News

Biologists have long known that inbreeding can be detrimental. Inbreeding results in less genetic variation, making species more vulnerable if changes occur that require them to adapt. Now we know more about just how bad inbreeding really is.

A brief study recently published by the journal Current Biology examines the environmental impact of different oil crops like oil palm and coconut by quantifying the number of species that have been threatened by each.

The Blue Mountains World Heritage Institute (BMWHI), in partnership with PALRC, is running an online training program over 10 half days from September 21 - October 2.

With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and economic downturn, MPAs face a challenging financial future. Tighter MPA budgets are likely as governments redirect funds to pandemic response, and as other revenue sources – particularly tourism – dry up for the foreseeable future.

Forests are thought to be crucial in the fight against climate change—and with good reason. We've known for a long time that the extra CO₂ humans are putting in the atmosphere makes trees grow faster, taking a large portion of that CO₂ back out of the atmosphere and storing it in wood and soils.

A new transhipment monitoring portal is being touted by its developers as a major advancement in the global fishing industry.

Environment group Kōrero o te 'Ōrau is calling for the removal of the crown of thorns starfish from reefs around Rarotonga. It could be an early stage of an outbreak, says leader and biologist Dr Teina Rongo.

On 11 December 2018, Kiribati made history by being the first country in the world to have its domestic marine conservation initiative – the Phoenix Islands Protected Area (PIPA) – recognized by the United Nations General Assembly (Resolution A/Res/73/124 titled “Oceans and the Law of the Sea”) a

As global awareness of the importance of marine ecosystems grows, efforts are under way to protect, restore and nurture the reefs and mangroves that protect coastlines.

Coronaviruses capable of infecting humans may have been circulating undetected in bats for decades. Research suggests one of the closest known ancestors of the virus that causes Covid-19 emerged in bats between 40 and 70 years ago.