Conservation

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Massive Animal Tracking Database Collects Its One-Billionth Creature Location

Objects Conservator Dawn Wallace examines the recovered pair of Ruby Slippers. Chief Conservator Richard Barden and Curator Ryan Lintelman also spent hours looking at the shoes in detail.

How the Smithsonian Helped Sleuth Out the True Identity of a Pair of Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers

When the FBI asked museum conservators at the American History Museum for assistance, they discovered the two pairs are twins

The recovered slippers.

After 13-Year Chase, F.B.I. Nabs Pair of Dorothy's Ruby Slippers

The shoes were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in 2005 and were recently recovered in Minneapolis

87 Elephants Found Dead Near Botswana Sanctuary

A report attributed the killings to a “poaching frenzy”

RangerBot is an autonomous underwater vehicle designed to identify and kill crown-of-thorns starfish by lethal injection.

Sea-Star Murdering Robots Are Deployed in the Great Barrier Reef

The RangerBot is a new line of defense against coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish

Palmyra's Temple of Baalshamin, which was targeted by ISIS.

Ancient City of Palmyra, Gravely Damaged by ISIS, May Reopen Next Year

Between 2015 and 2017, militants wreaked havoc on the site’s ancient treasures

Sniffer Dogs Represent the Latest Weapon in the Fight Against the Illegal Ivory Trade

A new system at Kenya's port of Mombasa allows dogs to detect elephant tusk, rhino horn and other illegal goods with one quick sniff

How Hungry Baby Urchins Are Saving Hawaii's Reefs

They helped eat through invasive algae that was suffocating corals in Kāne'ohe Bay

An Andean flamingo looks after a Chilean flamingo chick in a scheme to prompt the birds to breed.

U.K. Heat Wave Triggers Rare Flamingos to Lay Eggs for the First Time in 15 Years

None of the eggs were fertile, but conservation officials have hatched a plan to encourage the flamingos to breed again

Coral and its symbiotic algae

Algae and Coral Have Been BFFs Since the Dinosaur Age

A new study shows that the relationship between coral polyps and zooxanthellae that produces colorful coral reefs began 160 million years ago

Wild-caught elephants live shorter lives and reproduce poorly in captivity

Captured Elephants Die Up to Seven Years Sooner Than Those Bred in Captivity

Myanmar's wild-captured elephants exhibited median lifespan three to seven years shorter than that of captive-born creatures

Four Przewalski's horse foals—one filly and three colts—have been born at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute since mid-March.

Four Foals Join the Herd of Przewalski’s Horses at the Smithsonian

This endangered species, native to Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan, is slowly being revitalized with the help of conservation scientists around the world.

Birds Can Learn "Foreign" Languages to Stay Safe

The superb fairywren was able to learn a new alarm call just by listening to the warnings of other species

Deciding what, exactly, constitutes a wilderness in the ocean is not completely figured out, though some researchers are trying to find an answer.

Why the Ocean Needs Wilderness

A new study finds that only 13 percent of the ocean can be classified as "wilderness." But what does this even mean?

When Bsal first arrived in the Netherlands, the pathogen wiped out 96 percent of the resident population of fire salamanders in a few years.

How American Scientists Are Planning to Thwart a Salamander Apocalypse

Yet another fungus threatens to decimate amphibians in North America, but this time, scientists stand ready

The Santa Monica State Beach is an allegory of North American consumerism. Every morning, cleaners collect chip bags, takeout containers, plastic straws, and more, hiding tonnes of trash from beachgoers who may never know the magnitude of the problem.

Are We Grooming Beaches to Death?

Urban beaches worldwide have less garbage than remote beaches, but less life too. The City of Santa Monica hopes to change the image of a clean beach.

Can Scientists Save an Endangered Marsupial by Breeding Out Its Taste for Poisonous Toads?

Some northern quolls do not eat deadly cane toads. New research suggests their aversion is an inherited trait

Even at three-and-a-half months, the inquisitive Moke has already begun to explore his surroundings and approach the other members of his troop.

At Nearly Four Months Old, the Zoo’s Youngest Gorilla Has Begun to Show His Rambunctious Roots

Moke, the National Zoo’s first infant gorilla in nine years, enlivens the primate house with chatter and play.

Elephants relax at the Jejane watering hole, with no bees in sight.

How the Scent of Angry Bees Could Protect Elephants

A new study shows elephants fear bee pheromones, and this fact could keep the pachyderms out of crops

A fisher from a small-scale fishery in Honduras hooks a yellowtail snapper—a species of fish that may vary its shape depending on where it's sourced.

To Pinpoint the Origin of a Fish, Check Out Its Physique

A new cost-effective tool may help small-scale fisheries simply and accurately determine the origins of a day's catch.

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