As a global Partnership, we believe in internationalism. We have translated as much content in your language as our resources allow. Please visit the English language site to view all of our content.
Press enter for results
New satellite imagery showing rapid forest loss in many parts of the tropics has led to a suite of forest-dependent bird species being moved to higher extinction risk categories in BirdLife’s latest update to the IUCN Red List. Meanwhile, the impacts of climate change are already taking their toll on a range of Australian endemics. Amidst the gloom, however, comes another chapter in one of conservation’s great success stories, proving that targeted efforts can change the fortunes of species in the most perilous of positions.
Today is the opening of the COP15, the biodiversity conference tasked with negotiating a course to halt and reverse biodiversity loss, so we are nature positive by 2030. After the fanfare of the ceremonial opening, which saw the Secretary General call on us all “to act for nature, act for biodiversity and act for humanity” there is now a switch in gears.
Almost all EU Member States’ national strategic plans (CSPs) have now been submitted and approved by the European Commission, and the rollout of the EU’s new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), adopted in 2021, is underway.
On the eve of the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP 15), the EU must prioritize the health of our ocean in its fight against the climate and biodiversity crises and accept that as part of this, a radical change of our fisheries is crucial.
The dashing blue of Common Kingfishers can be seen all year round in Japan, and their recovery across the country in recent years is a promising sign for its freshwater habitats. Discover more about this iconic species and the peculiar history of its Japanese name.
Since early 2022, the Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) Partnership has begun the process of identifying the most important sites for nature in two of the world’s most biodiverse regions, the Tropical Andes and the Congo Basin. Funded by the Bezos Earth Fund, this project is a critical step to ensuring that these vital sites for nature are protected.
Thousands of marine mammals, seabirds, sea turtles, sharks, and rays are killed in fishing gear every year in European waters. This bycatch is one of the main causes of the declines seen in many of these species' population. But marine species are not the only ones to suffer. For fishers, bycatch means damaged equipment, lost bait, lost fish, and precious time wasted removing bycaught animals from nets, lines, and hooks.
As with many of the world’s albatross species, bycatch from fisheries is a major threat to Wandering Albatrosses. A new study led by BirdLife and the British Antarctic Survey, in collaboration with Global Fishing Watch, revealed that over half of Wandering Albatrosses that breed on Bird Island, South Georgia, come into contact with fishing vessels from multiple fishing nations. Bycatch risk was highest along the Patagonian Shelf break, highlighting the critical need for conservationists to work with multiple fleets to implement best-practice mitigation measures in the region.
The survival of Europe depends on healthy ecosystems, resilient to climate change. As part of the EU’s 2030 Biodiversity Strategy, EU countries have committed to legally protect a minimum of 30% of the EU’s land and sea areas; a third of these are to be strictly protected, in other words, totally undisturbed by human activity.
Running two days into overtime, COP27 has largely failed to live up to its billing as ‘the implementation COP’. While agreement on a fund to compensate developing countries for losses and damages due to climate change was a true breakthrough, as well as the hard-fought recognition of the right to a healthy environment making the final text, much else fell short, including on increasing climate action commitments to ‘keep 1.5 alive’, and strengthening nature-climate linkages.
Patricia Zurita, CEO of BirdLife International issued the following statement on COP27 following her return from the conference:
PRESS RELEASE: An expedition with the Search for Lost Birds captured the first-ever photos and video of the black-naped pheasant‑pigeon