BRONX, NY (September 30, 2026)—More than 120 years after a forester at the Wildlife Conservation Society's Bronx Zoo first documented the chestnut blight that would ultimately wipe out nearly 4 billion American chestnut trees, American chestnuts are returning to the WCS Bronx Zoo, thanks to a partnership with the New York Restoration Project.   On Monday, Oct. 5, the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo and New York Restoration Project (NYRP) will plant hybrid A...

BRONX, N.Y. — September 30, 2026 — The Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo is debuting a new female snow leopard cub, born May 31, 2026 to parents Dari and Moutig.   The cub is doing well after passing her physical exams and routine vaccinations, and can now be seen exploring the zoo’s Himalayan Highlands habitat. Her birth brings the total number of snow leopards currently at the Bronx Zoo to eight.  Snow leopards are one of the world’s m...

[Above photo: An Arabian Sea humpback whale breaches following interaction with another whale. Both whales had just been recorded singing before this shot. Along with the genetic evidence presented in this study, the unique structure of humpback whale song recorded in the Arabian Sea indicates that this population is isolated and distinct from other whale populations in the Indian Ocean. Hallaniyat Bay, Dhofar, Oman. Photo credit: ©️Darryl MacDonald.]   Mus...

NEW YORK, Sept. 24, 2026—Tomorrow night, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), ArtW, and internationally recognized multimedia artist Anita Glesta will bring the hidden world of the Hudson Canyon to the Brooklyn Bridge with the premiere of AQUA COSMOS: The Hudson Canyon, a monumental public artwork that will transform the iconic landmark into a canvas about the ocean and  the 100-year legacy of art, science and conservation.  Presented in collaboration with WCS and ArtW, th...

NEW YORK, Sept. 23, 2026 — Dr. Carlos Afonso Nobre, one of the world’s leading scientists on the Amazon and its relationship to the global climate, has been awarded the 2026 Thomas E. Lovejoy Prize in recognition of more than four decades of groundbreaking science, leadership, and commitment to the future of the Amazon rainforest. The prize was presented Wednesday evening at the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Central Park Zoo during New York City Climate Week. It ...

BRONX, NY (September 23, 2026)—Published today in Nature, an international team of 137 researchers from 64 countries, working together as part of the Bat1K consortium, combined genomic and fossil evidence to show that bats, and thus mammalian flight, most likely originated in Europe around 65 million years ago. The approach used by the team to model the evolution of fossil and living species together does what other methods have not and cannot: identify the oldest group of fos...

New York, Sept. 16, 2026 -- The Amazon is approaching a critical moment as climate change, deforestation, fire, and other pressures threaten one of the planet’s most important ecosystems. During New York City Climate Week, leading conservation organizations will come together to recognize and celebrate an individual whose work is helping advance solutions for the future of the Amazon and the people and wildlife who depend on it. The 2026 Thomas E. Lovejoy Prize will be present...

BRONX, NY, September 15, 2026—In a study published in Nature Reviews Biodiversity, 31 scientists have produced the first comprehensive roadmap to prevent African swine fever (ASF) from driving Asia’s 12 endemic wild pig species toward extinction, identifying eight priority actions for governments and conservation organizations to protect one of the region’s most threatened groups of mammals. Since ASF emerged in China in late 2018, the virus, which causes extremely...

[Above photo: Endemic to Colombia, Lehmann’s poison frog (Oophaga lehmanni) is rated as Critically Endangered on the Red List of threatened species maintained by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The frog is included on the CITES Appendix II list due to the unsustainable tradeof this species. Photo credit: ©️Jonathan Vanegas/WCS.] BRONX, NY, September 14, 2026—A group of eight international experts writing in the journal ...

BRONX, NY, September 11, 2026—A new international study has found that achieving global biodiversity and climate goals will require more than expanding protected areas alone. By comparing how different approaches to conserving land perform in protecting forests and reducing carbon emissions, researchers found that protected areas remain the most effective tool for preventing deforestation, while Indigenous lands and other effective conservation measures can make important complementary con...