Center for Biological Diversity
WEBThe Center for Biological Diversity works through science, law and creative media to secure a future for all species, great or small, hovering on the brink of extinction.
12 Ways to Live More Sustainably - Biological Diversity
WEB7. Be water wise. Water conservation is critical as our growing population puts increased demand on the nation’s water sources and we face unprecedented droughts. You can conserve water by taking shorter showers, fixing leaky toilets, and choosing low-flow and low-water appliance options.
Ocean Plastics Pollution - Biological Diversity
WEBBillions of pounds of plastic can be found in swirling convergences that make up about 40 percent of the world's ocean surfaces. At current rates plastic is expected to outweigh all the fish in the sea by 2050. Plastics pollution has a direct and deadly effect on wildlife. Thousands of seabirds and sea turtles, seals and other marine mammals ...
Map: U.S. Threatened and Endangered Species by County
WEBFor every county in the United States, the map below shows information on all the animals and plants protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act as threatened or endangered. How to Use It: To see the number of federally protected species in a given county, zoom in on the map until the county boundaries appear and click on a point within the ...
America's Gray Wolves: A Long Road to Recovery - Biological …
WEBMexican gray wolves in the U.S. Southwest have also begun to recover. Between 1977 and 1980, the last few surviving Mexican wolves were captured and bred, and some of their progeny were reintroduced into Arizona and New Mexico. Now, although this gray wolf subspecies continues to struggle in the United States and Mexico, at least it has a hope ...
Remembering 21 Species Lost in 2023 - Biological Diversity
WEBOn October 16, 2023, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service finalized a rule removing 21 species from the list of species protected under the Endangered Species Act because of extinction. The extinct species include eight of Hawaiʻi’s precious honeycreeper birds, the bridled white-eye and little Mariana fruit bat of Guam, a Texas fish, nine ...
The Elements of Biodiversity - Biological Diversity
WEBThe measurement of biodiversity is complex and has a qualitative as well as a quantitative aspect. If a species is genetically unique — if, for instance, it's far out on a remote arm of the evolutionary tree, like the distinctive, peculiar platypus — its biodiversity value is greater than that of a species clustered with many similar species because it preserves a unique …
Frequently Asked Questions About Amphibians and Reptiles
WEBAmphibians are frogs, toads, newts and salamanders. Most amphibians have complex life cycles with time on land and in the water. Their skin must stay moist to absorb oxygen and therefore lacks scales. Reptiles are turtles, snakes, lizards, alligators and crocodiles. Unlike amphibians, reptiles breathe only through their lungs and have dry ...
Invertebrates - Biological Diversity
WEBInvertebrates range from spiders and scorpions to centipedes and millipedes, crustaceans, insects, horseshoe crabs, worms, leeches, earthworms, marine bristle worms, mussels and clams, snails, squid and octopi, sea anemones and corals, among others. The vast diversity encompassed by the term invertebrates says less about the species than it ...
10 Facts About Single-use Plastic Bags - Biological Diversity
WEB10 Facts About Single-Use Plastic Bags. The world uses 5 trillion plastic bags a year. 3. Americans use an average of 365 plastic bags per person per year. People in Denmark use an average of four plastic bags per year. 4. It only takes about 14 plastic bags for the equivalent of the gas required to drive one mile. 5.