In a new essay for Earth | Food | Life, WCS's Valeria Falabella, Claudio Campagna, and Julieta Campagna describe how an unprecedented avian flu outbreak in Argentine Patagonia devastated a stable elephant seal colony, highlighting the rising threat of infectious disease to wildlife in a warming world.

WCS's Anna Lello-Smith joins Talkin' Birds podcast host Ray Brown to discuss her recent research connecting the 5 Great Forests of Mesoamerica with "sister landscapes" in the United State and Canada based their shared role as a home for some of North America's most beloved migratory bird species during and between their annual migrations.

For two weeks in late November and early December, Samarkand, Uzbekistan became the epicenter of global conservation diplomacy. Delegates from around the world gathered for the 20th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES COP20. Among them were WCS's Alfred DeGemmis and Arnaud Goessens. These two graduates of Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs played active roles in the COP's complex negotiations.

Protected areas are cornerstones of global biodiversity conservation strategy, yet their social impacts remain contentious. A recent study conducted by WCS's Heidi Kretser, Diane Detoeuf, and Michelle Wieland--in collaboration with Middlebury College's Jessica L’Roe--examined perceptions of these areas among thousands of local residents living near five forested regions of Central Africa and Madagascar.

"Quiet oceans matter," writes WCS Canada's Bill Halliday in a new commentary for the Calgary Herald. "Marine species, from bowheads to belugas," he continues, "rely on sound to navigate, find food, and communicate across vast distances. Noise from industrial activity and shipping can mask these signals, pushing species into ever-shrinking ranges and disrupting ecosystems that have endured for thousands of years. Managing the volume is critical not only for wildlife but also for the communities that depend on these species for subsistence."

"What Canada needs alongside its list of major projects," writes WCS Canada's Justina Ray in a new commentary for The Conversation, "is a principled, transparent sequence of steps that governs how those projects are planned and assessed." Without such a strategy, says Justina, "the focus centers on pushing the project through. And planners and policymakers fail to consider those early, fundamental questions about ecological risk, or whether the location and design make sense in the first place."

Central America is home to five great tropical forests, whose presence and protection are critical to the conservation of just about every one of our neotropical migrant birds. It is the subject of a recent study from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the Wildlife Conservation Society published last month in the journal Biological Conservation. WCS's Anna Lello-Smith was the lead author for the study and joins host Nate Swick to talk about what this means for bird conservation.

WCS's Anna Lello-Smith joins Animal Matters host Jeff Simmons to discuss a new study connecting the warblers, thrushes, and countless other species spotted in Central Park and other North American “sister” landscapes during their breeding season to the increasingly threatened forests in Central America those birds rely upon for the rest of the year.

WCS's John Calvelli discusses the many fantastic attractions awaiting visitors to the Bronx Zoo's "Holiday Lights" experience, as New York’s family-favorite holiday tradition returns with millions of lights and more than 400 lanterns representing almost 100 animal and plant species spread across six lantern trails! Hear John's discussion with Kevin McCullouch and Christyne Nicholas on That Kevin Show.

In a new op-ed for the Vancouver Sun, WCS's Justina Ray and her co-author Trevor Swerdfager argue that the barriers to development lie less in regulation than in failing to integrate financial, social, and environmental conditions for success at the start

The first annual Wildlife Conservation Society-Arctic Beringia One Health Retreat was held September 17–19th in Fairbanks, Alaska. This internationally attended event with over 50 attendees from the U.S. and Canada gathered to learn how community-based efforts rooted in co-production approaches can lead to effective implementation of innovations in technology and communication strategies to best address challenges through a One Health lens. WCS's Michelle Johannsen captures the breadth and scope of the meeting.

"Including increasing numbers of species threatened by the pet trade on CITES appendices is clearly essential now to ensure their conservation in the wild with their multiple aesthetic, ecological, and cultural roles," writes WCS's Liz Bennett in a new opinion essay for PBS Nature as the 20th conference of the parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) continues in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Coral reefs are absent from national climate and biodiversity plans. WCS's Alfred DeGemmis and WWF's Rachel James,\explore why this gap matters and how collective action can still protect the world’s reefs for the website Together for the Ocean

There are many beautiful, charismatic, often iconic species subject to commercial trade that will be discussed and decided on at the upcoming CITES CoP in Samarkand—either due to proposals to increase or decrease protection; they include elephants, giraffes, okapis, hornbills, whale sharks, manta rays, and more. But WCS's Sue Lieberman asks us to "spare a thought for the less charismatic, funny looking, unpopular species. They need our protection as well—they are also threatened by trade, and they are just as important for their ecosystems."

Listing shark species under CITES Appendix II has helped to save some sharks from extinction. But as WCS policy consultant David Shiffman writes in a new commentary for Mongabay, some species are so threatened that they need to be listed on Appendix I, which bans all trade. New research has revealed that many fins belonging to sharks protected by Appendix II are still being sold in large numbers in Hong Kong, one of the biggest markets, supporting the need for action on Appendix I listings for some species at the upcoming CITES COP20 meeting. Governments meeting at COP20 in Uzbekistan should follow the science, support these proposals, and help save these sharks and rays

WCS is leading efforts to elevate wastewater and watershed pollution as a critical ocean and climate issue — bridging science, policy, and partnerships to drive collaborative change for our oceans and for the health of coastal communities. Here, the WCS Marine Program describes its recent efforts in Indonesia where ensuring clean water is critical to the health of coral reef ecosystems.