Charismatic megafauna. To someone who has never heard these words together, it can sound like complicated scientific jargon. Also known as flagship species, charismatic megafauna is used to describe an animal that is often portrayed as the “poster child” in advertising for zoos and conservation groups. Although...
Did you know every year at least 7.3 million tons of marine life are caught incidentally during fishing practices? Most fisheries have target species for capture; and unfortunately, other animals that are not the target end up becoming hooked or trapped from unavoidable entanglement or...
The Gulf of Mexico’s shame is its ever-growing oxygen-depleted “dead zone” radiating for 8,776 square miles from the mouth of the Mississippi river, an area large enough to blanket the state of New Jersey. The largest hypoxic area in the western hemisphere, the Gulf of...
Houghton College’s Professor Eli Knapp traveled from western New York state to villages bordering Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park and Ruaha National Park to find out why poachers ply their illegal trade. His research universe was quite different than organized poaching gangs on the prowl for rhino horn,...
The team at IFCNR hopes everyone had a wonderful and safe Fourth of July! This holiday is no doubt a summer favorite filled with fun outdoor activities for friends and family, the highlight often involving an elaborate display of dazzling fireworks. As fun as fireworks can be,...
If justice proves successful, a soon to be influx of Asian criminals to California penal institutions will have to answer the perennial question put to newcomers: “Whatya infor?” “Poaching wild succulents” will be their only response. “Very valuable.” Wild succulents? Succulents are some 45 species of plants of...
Throughout Southeast Asia wildlife, large and small, is being injured and killed by means of snares. A snare, for the uninitiated, is essentially the animal equivalent of a hangman’s noose, only made of wire or rope. It can encircle a neck, leg, or body inflicting...
The Manhattan Project’s contribution to shutting the door on World War II was monumental, but its practice of pulling together resources from government, the private sector and academia may prove a legacy of nearly equal benefit. The Argonne National Laboratory at the University of Chicago’s origins...
by Michelle Aberson I’ll be the first to admit I’ve never given conservation much thought. I mean, I grew up in the 80s. But at some point, one has to get out of that “me first” mentality and realize that one’s actions impact more than just...
Introduction: Sea Cucumbers are not related to the fruit found in salads and a variety of cocktails. They are marine animals, more specifically Echinoderms whose closest relatives are star fish (sea stars if you prefer), sea urchins, and sand dollars. Scientific articles for public consumption on...