Large Landscape News

The Center Launches Ape Protection Project in Asia and Africa

High above the ground, amidst the dense forest canopy cover of South and East Asia, you may be lucky enough to spot one of the most intriguing ape species on the planet. Gibbons live among the treetops and move by brachiating, or swinging with their arms. They can reach speeds upwards of 35 miles per hour (Usain Bolt’s maximum speed was 27 mph) and have been known to jump across gaps as large as 30 feet. Unfortunately, these fascinating and elusive apes are one of the most threatened families of primates, with 19 of the 20 species listed as endangered or critically endangered.

Credit Living Habitats And National Wildlife Federation

Slew of States Pass Legislation This Year to Build Wildlife Crossings

In 2022, states across the country have passed legislation to take advantage of historic, new federal funding for wildlife crossing structures. Over just the past six months, seven states have enacted laws that set aside the required state match to federal grants for infrastructure projects that reconnect habitat. Many of these state policies also facilitate coordination between transportation and natural resource agencies—as well as collaboration with diverse stakeholders—to identify projects that will most effectively reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and improve habitat connectivity.

Inclusive Dialogues Advance Conservation Across the US-Canada Border

The Canada-US border is the longest international land border in the world. However, this political frontier bisects enormous landscapes and cuts through many Indigenous communities whose territories were historically connected. This political divide has important implications for conservation and cultural resilience—not just in the narrow ribbon of the border region, but for landscape connectivity throughout North America.

Career Opportunity: Connectivity Science Coordinator

Would you like to be part of the solution to biodiversity loss and habitat fragmentation? Do you wish to join a team in a supportive, flexible, and dynamic work environment? The Center for Large Landscape Conservation brings science, policy, and proven solutions directly to communities working to protect and restore the health and climate integrity of the planet through large-scale conservation measures. We’re a leader in the fast-growing global movement to reverse landscape fragmentation, restore nature’s resilience to climate change, and support community-led action.

On the Trail of Oncilla in Costa Rica

People who are cat people know that cats have their own agenda. People who are dog people recognize that dogs want to share their agendas with you. We get to mix these agendas when working a detection dog to find scat from an elusive cat in Costa Rica. In the high forests of this beautiful country, hide a suite of cat species—from jaguar and cougar, to ocelot, margay and jaguarundi. And while always there, but rarely seen, is a small, spotted, nocturnal cat called oncilla. So little is known of this cat, that their scat—or poop—holds precious genetic information that can help us learn more about this declining species, and well… dogs are good at finding hard-to-find things and telling us about it.

Center Staff Members Visit Borneo for the 2nd Asia Parks Congress

In May 2022, more than 1,200 participants—including four staff members from the Center for Large Landscape Conservation—from 49 countries gathered in the city of Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia for the 2nd Asia Parks Congress (APC). Jointly convened by Sabah Parks and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), this APC paved the way for the conservation community to refocus and reinvigorate common objectives, as one of the first, large, in-person (and virtual) gatherings to be held in Asia since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Center Announces Sponsorship of United States Biosphere Network

Biosphere regions are special places recognized internationally for their unique beauty, cultures, and economic value to society. They also contain landscapes and seascapes important to the well-being of humans and wildlife alike. Recently, these regions gained a new champion in their stewardship: the Center for Large Landscape Conservation announced today that they will support the United States Biosphere Network (USBN), a voluntary network representing the 28 biosphere regions located in the U.S., as a fiscally sponsored project.

David Theobald Receives Distinguished Landscape Practitioner Award

Dr. David Theobald, a science advisor to the Center for Large Landscape Conservation, was recently awarded the 2022 Distinguished Landscape Practitioner Award by the North American Chapter of the International Association for Landscape Ecology. This honor is bestowed to individuals who have made outstanding contributions over a period of years to the application of the principles of landscape ecology to real-world problems.

Field Notes from Ecuador II: Balancing Rare Species Protections With Rural Livelihoods

A steady rain drenched us head to toe, and as it neared midnight I started to wonder when we would finally head back to camp. The herpetologists, though, were unconcerned with the elements. They scrambled up and down steep muddy slopes in search of reptile and amphibian specimens. In all likelihood, the fruits of their labor would be the discovery of species completely new to science! When the group finally called it quits for the night, the transect had yielded a half dozen frogs, a plump lizard, and a beautiful, non-venomous false coral snake to be documented and photographed.

Briefing: Building a Durable National Framework for Large Landscape Conservation

Join the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) to learn about Building a Durable National Framework for Large Landscape Conservation at 10:30 am ET on Tuesday, March 29. This briefing focuses on policy and funding opportunities for conservation efforts that span county, state, tribal, and national borders. Decision-makers, practitioners, and anyone interested in supporting landscape-scale conservation are encouraged to attend.