Breaking Waves: Ocean News

The factoid about biodiversity and Indigenous peoples spread around the world, but scientists say bad data can undermine the very causes it claims to support The statistic seemed to crop up everywhere. Versions were cited at UN negotiations, on protest banners, in 186 peer-reviewed scientific papers – even by the film-maker James Cameron, while promoting his Avatar films. Exact wording varied, but the claim was this: that 80% of the world’s remaining biodiversity is protected by Indigenous peoples. When scientists investigated its origins, however, they found nothing. In September, the scientific journal Nature reported that the much-cited claim was “a baseless statistic”, not supported by any real data, and could jeopardise the very Indigenous-led conservation efforts it was cited in support of. Indigenous communities play “essential roles” in conserving biodiversity, the comment says, but the 80% claim is simply “wrong” and risks undermining their credibility. Continue reading...

The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world Continue reading...

Activities such as mining, dredging and bottom trawling in most MPAs mean conservation targets will be missed, say researchers Most of Europe’s marine protected areas, set up to safeguard species and habitats, will not meet conservation targets as they provide only “marginal” protection against industrial activities such as dredging, mining and bottom trawling, a study has revealed. Low levels of protection in 86% of marine protected areas (MPAs) have left the EU far from reaching its 2030 biodiversity targets, which are designed to reduce the risk of species’ extinction, researchers said in a paper published in the One Earth journal. The EU aims to protect 30% of its seas by 2030, with 10% “strictly” protected from damaging activities. Continue reading...

Storm did not cause large-scale damage or loss of life, but ferocity of winds and rain raises fears for the future As Hurricane Francine churned offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, Danielle Morris, a resident of the village of Dulac out in the swampy Louisiana coast, made a tough call. “We’re crazy and we’re staying,” she said, speaking by phone before the hurricane hit, as she stocked up on gasoline for the family’s generator. Some might agree with her judgment of her own sanity – Morris lost her previous home in Hurricane Ida in 2021. Continue reading...