“Without a doubt, in the absence of bold and targeted action, it is only a matter of time before we witness the permanent loss of this magnificent species — an avoidable tragedy," writes WCS's Madhu Rao.

The international community took steps to protect two increasingly rare Asian otter species this week, providing an important reminder that treating otters as pets harms the iconic animals in the wild.

In the wake of action at CITES, WCS Mongolia Country Director Enkhtuvshin Shiilegdamba notes in a new commentary for Mongabay, "We’re proud to be the generation that agreed to protect this species of great cultural and ecological importance."

Every dollar invested in forests multiplies through the gains they give people. Responding carefully and strategically to the impacts occurring at the local scale will enable us to confront what’s coming and help alter the trajectory.

During debate at CITES, WCS proposed that vicuña range states include health monitoring during annual shearing campaigns. When large herds are brought together there is an opportunity to complete proactive health assessments.

WCS is asking all parties to help mitigate this emergency. The immediate need is to target on the ground resources to bring existing the fires under control and prevent new ones.

Species across Latin America face threats that include illegal harvest, use, and trade to meet demand. Glass frogs fall among the taxa whose international trade could significantly threaten their survival in the wild.

When governments join a treaty such as CITES," writes WCS's Sue Lieberman as CoP 18 gets underway, "they have agreed to act for the global good, and not let their decisions be swayed by the pressures of those more interested in trade than conservation."

With our planet changing faster than ever, we have to think big and act fast. Climate ‘cool spots’ can help corals survive and will be important refuges of reef biodiversity. Strong local management is key, but urgent action on climate change is needed to cool down our our oceans.

If lions are to survive in Africa, the global community must take bolder, more holistic approaches to land management, addressing this challenge not solely as conservation of a single species but as an international development imperative.

We soon hope to be able to tell the complete story of sand tiger shark life history. At a time when sharks face growing threats around the globe, this information will be vital to setting up better protections for our local species.

The Patagonian Sea is one of the most productive coastal-oceanic areas in the Southern Hemisphere. This ecosystem has global importance as a source of food for migratory species of birds, fish including sharks, turtles and marine mammals.

Many people who are tackling local adaptation projects say the work begins in our communities, with the people who will appreciate the risks at hand and the value of responding to the local consequences of the global problem.

Sometimes called a ‘living fossil,’ the goblin shark is the only extant representative of the family Mitsukurinidae, an ancient lineage some 125 million years old that would have coinhabited the earth with dinosaurs.

Owing to overexploitation, 27% of shark and ray species in the Western Indian Ocean are now classified as Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of threatened species.

In a new blog for Shark Week, Hollie Booth discusses WCS Indonesia’s long-term vision to protect and sustainably manage sharks and rays to provide long-term benefits for people and ecosystems in Indonesia.