Burdwood Bank in the Patagonian Sea will protect whales, penguins, and rare cold corals WCS commends Argentina’s government and thanks local partners of the Forum of NGOs for the Conservation of the Patagonian Sea WCS has advocated for open-ocean protected areas in the Patagonian Sea since 2005 NEW YORK (August 1, 2013)—The Wildlife Conservation Society’s President and CEO, Cristián Samper, issued the following statement on the recent declaration by Argentina to designate Burdwood Bank as t...

Coral reef fisheries expert Dr. Tim McClanahan highlights the resilience of coral reefs and the conservation efforts that will help them adapt to changing conditions.

Study by Wildlife Conservation Society and University of the Azores identifies additional risks to reefs stemming from pollution and heavy fishing NEW YORK (August 6, 2012)— Microbes, sponges, and worms—the side effects of pollution and heavy fishing—are adding insult to injury in Kenya’s imperiled reef systems, according to a recent study by the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of Azores. The authors of the study have found that pollution and overfishing on reef sys...

Illegal orangutan owner and trader prosecuted in Sumatra NEW YORK (February 23, 2012) – The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme (SOCP) announced today Sumatra’s first ever successful sentence of an illegal orangutan owner and trader in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia.The seven-month prison sentence is only the third for Indonesia, despite orangutans being strictly protected under Indonesian law since 1924. Although there have been over 2,500 conf...

Researchers find that fishery closures in Belize’s Glover’s Reef help barracudas, groupers, and other predatory fish recover while the parrotfish and other herbivores essential for reef recovery still need more protection.

But Herbivorous Fish Needed for Reef Recovery Still Lagging14-year study finds need for increased protections for parrotfish and other herbivores in marine reserves NEW YORK (December 21, 2011) —A 14-year study by the Wildlife Conservation Society in an atoll reef lagoon in Glover’s Reef, Belize has found that fishing closures there produce encouraging increases in populations of predatory fish species. However, such closures have resulted in only minimal increases in herbivorous fi...

Coral propagation lab allows aquarium staff to grow various species on site, eliminating the need to disrupt fragile reefs in the wild Brooklyn, N.Y. – Dec. 1, 2011 – The Wildlife Conservation Society’s New York Aquarium is now growing corals on site in an effort to educate the public about the need to preserve fragile reef systems in the wild. Coral reefs are vital to the health of marine life. They provide shelter and food for countless marine species and help maintain a balanced ocea...

Research identifies eight factors that can alert managers to the threat of overfishing in otherwise healthy looking reefs NEW YORK (September 28, 2011)—Coral reefs that have lots of corals and appear healthy may, in fact, be heading toward collapse, according to a study published by the Wildlife Conservation Society and other groups. Using data from coral reef systems across the western Indian Ocean, an international team of researchers identified how overfishing creates a serie...

A new study identifies a better way to determine if coral ecosystems are in danger of collapse.

WCS marine scientists provide a color code for coral conservation by mapping out the stress loads of the world's reefs.