Arbor Day Foundation’s Post

Beneath those spiky exteriors, sea urchins have something extraordinary— a specialized mouth called “Aristotle’s Lantern!” 🦷 With five sharp, tooth-like plates, it allows these creatures to graze on algae and other food sources along the seafloor. 🤔 But here’s the catch: In areas without natural predators like sea otters, sea urchins can overgraze and devastate kelp forests. 🌿 That’s why balance is so important in our marine ecosystems! By protecting keystone species like sea otters, we can help restore this balance and preserve vital habitats. 🦦💙 📸: Gretchen Kay Stuart | #seaotters #seaotter #seaurchin #urchin #kelp #kelpforest #oregon #oregoncoast #SOAW2024 #seaotterawarenessmonth

🌍 Celebrating the Majestic Guardians of Our Ecosystems 🐘 On this World Elephant Day, we honour these incredible creatures who play a vital role in maintaining the balance of our planet's ecosystems. Elephants are more than just the largest land animals; they are keystone species whose presence ensures the survival of countless other species. 🔍 Did you know? There are three recognized species of elephants: the African savanna elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. African elephants have seen their population decline by over 60% in the past 50 years due to poaching and habitat loss, with approximately 415,000 left in the wild. Asian elephants are classified as "Endangered," with only 40,000 to 50,000 remaining. As we reflect on the beauty and intelligence of these magnificent creatures, let's commit to protecting them and their habitats. The future of our ecosystems depends on it. #WorldElephantDay #Conservation #Biodiversity #WildlifeProtection #Sustainability #EcosystemGuardians

🌊 Protect precious seamounts, home of the amazing orange roughy 🐟 NZ is the last country bottom trawling on seamounts in the South Pacific high seas, and trawlers are smashing up corals and other deep-sea life to get orange roughy off seamounts. 🔗 Share the Video and Sign this Petition https://lnkd.in/g9J4Xf-w Why It Matters: ●       Seamounts are home to ancient creatures like corals and sponges. These can be hundreds or even thousands of years old ●       Orange roughy are highly vulnerable to overfishing – they can live over 200 years and only breed after 30 years. ●       A recent government report revealed that bottom trawling is responsible for 99% of reported coral bycatch, with the orange roughy fishery causing the most destruction.   We URGENTLY need the NZ Government to: 1.      Close all seamounts to bottom trawling. 2.      Reduce the catch limits for orange roughy. 3.      Support global conservation measures to protect corals and other ocean life. Join us in protecting our deep-sea ecosystems with WWF-New Zealand, Greenpeace-nz, Forest & Bird, Our Seas Our Future Together, we can protect our oceans! 🌍💙 #DefendTheDeep #StopTrawlingSeamounts

This jaguarundi has a beautiful, reddish fur color variant. But it doesn't realize that it needs to turn around to face the camera. #SelfieSundaySpecies Jaguarundis can range from bright red, reddish-brown, and dark black to silvery grey. While they're listed as "Least Concern" by the IUCN Red List, this species faces the threats of human-cat conflict, habitat loss and poaching across its vast range in Central and South America. Learn more about jaguarundis: https://bit.ly/3DGdRos

🦁🌍 Today, on World Lion Day, let's spotlight these majestic creatures and their critical role in our planet's ecosystems. Lions, as apex predators, are essential for maintaining the delicate balance of nature. Their presence helps regulate prey populations, which in turn safeguards grassland biodiversity. Sadly, lion numbers have plummeted by nearly 43% in just three generations due to habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict, and the illegal wildlife trade. 🇲🇦🐾Historically, Morocco was home to the Atlas Lion, a subspecies renowned for its size and strength. Unfortunately, this magnificent big cat was driven to extinction centuries ago. While we cannot bring back the Atlas Lion, we can learn from this loss and redouble our efforts to protect the remaining lion populations worldwide. By safeguarding these iconic animals, we are not only preserving a symbol of power and courage; but also ensuring the health of our planet for the next generations. #WorldLionDay #AtlasLion #WildlifeConservation #KeystoneSpecies

Black Ash: A Species at Risk Did you know: Black ash trees play a vital role, particularly in wetland ecosystems, and hold deep cultural significance for Indigenous peoples, who use the wood for basket making and other traditional practices. Currently endangered in Ontario, black ash populations are in sharp decline due to the emerald ash borer (EAB). As the EAB continues to spread, it's more important than ever to protect and preserve these trees. What can you do? You can help by reporting any black ash trees you observe in your area to the Ontario Black Ash Inventory project on iNaturalist. Every report helps scientists and conservationists better understand where these trees are thriving and where they’re most vulnerable. For more information on EAB and other invasive species, visit our website. To join the Ontario Black Ash Inventory Project, click on the following link. https://bit.ly/4dP82VH #BlackAsh #EmeraldAshBorer #SpeciesAtRisk #Conservation #iNaturalist #ProtectOurTrees #InvasiveSpecies

This is what happens when humans destroy the habitat of other species, in this case the forests that these parrots depend on. As the article states, “We need to start to restore our natural environments”. This needs to happen all over the world to save life on planet Earth, and we need to make Restoring the Earth the priority activity for this century to achieve that. https://lnkd.in/e-UENTM6

Where is England’s largest temperate rainforest? 🍃 In a valley famous for its rainfall, Borrowdale is every bit as wet as a tropical rainforest but much cooler - resulting in lush woodlands dripping with mosses, ferns and lichens. Today, we’re delighted to declare the Lake District’s Borrowdale rainforest as our newest National Nature Reserve. England’s rainforests are vitally important for wildlife, climate and water management. Working with National Trust and its farming tenants, we hope to make Borrowdale’s precious habitat bigger, better and more connected. National Nature Reserves were established to protect some of England’s most important habitats, species and geology. Borrowdale marks the latest in the King’s Series of National Nature Reserves – creating five declarations every year for the next five years - 25 in total. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eabcNcxc #Borrowdale #Rainforest #LakeDistrict #NNR #NationalNatureReserve #NNRWeek #WorldBiodiversityDay

Although mangroves account for less than 1 per cent of the cover of global tropical forests, they provide critical ecosystem goods and services to the estimated 2.4 billion people living within 100km of the coast (UN Environment Programme, 2023). Mangroves provide protection against storms, erosion and flooding, sources of food and timber, improved water quality and carbon sequestration. Mangrove forests also provide natural habitat for over 1,533 different species, including nursery habitats for many commercially important fish, and are beneficial to the health of adjacent ecosystems such as coral reefs and seagrass meadows. #MangroveDay #SaveForestsNow