Freshwater Stories

This year’s Living Planet Report shows that populations of animals—including mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians—plummeted by 60% between 1970 and 2014. But those living in freshwater are experiencing a far more drastic decline: 83% since 1970.

Nestled in the heart of South America, the Pantanal is the world’s largest tropical wetland. Discover just a few of the native species that live in this incredible place.

Brazil, Bolivia, and Paraguay signed an unprecedented declaration that calls for sustainable development of the Pantanal, a 42-million-acre wetland that touches each country. The decision follows years of collaboration among the governments that are securing a prosperous future for one of the most biologically rich ecosystems on the planet.

The Mura river—a relatively connected stretch of water that serves as one of the last refuges for wildlife and rare fish like otters and the Danube salmon—is at significant risk of dam development.

At more than 42 million acres, the Pantanal is the largest tropical wetland— and one of the most pristine—in the world.

WWF offices in Bolivia, Brazil, and Colombia coordinated a tri-national effort to tag and study river dolphins, applying satellite GPS technology to the task for the first time.

A new WWF survey says there are now an estimated 1,816 Indus river dolphins in Pakistan—50% more than the 1,200 dolphins estimated after an initial census in 2001 when the species appeared to be on the brink of extinction.

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.

Bhutan now has a great means for bringing that commitment to life—long-term funding to ensure its protected areas, which cover half of the country, are properly managed forever. It is the first initiative of its kind in Asia and one of only a few in the world.

The Luangwa is one of the most intact major river systems in Africa, and the foundation for all life in the valley. WWF is working to keep the Luangwa healthy and free-flowing for people and nature.

Without direct intervention, the Yangtze finless porpoise may face extinction. But that reckoning is up against an even more powerful force: unyielding economic development.

Wetlands are often undervalued. It is estimated that more than a billion people around the world make their living directly from wetlands, including from fishing, rice farming, or handicrafts. Learn more about these important habitats WWF is working to conserve. 

US Fish and Wildlife Service recently announced manatees had been downlisted from Endangered to Threatened on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife.

WWF is working with partners to not only restore the United Kingdom’s rivers and wildlife to a healthy state, but to protect them—and the otters and others who depend on them—from challenges to come.

Explore a global WWF project that's combining big partnerships with bigger data to map and protect the world's last free-flowing rivers.

Whether we’re washing clothes or watering the lawn, all the water we use in our homes is drawn from a nearby lake, river, reservoir, or aquifer. Together, we can help protect this vital resource.

California is a global winemaking powerhouse. But extreme weather—from droughts to floods, all driven by climate change—could threaten that productivity.

Shambhu Paudel noticed that the research on freshwater species in his home country of Nepal was extremely limited. So, with help WWF's Russel E. Train Education for Nature Program, he's changing that.

If you’ve ever gotten together with friends to play Risk or Settlers of Catan, you know the appeal of a strategy board game.

All life depends on water. Learn how WWF is helping to secure global freshwater resources for people and a living planet.

As monsoon rains roll in, wildlife in India’s Kaziranga National Park begins to lumber toward higher ground beyond the protected area’s southern border. WWF works to preserve these vital corridors.

Many people may not know that access to fresh water around the globe can have big impacts here in the US. This week, WWF released a new book entitled Water, Security and U.S. Foreign Policy, exploring how access to water affects US national security and prosperity and how the US can respond effectively. We sat down with two WWF experts to provide some background on this link between fresh water and national security.

On a river in Brazil, a quadcopter drone whirred over the water, transmitting a stream of images to a computer. Researchers and the small aircraft had the same job: spotting river dolphins.