In 2018, researchers at the California Academy of Sciences added 229 new plant and animal species to our family tree, enriching our understanding of Earth's complex web of life and strengthening our ability to make informed conservation decisions. The new species include 120 wasps, 34 sea slugs, 28 ants, 19 fish, seven flowering plants, seven spiders, four eels, three sharks, two water bears, one frog, one snake, one seahorse, one moss, and one liverwort plant. More than a dozen Academy […]

In the run-up to the forthcoming illegal wildlife trade conference in London, Fauna & Flora international (FFI) has made a point of shining the spotlight on some of the neglected casualties of wildlife crime, from lizards and lansan trees to seahorses and sturgeon. But this passion for pangolins and other less well-publicised victims of large-scale poaching and trafficking doesn't preclude us from protecting some of the most iconic species on the planet. […]

The many threats to our planet's biodiversity posed by illegal wildlife trade are as varied as they are daunting, and you could be forgiven for feeling deflated after reading the first installment of this two-part blog. But that was only half the story. Encouragingly, Fauna & Flora International (FFI) has met with considerable success in its efforts to combat illegal wildlife trade and secure the future of numerous threatened species worldwide – including Sumatran tigers, elephants, […]

Next month, world leaders will gather in London at the 2018 Illegal Wildlife Trade conference with the aim of stimulating the greater political commitment needed to stamp out wildlife crime. […]

The snipefish, an ocean-dwelling relative of the seahorse, has a very long, skinny snout ending in a tiny mouth. A recent study by UC Davis graduate student Sarah Longo shows that snipefish feed with an elastic-boosted head flick at almost unprecedented speed. […]