November 13, 2020 By Justin Meneguzzi National Geographic
Shark liver oil can make vaccines more effective, but increased demand could harm critically endangered species. Pfizer and Moderna’s promising vaccine candidates do not contain the substance.
October 22, 2020 By Jesse Scott National Geographic
Tourism is down, but nesting success may be up. Here’s what scientists are saying and how travelers can help.
October 12, 2020 By Alaine Johnson Mongabay
On Oct. 10, 2019, the Bali governor designated Benoa Bay a conservation area for religious and cultural activities and artisanal fisheries, protected from reclamation of any kind. For a brief moment after five years of relentless protests, it appeared that Benoa Bay would remain untouched. Barely 11 months later, the Balinese legislature gathered discreetly during the COVID-19 pandemic and approved a zoning plan for the area that would permit sand mining and an expansion of the harbor and airport.
September 17, 2020 By Nancy Averett Hakai Magazine
Some marine mammals carry gene mutations that could make them more susceptible than humans to SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus at the heart of the ongoing pandemic. If these marine mammals get infected, the results could be devastating—more than half of the species predicted to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 are already at risk of extinction.
August 31, 2020 By Kate Wheeling Hakai Magazine
In an ordinary year, Californians gather along the state’s beaches, parks, and waterways on the third Saturday of September to pick up trash before it can make its way into the Pacific. Every cigarette butt, bottle cap, and plastic bag in sight is collected and recorded, each a new point in a massive data set built over 35 years of coastal cleanups. Now, both the ecosystem and the data describing it are at risk.