Nature & Conservation
Species recovering, habitats restored, and the measurable return of wild life.
A treaty to protect the high seas is in force, and the number of parties has risen from 60 to 93
The agreement on biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction, known as the BBNJ Agreement, is the first legally binding instrument for conserving marine life in the two thirds of the ocean that lies beyond any country's control. It entered into force on 17 January 2026, and the United Nations register now lists 93 parties, up from the 60 ratifications that triggered it.
The black-faced spoonbill is no longer endangered, thirty years after 400 birds were left
A three day winter census across East Asia counted 7,081 black-faced spoonbills in January 2025, up from about 400 birds in 1995. The IUCN has moved the species from Endangered to Vulnerable.
India counted 891 Asiatic lions, up from 327 in 2001
Gujarat's four-day survey in May 2025 counted 891 Asiatic lions, up from 674 in 2020 and 327 in 2001, and the animals are spreading well beyond Gir National Park.
Nepal counted 429 wild tigers, up from 355 four years ago
Nepal's latest national tiger survey put 3,696 cameras across five national parks and identified 373 individual tigers by their stripes. The population estimate that follows is 429, up from 355 in 2022 and from 121 at the first count. One park, Bardiya, went the other way.
Salmon spawned above the removed Klamath dams in numbers
One year after the last of four dams came out of the Klamath River, 11,722 adult Chinook spawned above the old Iron Gate site, against 1,494 the season before. The run has climbed back above the population line federal managers watch.
Brazilian Amazon deforestation fell to an 11-year low
Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon dropped 11% in the year to July 2025, the lowest annual clearance since 2014.
The Iberian lynx reached a record 2,663, nearly doubling in four years
The wild Iberian lynx population hit 2,663 in the 2025 census, up about 95% since 2021, for a cat that was nearly extinct two decades ago.
Australia's numbat has climbed off the endangered list
The IUCN has moved the numbat from Endangered to Near Threatened after four decades of recovery, one of conservation's rare genuine downlistings.
Black rhinos are climbing, and poaching hit a 14-year low
Africa's black rhinos grew 5.2% in a year and continental poaching fell to its lowest rate since 2011.
The green sea turtle is no longer endangered
After decades of protection, one of the ocean's most familiar animals has recovered enough to move two full steps back from the brink.
