Extinct Species

India launches National Red List Assessment to map species extinction risk

India on Thursday launched a National Red List Assessment initiative to accurately assess the conservation status of its species and fulfil commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The National Red List Roadmap, unveiled at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi, will create a nationally coordinated red-listing system to support conservation planning, policy making and threat mitigation, Union Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh said. Singh presented India's Vision 2025-2030 for the National Red List Assessment, a framework prepared by the Zoological Survey of India and the Botanical Survey of India in collaboration with IUCN-India and the Centre for Species Survival. He said the programme aims to publish National Red Data Books for both flora and fauna by 2030, using IUCN-aligned scientific guidelines. Speaking at the launch, the minister highlighted India's rich biodiversity, noti

Jurassic Park for real? Biotech firm to revive New Zealand's giant bird

The South Island giant moa may be Colossal Biosciences' next de-extinction project - but scientists caution the outcome won't truly be a moa

NASA's cleanrooms reveal 26 new types of bacteria that could survive space

NASA's scientists have discovered 26 new types of bacteria that could survive space in cleanrooms - the place where spacecraft are made

Dire wolves are back - or maybe not. What does Colossal Biosciences claim?

The first dire wolf pups, Romulus and Remus, born in October, plus a third pup, Khaleesi, born in January, are the results of efforts by bioscience towards de-extinction.

World Sparrow Day 2025: The silent disappearance of a once-familiar bird

World Sparrow Day is celebrated every year on March 20. The population of sparrows has declined significantly in the last two decades and this day highlights the need to protect sparrows

Back after 300 years, conservative efforts help bring iblis back to Europe

Northern Bald Ibis bird returned to Europe after 300 years, thanks to concerted conservation efforts helping its remarkable resurgence

From ecosystems to economics: The potential of a 'species stock exchange'

Creating interdependence between funding and ecological outcomes can establish an accountable framework, augmenting the efficacy of conservation initiatives

20% migratory species at extinction risk, 44% see population decline: UN

One in five migratory species is threatened with extinction and 44 per cent have a decreasing population trend, according to the United Nations' first 'State of the World's Migratory Species' report released on Monday. The situation is far worse in aquatic ecosystems, with 97 per cent of the migratory fish listed for protection under the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) at risk of extinction. Established in 1979, the CMS focuses on bringing countries and stakeholders together to agree on the actions needed to ensure that migratory species survive and thrive. According to the report, 82 per cent of the species listed under Appendix I of the convention are threatened with extinction and 76 per cent have a declining population trend. Eighteen per cent of Appendix II species are globally threatened, with almost half (42 per cent) showing decreasing population trends. The convention's Appendix I lists migratory species which are endangered. Appendix II lists migratory species "wh

Nearly half of world's migratory species declining, shows UN report

Nearly half of the world's migratory species are in decline, according to a new United Nations report released Monday. Many songbirds, sea turtles, whales, sharks and other migratory animals move to different environments with changing seasons and are imperiled by habitat loss, illegal hunting and fishing, pollution and climate change. About 44% of migratory species worldwide are declining in population, the report found. More than a fifth of the nearly 1,200 species monitored by the U.N. are threatened with extinction. These are species that move around the globe. They move to feed and breed and also need stopover sites along the way, said Kelly Malsch, lead author of the report released at a U.N. wildlife conference in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Habitat loss or other threats at any point in their journey can lead to dwindling populations. Migration is essential for some species. If you cut the migration, you're going to kill the species, said Duke University ecologist Stuart Pimm, w

Climate change threatens amphibians, 136 of 426 species in India at risk

Climate change is deteriorating amphibian species around the world and the species continue to be the most threatened class of vertebrates, new research in Nature journal reports. In India, 136 of the 426 species evaluated in the study were found to be threatened, an international team of researchers, including those from Council of Scientific & Industrial Research-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, and other Indian institutes, said in their study. "Among the states with high amphibian diversity, Kerala has 178 species of which 84 are threatened, Tamil Nadu is next with 128 species of which 54 are threatened and Karnataka is in third place with 100 species of which 30 are threatened," said study author Gururaja K. V. and faculty at Srishti Manipal Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Bengaluru campus. Current and projected climate change effects are estimated to be responsible for 39 per cent of status .

How the dodo might return with the Nicobar pigeon as its surrogate mother

A 'de-extinction' firm plans to also bring back the Tasmanian wolf and woolly mammoth

De-extinction: A mammoth task

De-extinction -in its current form - is an excessively time- and capital-consuming process, and has yet to be successful for any singular species

Statsguru: Why is the cheetah reintroduction in India a challenge?

Attempts at sustainable fishing practices which incorporate fisherman's wishes are said to be one way to address the issue

What is Project Cheetah? Eight African cheetahs to arrive in India

The cheetah is a flagship grassland species; whose conservation also helps in preserving other grassland species in the predator food chain

TMS Ep261: BYJU's revenue, D2C brands, consumer financiers, Project Cheetah

Did BYJU's bite off more than it can chew? What explains the great Indian brand rush? Is it the right time to invest in consumer financiers? What is Project Cheetah? Answers here

What is Project Cheetah?

The nation is waiting to celebrate the arrival of cheetahs from Africa. Most of us may have never seen a cheetah as it went extinct from India about 70 years ago. Here's more about Project Cheetah

India signs MoU with Namibia for reintroduction of extinct cheetahs

India and Namibia on Wednesday signed a crucial memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the reintroduction of cheetahs, declared extinct in the country in 1952

Forced evolution

Humans are not only driving extinction but also speciation

A mammoth project to help endangered species and planet

US bio-startup Colossal says it could "help reverse climate change", "help endangered species", and "upset existing ecosystems"

Over 28,000 species are officially threatened, with more likely to come

These numbers seem small when thinking about the estimated 1 mn species at risk of extinction, but only 1% of the world's animals, fungi and plants have been formally assessed on the IUCN Red List