BRONX, NY, Jan 9, 2024—Before the Empire State Building was constructed, before the first New York City subway ride, before the New York Yankees were a team, there was the Bronx Zoo (formally, the New York Zoological Park). The iconic New York institution first opened its doors in 1899 and celebrates its 125th birthday, Nov. 8, throughout 2024. Over the past century plus, the Bronx Zoo has become a cultural and education leader, a conservation giant, and a gateway to nature, for more th...

Djéké Triangle Forest, Republic of Congo, January 6, 2023 – One of the world’s most iconic lowland gorillas, Kingo, who was featured in international news media and inspired three decades of conservation, was found dead on Dec. 26, 2023. Lowland gorillas are listed as Critically Endangered by IUCN. Kingo's age is estimated to be 45 years. The cause of his death is believed to be age-related complications. Kingo gained his international fame after being featured in re...

NEW YORK – December 29, 2023 – WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) released today its 17 favorite animal images of 2023 from its field work across the world and its zoos and aquarium in New York City. WCS operates five wildlife parks in New York City (Bronx Zoo, New York Aquarium, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, and Queens Zoo) and works in 50 plus countries saving wildlife and wild places. Click here for high-res copies of our favorite animal photos of 2023. Cutli...

La Paz, Bolivia, Dec. 21, 2023—After more than two decades of collaborative efforts, WCS Bolivia, in partnership with four territorial indigenous organizations and their regional body, signed a milestone agreement on October 30, 2023. This initiative marks a key collective step towards autonomous and sustainable territorial management in the Madidi Landscape. The agreement introduces a permanent financing mechanism for the Tacana, Tsimane´Mosetene, Lecos de Apolo, and Uchupiamonas...

New York, Dec. 20, 2023 -- Dr. Rachel Neugarten has been appointed as WCS Global’s first Executive Director of Conservation Planning to lead the build-out of the conservation planning work that is at the heart of WCS Global.  Dr. Neugarten comes to WCS with a wealth of experience focused on conservation planning, spatial priority-setting, and adaptive management. She has served as Director for Conservation Priority Setting for Conservation International (CI) and as Conservation Pla...

New York, Dec. 19, 2023 — One year ago, 196 governments adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, a historic plan to protect life on Earth that includes a set of goals and targets to ensure the conservation of biodiversity, including our planet’s wildlife and wild places. “The Global Biodiversity Framework was the result of years of careful international negotiation and cooperation,” said Wildlife Conservation Society President and CEO, Moni...

Dubai, Dec. 13, 2023 – The following statement was released by WCS President and CEO Monica Medina upon the conclusion of the UN Climate Conference: “The countries of the world leave COP28 in Dubai with a consensus to transition away from fossil fuels, and in a world full of conflict, that is progress. This consensus may mark the beginning of the end of the road for fossil fuels. But we are gravely concerned that it does not take us far enough or fast...

WASHINGTON, D.C., Dec 12, 2023— As the United States faces escalating impacts from the joint biodiversity and climate crises, leading conservation groups including Defenders of Wildlife, the Endangered Species Coalition, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Oregon Wild, Sierra Club, Wildlife Conservation Society, and World Wildlife Fund today applauded Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) for introducing a resolution in the Senate calling on the Biden administration to establish a National Bio...

New York, NY, December, 12, 2023—The IUCN Red List status assessment of Saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica) has been changed from Critically Endangered to Near Threatened, thanks to effective national and international conservation efforts. This substantial positive change in global Red List status – a rarity in conservation – reflects the remarkable recovery of saiga populations in Kazakhstan, which have recovered from a perilously low estimate of just 39,000 in 2005 to ...

Washington, DC, December 11, 2023—The following statement was released today by WCS Executive Vice President for Public Affairs John Calvelli in support of a newly introduced bill to address environmental crime in the Brazilian Amazon: “WCS commends U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) on the bipartisan introduction of the Strengthening the Rule of Law in the Brazilian Amazon Act. U.S-Brazil cooperation to address nature crimes such as i...