A statement from John F. Calvelli, WCS Executive Vice President for Public Affairs of the Wildlife Conservation Society in support of Preventing Future Pandemics Act of 2020. 

The following statement is from John F. Calvelli, WCS Executive Vice President for Public Affairs of the Wildlife Conservation Society in support of Stop Future Pandemics Act of 2020. 

Bronx, NY – Sept. 24, 2020 – Nothing can keep New York down when it comes to being the holiday capital of the world – and this year is no different. The Bronx Zoo’s Holiday Lights, a family-favorite holiday light experience, will be back starting November 20, bringing New Yorkers much-needed joy for the winter season. Holiday Lights will be on select dates from November 20 to January 10 with a WCS member preview November 17-19. Tickets for Holiday Lights must be purchased...

New findings uncovered by researchers at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the University of Queensland (UQ) demonstrate that logging activity in Solomon Islands is associated with lower coral cover and structural complexity on adjacent reefs, as well as lower abundance of many types of fish commonly caught for food and sold at markets.

One week before the 1^st ever UN Summit on Biodiversity (NYC, 30 September), Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and its Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Queens Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, and New York Aquarium have joined the European Commission Global Coalition for Biodiversity, calling for stronger mobilization in communicating about the nature crisis facing the planet.

A new peer-reviewed paper published today in Frontiers, "COVID-19 and the Curse of Piecemeal Perspectives,” emphasizes the steps needed now to prevent future zoonotic pandemics and gives a critique of the many one-off solutions proposed over the past several months since the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2. 

New York (Embargoed until September 18 at 11:00 am ET) – A team of researchers from University of Queensland, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and other groups  have found that an area of biologically important “intact” land the size of Mexico has been swallowed up by human development since the year 2000. Publishing their results in the journal One Earth, the team used the “Human Footprint,” to measure humanity’s impact on land using metrics such...

Flushing, N.Y. – September 14, 2020 – There is new activity afoot in the Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis) habitat at the Queens Zoo as three cubs have made their public debut. The cubs, one male and two females, were born in May while the zoo was temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time, they bonded with their mother and are now mature enough to begin exploring their exhibit. “Lynx cubs are really fun to watch at this age. Their characteristically lar...

Bronx, NY – Sept. 11, 2020 – Summer may be coming to a close, but the Bronx Zoo’s BOO at the ZOO is back. The Halloween-themed event is a family favorite for New Yorkers and a tradition that marks the beginning of fall with seasonal activities for all ages. Boo at the Zoo begins Thursday, October 1 and will welcome Halloween revelers each Thursday through Sunday until November 1 (including Monday, October 12). Activities will include traditional favorites such as daily magic an...

A new study appearing in the journal Nature Communications finds that that less than ten percent of the world’s protected areas are connected, and that increased isolation, due to human threats such as land clearing for agriculture, mining, and urbanization, is limiting the ability of the global protected area estate to prevent further biodiversity loss.