtle fishery has uncovered a stark reality: greatly reduced overall catch rates of turtles in what may have become an unsustainable take, according to conservation scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society and University of Florida. During the research period, conservation scientists...

New York, (April 11, 2014) -- Melvin Gumal, Director of the WCS-Malaysia Programme since 2003, has been named one of eight finalists for this year's Whitley Awards. This prestigious international prize honors exceptional individuals working in grassroots nature conservation in the world's developing countries, and who often face humanitarian, environmental and political challenges in the projects they undertake. The prize, awarded by The Whitley Fund for Nature (@WhitleyAwards ) is called the Gr...

WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 10, 2014) – Today, Wildlife Conservation Society Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and 96 Elephants Director John Calvelli testified before the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment & Related Agencies to describe the need for continued U.S. government investment in international conservation programs within the FY15 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. Calvelli called for increases in funding for US Fish a...

Canines are already using their keen sense of smell to assist in airports, and now conservationists are seeking their talents. Ruth Starkey, WCS technical advisor, explains how man's best friends are helping put an end to the ivory crisis.

On a remote and protected Indonesian beach, strange birds and sea turtle hatchlings were recently released into the wild – over thirty olive ridely sea turtles and two maleos, their adult counterparts shown here. 

Sulawesi coastal area serves as critical nesting ground for maleos and olive ridley sea turtles NEW YORK (March 13, 2014)—Working on a remote and protected beach in Indonesia, conservationists from the Wildlife Conservation Society and PALS—a local partner organization—recently celebrated the release of rare animal hatchlings into the wild, part of a plan to save the olive ridley sea turtle and an extraordinary bird called the maleo. On February 23 on Sulawesi’s Binerean Cape, conservation mana...

Effort led by WCS and Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation Mass hatching event for the Giant South American river turtle produces more than 200,000 hatchlings NEW YORK (February 10, 2014)—Turtle biologists seeking to learn more about threatened and endangered turtles in Brazil’s Abufari Biological Reserve recently hit the mother lode—a mass hatching event producing an estimated 210,000 baby turtles, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Chico Mendes Institute fo...

Trader connected to crime syndicates in Russia, Singapore, Thailand, and Cyprus Operation was completed by Ministry of Forestry and Jakarta National Police Criminal Investigation Division, with technical assistance from WCS’s Wildlife Crimes UnitNEW YORK (January 23, 2014) — The Wildlife Conservation Society announced today the arrest of a wildlife trader in Indonesia who specialized in smuggling live animals including baby primates and komodo dragons. The arrest was made in Bali by forest rang...

WCS applauds appropriations bill that grows key conservation funding accounts and will help address elephant poaching crisis Support for USAID, GEF, and Dept. of the Interior programs is preserved Washington, DC – January 17, 2014 – The Wildlife Conservation Society hailed the omnibus Fiscal Year 2014 spending bill passed this week by Congress, which maintains key conservation accounts and creates a new funding source to combat wildlife trafficking while ensuring budgetary stability over the ne...