Wildlife Conservation Stories

  • Why tiger landscapes need sustainable financing now

    April 09, 2024

    After decades of conservation efforts, global wild tiger numbers have been increasing, but the progress is fragile, and we can’t afford to lose momentum. What’s the next urgent step for them? We must pounce on sustainable financing so that we can continue our conservation progress.

    Tiger caught on camera trap in Nepal
  • How to ensure your visit to a big cat sanctuary does no harm

    WWF Magazine: Summer 2024
    Some facilities are focused on turning a profit (think: photos with tiger cubs) instead of offering sanctuary or any conservation value.
    Illustration of 2 hands holding a tiger
  • New regulations help protect whales from entanglement in fishing gear in the Indian Ocean

    March 26, 2024

    WWF and other partners are working to prevent the setting of nets around whales and other cetaceans and improve the reporting of when these mammals become entangled.

    A pygmy blue whale swims in a bright blue ocean
  • In Namibia's San community, nature is woven into every part of life

    March 12, 2024

    In Nyae Nyae, nature is more than a provider; it is an integral part of the community. The San people tend to it with reverence, knowing that nature cares for them, just as they care for nature.

    |uce Kxao stands outside in Nam Pan Village, Nyae Nyae Conservancy, Namibia
  • Wildlife Climate Heroes

    What do you think of when you think of climate solutions? It's time to add wildlife and habitat conservation to that list.

    A baby humpback whale glides along its mother's back underwater
  • The pangolin protectors

    February 22, 2024

    In the vast wilderness of Namibia’s Nyae Nyae Conservancy and Community Forest, many remarkable individuals are guardians of a mysterious and elusive creature—the pangolin. Meet the team.

    Three pangolin rangers look at maps on a GPS app while tracking a new pangolin
  • Secrets in the snow

    February 21, 2024

    In a landmark study published in Frontiers in Conservation Science, WWF, and collaborators have unveiled an innovative method for extracting DNA from the snow tracks of three elusive carnivores, including polar bears. The new technique involves retrieving trace amounts of environmental DNA—known as eDNA—shed from the footpads of these animals in the snow, enabling the identification of individual animals.

    A scientist kneeling in the snow, using shovel to collect sample
  • India completes its first-ever snow leopard population survey

    February 05, 2024

    Skilled scientists in India completed the first-ever rigorous examination of the country’s snow leopard population, estimating that 718 of these iconic big cats live within the country’s borders.

    A snow leopard captured by camera trap walks in front of a rock outcropping
  • WWF uses new wireless technology to track elephants

    January 04, 2024

    Through a pilot project that uses a special kind of long-range wireless technology in elephant collars, we’re testing how this new tech works with monitoring species over large and remote areas.

    A person carrying a monitor walks behind two elephants.
  • Celebrating 50 years of the Endangered Species Act

    December 20, 2023

    Fifty years later, we’re reflecting on the success of our bedrock conservation law—and continuing to work together to ensure that it protects the world's most vulnerable species for another 50 years (and more!).

    A black-footed ferret pops its head out of a hole at night with a large starry sky in the background
  • Conservation highlights of 2023

    December 14, 2023

    From launching a new platform that harnesses the power of nature in the fight against the climate crisis to raising critical funding to protect black rhinos in Namibia, together we've taken major strides in 2023.

    Fishing boat on water with grassy hills behind
  • Camera traps showcase Malaysia’s incredible biodiversity

    November 09, 2023

    Months after their initial setup, the camera traps revealed the rich diversity of wildlife in one of the world’s oldest forests and what’s at stake if poaching, deforestation, and human-wildlife conflict are not addressed.

    tiger looks into camera trap in Royal Belum State Park, Malaysia
  • Oysters: an unsung hero in a changing climate

    October 30, 2023

    Oysters, in all their stunning variety and storied reputation for pearls and elegant cuisine, play an exemplary–if often unacknowledged–role in mitigating the effects of our warming planet.

    overhead view of cluster of oysters ready to be shipped
  • How WWF is protecting lemurs in Madagascar

    October 27, 2023

    In southwestern Madagascar, WWF is working with communities to protect lemurs in the community-managed Amoron’i Onilahy Protected Area by keeping habitat intact for lemurs and the people who rely on the forest for survival.

    A ringtail lemur holds onto a tree trunk in a forest
  • Countries aim to halt global decline in river dolphins and enhance the health of their great rivers

    October 24, 2023

    Under the Global Declaration for River Dolphins, countries will implement specific actions that will tackle threats to the river dolphins, improve and preserve their habitat, and effectively manage a network of protected areas, among other conservation interventions.

    An Amazon river dolphin leaps out of the water on a sunny day
  • Bhutan’s snow leopard population increases by almost 40% in only six years

    October 23, 2023

    Bhutan’s snow leopard population increased by 39.5% since 2016, according to a new survey implemented by the Royal Government of Bhutan’s Department of Forests and Park Services with support from WWF-Bhutan and partners. Findings from over 10,000 camera trap images confirmed the presence of 134 snow leopards in the country, an impressive jump from the baseline of 96 snow leopards in 2016.

    A snow leopard walks across a high ridge with mountains and a bright blue sky in the background
  • Native Nations lead the way to returning bison to their traditional homelands

    October 02, 2023

    Native Nations seeking to restore bison to their lands remain the cornerstone of the species’ recovery. Since 2014, WWF has partnered with Native Nations throughout the Northern Great Plains in support of their efforts to conserve and restore grassland ecosystems within their communities and stands behind local visions and strategies that aim to bolster ecological, economic, and community benefits.

    TJ Heinert stands for a portrait in front of a barn at the Wolakota Buffalo Range on the Rosebud Sioux Reservation in South Dakota
  • Meet Herni Kurnia, a field medic making the Sumatran rain forest her hospital

    September 28, 2023

    For Herni Kurnia, a medic and midwife working in the heart of the Sumatran rain forest, nature is her hospital—and that's just how she likes it.

    Herni reaches across a table to take someone's blood pressure
  • Behati Prinsloo Levine on the magic of Namibia’s black rhinos—and what we can do to save them

    September 12, 2023

    When I was a kid, marking days off the calendar until school holidays arrived, I knew that each day took me closer to Etosha National Park in Namibia. Unfortunately, the rhinos that live there are targets for armed poachers and international wildlife crime syndicates that kill them for their horns. We must protect them. 

    Behati sits on the ground smiling at the camera with rhinos in the far background
  • New tiger population estimate of 5,574 wild tigers announced by Global Tiger Forum

    September 11, 2023

    The new population estimate from the Global Tiger Forum is about 5,574 wild tigers. Since the 2010 tiger population estimate notable advancements in how we invest and monitor tigers can be seen in this new number which demonstrates about a 74% increase.

    Tiger and cub in grasslands of Ranthambhore, Rajhasthan, India
  • Should you keep an exotic animal as a pet? A new guide can help you tell.

    August 15, 2023

    It is hard for most people to know about wise exotic pet choices, and there is no one-stop guide to help—that is, until now. Have you ever seen an axolotl pop up on your social media feed? This charismatic amphibian has a face that you can’t help but smile at, but should those bred in captivity be kept as pets? Let’s take a look.

    Sugar glider climbing on wood
  • Get to know Asian elephants—and the threats they face

    Asian elephants are both culturally important and vital to ecosystems. Learn more about these magnificent creatures and what WWF is doing to protect them.

    About elephants
  • In Indonesia, a researcher sets off to count Borneo’s elusive wild elephants

    Four teams of 10 to 12 trained researchers, rangers, community members, and porters traversed different parts of the Tulin Onsoi area of North Kalimantan to find signs of elephants.

    Four people take a measurement of a tree in the forest
  • How a former farmer turned human-elephant conflict into an economic opportunity

    Amidst the rage she felt from her damaged crops, farmer Nichakan Pongsarikit saw an opportunity that elephants offered and embarked on a journey to become a local guide.

    Farmers load pineapples into a truck in the foreground with pineapple fields in the background