Mongabay Newscast

All zoos should put themselves out of business, Damian Aspinall argues

Buzzfeed's Katie Baker details their explosive investigation of WWF

Deep sea diva: A dive to the ocean floor with biologist Diva Amon

Hitting the highway in Borneo to assess diversity and development

Are humpback whale groups sharing their songs?

"I'm excited!" Climate action star Rev Yearwood on the UN, youth and women's leadership & more

Return of the amazing superb lyrebird

Baltimore, urban rats, and environmental justice

David Quammen is an award-winning science writer, author, and journalist covering some of the most promising trends in conservation and evolutionary science. We invited him on the show to discuss his recent feature for National Geographic, where he is a regular contributor, about Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique where inspiring restoration efforts were underway and benefitting nature, wildlife, and humans. If you like what you hear, please subscribe & tell a friend.

Jessica Crance is a research biologist with NOAA who recently discovered right whales singing for the first time. While some whales like humpbacks and bowheads are known for their melodious songs, none of the three species of right whale has ever been known to sing. On this episode she will play recordings of two different right whale song types and discuss what we know about why the critically endangered whales might be singing. If you like what you hear, please subscribe & tell a friend.

We speak with Ivonne Higuero, new Secretary General of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The first woman to ever serve in the role, we discuss how her background as an environmental economist informs her, how CITES can tackle challenges like the online wildlife trade, and what she expects to accomplish at the 18th congress of the parties (COP) of CITES this August. If you like what you hear, please subscribe & tell a friend.

Jim Breheny is the director of the Bronx Zoo in New York City and joins us to discuss the contributions zoos make to global biodiversity conservation. While many question the relevance of zoos in the 21st century, he argues that as humanity's influence extends ever farther, and wildlife habitat continues to shrink, zoos are more relevant than ever since they support field work to protect species in the wild and can save a diversity of species. If you like what you hear, please subscribe & tell a friend.

Gabriel Melo-Santos studies Araguaian river dolphins in Brazil, and his work has revealed that the species is much chattier than we’d previously known, and could potentially help us better understand the evolution of underwater communication in marine mammals. He plays some of the fascinating recordings he’s made of their 'speech' plus we round up the top environmental news, so if you like what you hear, please leave a review, subscribe, and tell a friend.

Ecologist Julian Bayliss used satellite imagery, drones, and technical climbing to make a big discovery, an untouched rainforest atop a mountain in Mozambique that contains species new to science. On this episode Bayliss discusses the novel species of fish, crabs, and butterflies and shares the technical challenges and frustrations inherent to making a discovery of this kind. Plus we round up the top environmental news, so if you like what you hear, please leave a review, subscribe, and tell a friend.

Kinari Webb founded Health in Harmony, which provides healthcare to people to save Indonesian rainforests: she realized that most illegal deforestation happens when villagers have to pay for medical care, because all they have to generate cash with is timber. The program has reduced infant deaths by 2/3 and illegal logging by 90%. Plus we round up the top environmental news, so if you like what you hear, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and tell a friend.