Simple change to fishing gear saves thousands of birds in Namibia

Lobster is a crucial economic resource in New England, but entanglements with the fishing line from lobster traps are a major cause of death for endangered North Atlantic right whales. Scientists and lobstermen are testing ropeless, on-demand gear that minimizes the risk for whales and allows fishing to continue in areas that would otherwise be closed for months as the whales pass through.

Giving fishermen a business incentive to fish sustainably can “unleash their creative capacity” to help solve the problem, says one expert.

Purnima Devi Barman has been building trust and working with various community members to save a stork species called the greater adjutant in India. Because of her work, she has inspired more than 10,000 women and their families to help in bird conservation activities and the number of storks in the region has increased to as many as 1,200. This type of community approach could be used in other places as a model for wildlife conservation efforts.

Members of the Marine Corps in Hawaii often pull double duty: military training and endangered species protection. For example, in June, the Marines roped off 13 green sea turtle nests on a local beach. Part of their job is to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of where they perform their training exercises. Sometimes there are military members or residents who might not understand why they have to preserve and manage the land, but education outreach has led to a ramp up in conservation efforts for turtles, birds, and other creatures.

The Philippine Cockatoo Conservation Program on Rasa Island has taken a multi-faceted approach to conservation - by employing former poachers to help protect the very species they once threatened. Through a combination of education in local schools, coordinations with government bodies, NGO training and support, as well as local volunteers and engaging the community, they are striving to restore the iconic cockatoo population, as well as preserving the other plants and animals that call this area home, and the local villages that depend on these resources for survival.

The California Condor Recovery Program used captive breeding, innovative reproductive techniques, genetic management, and binational collaboration to bring the species back from 24 individuals in 1987 to 561 today, with 344 living in the wild across the US and Mexico.

The New Zealand’s Department of Conservation and the Ngāi Tahu, the Māori tribe whose people are the traditional guardians of the critically endangered kākāpō bird, are slowly relocating the birds to predator-free sanctuary to give them a chance to thrive.

For two decades, the Portuguese Society for the Study of Birds has restored native trees on ​​São Miguel Island to increase the food and nesting habitat available for the Azores bullfinch. As a result, the population of the bird increased enough to be downlisted from critically endangered to vulnerable.

The RETI Center, an environmental justice nonprofit, is growing kelp in Booklyns incredibly polluted Gowanus Canal in an effort to remove pollutants from the water and restore the ecosystem. It plans to eventually sell carbon capture credits and sell the kelp to make products like more sustainable cement.

Researchers are establishing mussel farms on suspended ropes off the coast of Scotland to restore marine habitat damaged by pollution and harmful fishing practices. The new habitat is also restoring the biodiversity of the area.