Forest Habitat Stories

The latest survey of monarch butterfly habitat in Mexico is a testament to the power of conservation. This year’s survey, conducted by WWF-Mexico and partners, found monarchs in 14.94 acres of forest, up from 6.12 acres at the same time last winter.

Forests have shaped and inspired every chapter of my life.

WWF is engaged in natural rubber projects in several targeted sites around the world, helping to protect forests by demonstrating how to translate broad policies into sustainable products.

During 2015 and 2016, survey teams combed the Virunga Massif’s dense, mountainous forests in two sweeps in search of gorillas. What they found was good: 604 gorillas—up from just 480 in 2010.

Almost 70% of the deforestation in Colombia happens in its Amazonian forests.

They may not be household names, but these ecosystems are vital to the health of our planet. They support an incredible range of plants and animals, as well as millions of people and their communities, and play a critical role in fighting climate change.

At the Frankfurt Zoological Society’s Orangutan Rehabilitation Center, orangutans are rehabilitated and released back into the wild. Rescued orangutans learn how to feed and fend for themselves in the lowland rainforests of central Sumatra—skills they never had the chance to pick up from their mothers.

The men in question can’t be named or pictured, because they’re undercover investigators for a deforestation watchdog group called Eyes on the Forest (EoF). And they’re routinely putting their safety on the line to protect Thirty Hills, one of the last great swaths of rainforest on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

In Thailand, women like Kwan remain a rarity. But neither this nor the voices alleging that women aren’t suited for the ranger lifestyle – which comprises long working hours in spartan and sometimes dangerous conditions, away from loved ones – have prevented her from living her truth.

Colombia’s Serranía de Chiribiquete was officially expanded to 10.6 million acres, making it the world’s largest protected tropical rain forest national park. It was also declared as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

WWF is on a mission to save the world’s forest land. Saving forests means using every tool at our disposal and working with partners around the globe. And that’s where drones come in to play.

A new collaboration between WWF and International Paper (IP)—a participant in WWF’s Global Forest & Trade Network program and one of the world’s largest packaging, pulp and paper companies—research and assessments will help determine how much forest land—and what quality—is needed to ensure forests can continue to provide people, plants and animals worldwide with the clean air and water, food and other “services” they need to thrive.

Hey Mer is not just producing good quality rubber, she is doing so in accordance with farming practices that don’t degrade the forests or mistreat workers. Such steps are necessary to protect the environment and human rights, but also to ensure good rubber prices for farmers and a long-lasting rubber industry.

When his three daughters were hungry, Omary Mbunda would turn to illegal timber for money. That changed when the CARE-WWF Alliance—a partnership focused on creating food systems that better nourish vulnerable communities while supporting healthy ecosystems—began promoting sustainable forestry management and conservation agriculture in Mbondo in 2015.

When we think of wild animals losing their habitats, we usually envision elephants, rhinos, and tigers in faraway places. But monarch butterflies are losing their homes right here in the US—and our food is playing a part.

Inganda and Inguka are the first twins born to habituated western gorillas in the Dzanga-Sangha Protected Areas complex in the Central African Republic. Their second birthday is a reminder of the important work of the Primate Habituation Program.

Annoyed by the cost of sunscreen? You might envy the waxy monkey tree frog. This amphibian produces a waxy substance that covers its skin with a protective layer—basically, frog sunblock.

Thanks to a groundbreaking agreement between a WWF-founded company and the residents of a rain forest village, Sumatran orangutan habitat is more secure than it was just a few years ago.

Deep within Africa’s second-largest country, Salonga is a core part of one of Earth’s greatest and last tropical forests, still virtually untouched by modern-day resource extraction and development.

The future of bonobos in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is beginning to look promising. WWF is increasing surveillance of them and creating a management plan that benefits people and wildlife.

WWF is working to empower women by teaching them sustainable farming techniques, building their leadership and entrepreneurial skills, and ensuring their representation in decision-making bodies.

The Sumatran rhino is so rare and elusive that even the most senior of the rangers have never seen the animal in the wild. But just because you don’t see something doesn't mean it’s is not there.

As 2017 comes to a close, we’re taking a moment to highlight some of our biggest conservation successes of the year. And we couldn’t have done it without your support.

Pavel Fomenko is a man of the wilderness and tiger protector with WWF-Russia. Here is his story.