Wildlife Conservation Society

Our team helping communities in Fiji sustainably manage vital natural resources. ⬇️

About 10 years ago, our Arctic Beringia team convened a group of Alaskan avian research experts from agencies and academia to identify the most vulnerable bird species to #climatechange on the Arctic coast. Common eiders were No. 1 and we have since focused our work there on them. Recently, this photo by WCS's Kayla Shively from that project was honored with a 2024 NPRB Photography Award. https://lnkd.in/gq-iiPmX

“Noise is an unseen pollutant that reverberates through ecosystems.” For many species, including seals, fish, and whales that spend much of their year in the Arctic, sound, or the absence of it, is a lifeline, says WCS Canada's William Halliday. Unfortunately, in its current form, Halliday writes for Canada's National Observer, Canada’s draft Ocean Noise Strategy lacks the urgency, clarity, and specificity needed to protect the Arctic’s soundscape. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dqZHg8se

We’re joining the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to raise awareness that #wildlifetrafficking is a serious crime. https://lnkd.in/e47MrbyA

These are rehabilitated tigers, Boris and Svetlaya. They were released in different parts of the Pri-Amur area in Russia. After three years, Boris had traveled more than 120 miles in roughly a straight line to reunite with Svetlaya. Within a half year, Svetlaya gave birth to her first litter. By rehabilitating and releasing orphaned tiger cubs like these, conservationists have succeeded in restoring tiger populations in a region of Russia where the species was virtually absent for more than 50 years, says a new study led by WCS.   “Basically the data demonstrated that orphaned cubs, raised in captivity and released, were just as good as wild tigers at hunting, targeting the same types of wild prey, and very rarely killing livestock,” said Dr. Dale Miquelle, Associate Director of the WCS Tiger Program and lead author of the study. “This success demonstrates that tigers with proper isolation from humans and provided the opportunity to learn to hunt, can be successfully re-released into the wild. But this process requires great caution and attention to details in preparing cubs for this journey.”     “This study represents a tantalizing new development in expanding the ‘toolbox’ for conservationists to return tigers to those parts of Asia where they have been lost,” added Dr. Luke Hunter, Executive Director of the WCS Big Cats Program. The techniques used to restore the tiger population are highlighted in the Journal of Wildlife Management, where the study was published. Find out more about how conservationists from 8+ organizations and multiple countries worked together on behalf of the tiger in Russia: https://lnkd.in/e9KuwsQc

Diversity of life on Mongolia's Gobi-steppe. ⬇️

We welcome the appointment of Dr. Albert K. Barume as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples. We truly appreciate our partnership in addressing conservation governance challenges through a paradigm (https://t.co/GnZmj35l5E) based on Indigenous values, and his efforts with us to advance a national wildlife policy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo through the Sustainable Wildlife Management Program.  #HumanRightsDay

“Our Rights, Our Future, Right Now” is the theme of this year’s International Human Rights Day. WCS's Sushil Raj writes about protecting the human rights of Indigenous Peoples, Afro-descendant Peoples, and local communities to protect nature. As we seek to secure our collective future, Raj highlights three necessary shifts, grounded in human rights, to address the interdependent crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and health. Read further: https://to.pbs.org/4ferT0V #HumanRightsDay

“We know how to look for them and where to find them, because the elders taught us.” Great to see lowland tapir project from Colombia, 2024 Conservation Leadership Programme award winners, featured by Mongabay. ⬇️

🔊 Listen to our Top 5 most popular #WCSWildAudio podcast episodes of 2024. All 13 minutes or less. https://lnkd.in/ePkerDJu