International Union for Conservation of Nature News

International Union for Conservation of Nature News From AOL News

UN Declares 2011 the 'International Year of Forests'

UNITED NATIONS -- Some 380 million years after the first trees grew on Earth, the United Nations today declared 2011 to be the "International Year of Forests," saying that forests and the 1.6 billion people who depend on them for their livelihood need to be protected. "Each minute that we spend on this planet breathing in...

Rare 'Asian Unicorn' Dies in Captivity

Bokikhamxay Provincial Conservation Unit / AFP / Getty Images

(Sept. 17) -- You say you don't believe in unicorns? Well, one of the mythical animal's real-life relatives, known as the saola, has died after its short stay in a village in Laos. The mammal -- often referred to as the "Asian unicorn" even though the antelope-like creature has two horns -- is so rare that only 250 are...

Study: Mass Extinctions Could Shake Up Marine Life

(Sept. 3) --The rate at which animals and plants are going extinct could drastically alter life in the Earth's seas, according to a new study. Mass extinctions throughout history have altered the structure of life in the seas, with dominant creatures being toppled and others rushing in to take their place, creating a...

Whale Sharks Threatened by Gulf Oil Spill; 5 Other Animal Species at Risk

Add one more animal to BP's ever-growing list of victims: the whale shark, which researchers observed this week in dangerous proximity to the gulf oil spill. Of course, it is far from the only member of the animal kingdom to be threatened by one of humankind's worst environmental disasters in years. In June, the U.S....

Background on International Union for Conservation of Nature

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN, Union internationale pour la conservation de la nature (UICN), in French) is an international organization dedicated to finding "pragmatic solutions to our most pressing environment and development challenges." The organization publishes the IUCN Red List, compiling information from a network of conservation organizations to rate which species are most endangered.

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