Conservation biology

Mankind's destruction of nature is driving species to the brink of extinction at an "unprecedented" rate, the leading wildlife conservation body warned July 18 as it added more than 7,000 animals, fish and plants to its endangered "Red List."

Almost 600 plant species have disappeared from the wild over the past 250 years. This shows a new study quoted by the BBC. The number of lost plants is based on genuinely extinct species, not assumptions, and is twice as large as all bird species, mammals and fish taken together.

Scientists say the plants are dying up to 500 times faster than what would be expected naturally.

Turkey has a lot to do if it wants to preserve its wide-range of biodiversity, according to an expert.

The number of insect-eating birds, such as beetles and caterpillars, has declined significantly in Europe over the past 25 years, according to a German study.
 
A 13% reduction in the number of insect-eating birds in Europe between 1990 and 2015 was registered.
 
The decline reflects a trend associated with a decline in the insect population.

The regional Board of Conservation of Cultural Assets in Istanbul has ruled that six neighborhoods in the city's central Şişli district are "historical and urban protected areas," restricting construction activities on the valuable and expensive spots.

The European Commission has sent an additional letter of formal notice to Bulgaria in connection with systemic problems in the implementation of EU nature conservation legislation.

CANBERRA, April 27 (Xinhua) -- The Australian Academy of Sciences (AAS) on Friday launched a 10-year study, along with New Zealand's Royal Society Te Aprang, to name and study unknown species, saying a deep knowledge of biodiversity was key.

Time is running out to study Australia's unique species facing extinction, the nation's top scientists warned.

The endangered species in some biodiversity-rich regions of the world are almost the half of all species. The analysis refers to the time before 2080 and indicates places such as Amazonia and Madagascar, reports AFP. 

The world is experiencing a “biological annihilation” of its animal species because of humans’ effect on the Earth, a new study has found.
Researchers mapped 27,600 species of birds, amphibians, mammals and reptiles — nearly half of known terrestrial vertebrate species — and concluded the planet’s sixth mass extinction even was much worse than previously thought.

The hidden danger to wildlife posed by imported consumer goods - an espresso coffee in Beijing, a tofu salad in Chicago - can now be pinpointed and measured, researchers said Jan. 5.

Crunching huge amounts of data, they unveiled a global "threat map" detailing the impact on endangered species of exports to the United States, China, Japan and the European Union.