Tropical forests don’t just store carbon — they generate rain. Through “flying rivers,” forest moisture travels far inland, supporting farms and cities.

Even small-scale deforestation can cut precipitation. The Amazon’s rainmaking service alone is valued in the tens of billions annually.

By Rhett Ayers Butler
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/the-amazon-generates-20-billion-of-dollars-worth-of-rainfall-each-year-study-finds/

#news #agriculture #climate change #conservation #deforestation #ecosystem #hydroelectricpower

The combined weight of all Orange-bellied parrots in the wild is less than a family-sized bottle of milk.

That’s not a population. That’s a warning.

They still exist. But barely.

#EndangeredSpecies #Parrots #Conservation #Australia https://www.lyrebirddreaming.com/post/life-support-in-the-wild

The combined weight of all Orange-bellied parrots in the wild is less than a family-sized bottle of milk.

That’s not a population. That’s a warning.

They still exist. But barely.

#EndangeredSpecies #Parrots #Conservation #Australia https://www.lyrebirddreaming.com/post/life-support-in-the-wild

#NewSpecies!
A newly discovered fungus from #india for #FungiFriday:

Cuphophyllus aureus

Treatment: https://treatment.plazi.org/id/C5400917-6B24-611A-37B7-FF77C1A8FEDD
Publication: https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.721.3.6
#Phytotaxa #CuphophyllusAureus

#FAIRdata
#science #OA #openaccess #biology #taxonomy #ecology #biodiversity #nature #wildlife #conservation #fungi #mushrooms #mycology

#NewSpecies!
A newly discovered fungus from #india for #FungiFriday:

Cuphophyllus aureus

Treatment: https://treatment.plazi.org/id/C5400917-6B24-611A-37B7-FF77C1A8FEDD
Publication: https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.721.3.6
#Phytotaxa #CuphophyllusAureus

#FAIRdata
#science #OA #openaccess #biology #taxonomy #ecology #biodiversity #nature #wildlife #conservation #fungi #mushrooms #mycology

We can save around 4 BILLION tees per year of we use hemp instead of timber to make paper.

hemp also makes wonderful clothing!

#Hemp #paper #cloth #conservation #SaveTheTrees

We can save around 4 BILLION tees per year of we use hemp instead of timber to make paper.

hemp also makes wonderful clothing!

#Hemp #paper #cloth #conservation #SaveTheTrees

Gary Tabor’s career traces a shift in conservation from isolated “island” parks to vast, connected ecological networks.

Shaped by time in the Adirondacks and East Africa, he argues wildlife survival depends on the “connective tissue” between protected areas.

Through the Center for Large Landscape Conservation, he brought connectivity into the mainstream, advancing wildlife crossings and community-led solutions.

by Rhett Ayers Butler
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/a-hundred-year-vision-gary-tabor-on-the-rise-of-large-landscape-conservation/

#news #biodiversity #conservation

We watched the new documentary "The Extraordinary Caterpillar" yesterday & now have a new level of appreciation & wonder for these tiny superheroes!

https://homegrownnationalpark.org/extraordinary-caterpillar/
https://www.thecaterpillarlab.org/registration

Watch it! You won't be disappointed!

#TheExtraordinaryCaterpillar #HomegrownNationalPark #MeritMotionPictures #TheCaterpillarLab #Nature #Naturalist #Conservation #Biodiversity #Environment #Ecosystem #Ecology #Bird #Birds #Birding #Birder #Birdwatcher #Birdwatching

We watched the new documentary "The Extraordinary Caterpillar" yesterday & now have a new level of appreciation & wonder for these tiny superheroes!

https://homegrownnationalpark.org/extraordinary-caterpillar/
https://www.thecaterpillarlab.org/registration

Watch it! You won't be disappointed!

#TheExtraordinaryCaterpillar #HomegrownNationalPark #MeritMotionPictures #TheCaterpillarLab #Nature #Naturalist #Conservation #Biodiversity #Environment #Ecosystem #Ecology #Bird #Birds #Birding #Birder #Birdwatcher #Birdwatching

Pharmaceutical pollution from wastewater is widespread in rivers and lakes — and it doesn’t stay there.

Studies show drug residues accumulate in aquatic insects, then move into terrestrial food webs when birds and bats eat them.

Researchers have found changes in insect physiology and behavior, with possible ripple effects for ecosystems.

The full consequences remain largely unknown.

by Sean Mowbray
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/insects-are-moving-pharmaceutical-pollutants-from-rivers-to-land-risks-unknown/

#news #climatechange #conservation #ecosystems #planetaryhealth

She’s Back! Wisdom The Incredible Laysan Albatross Has Returned

"The world’s oldest known wild bird, Wisdom, the Laysan albatross, has returned to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge to nest."

#SciComm by @grrlscientist

#Albatross #birds #ornithology #seabirds #conservation #MidwayAtoll https://grrlscientist.medium.com/shes-back-wisdom-the-incredible-laysan-albatross-has-returned-2fcff1ba0cdf

She’s Back! Wisdom The Incredible Laysan Albatross Has Returned

"The world’s oldest known wild bird, Wisdom, the Laysan albatross, has returned to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge to nest."

#SciComm by @grrlscientist

#Albatross #birds #ornithology #seabirds #conservation #MidwayAtoll https://grrlscientist.medium.com/shes-back-wisdom-the-incredible-laysan-albatross-has-returned-2fcff1ba0cdf

Biophobia: people’s aversion to nature

"Evidence suggests that biophobia is a growing trend in many parts of the world. Ironically, this trend has emerged during a time when increasing people’s biophilia has become a critical challenge for ensuring the sustainability of the human relationship with nature. As highlighted in this review, biophobia can harm public health and undermine conservation, but lacks unified research. Although foundational theories and concepts have been established, a deeper and interdisciplinary understanding of the manifestations, drivers, and feedback loops associated with the human aversion to nature is urgent." >>
Toward a unified understanding of people’s aversion to nature: biophobia >>
https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/fee.70019
#nature #biodiversity #conservation #phobias #BioPhobia #NatureAnxiety #wildlife #climate

Biophobia: people’s aversion to nature

"Evidence suggests that biophobia is a growing trend in many parts of the world. Ironically, this trend has emerged during a time when increasing people’s biophilia has become a critical challenge for ensuring the sustainability of the human relationship with nature. As highlighted in this review, biophobia can harm public health and undermine conservation, but lacks unified research. Although foundational theories and concepts have been established, a deeper and interdisciplinary understanding of the manifestations, drivers, and feedback loops associated with the human aversion to nature is urgent." >>
Toward a unified understanding of people’s aversion to nature: biophobia >>
https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/fee.70019
#nature #biodiversity #conservation #phobias #BioPhobia #NatureAnxiety #wildlife #climate

Some whale #linocut prints for #WorldWhaleDay! I’ve had the great privilege of seeing humpbacks and orcas (and other species) when working at sea. They seem as curious about us as we are of them.

I would love to see the blue whale and narwhals, in my other prints, too.

I hope we always live in a world where whales can thrive.

#printmaking #whale #humpbackWhale #orca #narwhal #blueWhale #sciart #conservation #MastoArt

https://minouette.etsy.com/listing/1747351363

6/
When my mom was born in 1955, there were days when she wasn't allowed to go outside to play, because of the air pollution. When I was born, that never happened anymore.

When I was born, humpback whales were critically endangered, and people thought they were going to go extinct. Today, they've recovered to exceed their recorded numbers. Other whales too!

We fixed it.

We CAN fix it and we ARE fixing it and we DID fix it.

aetherograph

#quotes
#ClimateChange
#conservation
#hope

5/
In 2008, for the first time since the program began, more California condors were flying free in the wild than in captivity. Today there are nearly 500 – more than half of them flying free in Arizona, Utah, California, and Baja Mexico.

When I was born, there were no condors in the wild. I'm 37 now, and there are over 250 condors flying free.

aetherograph

#quotes
#ClimateChange
#condors
#conservation
#hope