Natural Areas Association (NAA) is an association of scientists and practitioners focused on the management of ecologically significant natural landscapes with the intent to protect biodiversity for current and future generations. Natural Areas News is your trusted resource for current events, reliable science, conservation success, emerging challenges, best practices, and achievements of those who work daily to preserve natural areas.

 

 

Trump administration scales back long-standing endangered species habitat protections

The Trump administration announced a new rule that changes how agencies enforce the Endangered Species Act, narrowing the definition of "harm" under the landmark law. The change could allow oil drilling and mining on critical habitats. The administration provided more details on the finalized rule as legal challenges were launched.

Ivar Leidus / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

North Carolina General Assembly makes historic investment in wildlife crossings

North Carolina established a permanent funding source for wildlife crossings, enabling long-term projects that reconnect fragmented habitats and help protect one of the nation's most biologically diverse landscapes. The investment provides a model for other states seeking solutions to protect biodiversity and strengthen landscape connectivity.

Ryan Crehan/USFWS | Public Domain

Updated standards make the case for restoration: ‘We have to create uplift’

The Society for Ecological Restoration released the third edition of its global restoration standards, shifting the focus from avoiding harm to creating ecological “uplift.” The guidance includes tools to measure ecological and social progress, strengthen the business case for restoration, and support improved restoration outcomes.

 

From pixels to proof: The unstoppable rise of citizen science apps

In 2025, IUCN recognized citizen science as essential, not secondary, to global biodiversity monitoring and environmental governance. Additionally, A 2024 research paper found that citizen science provides valuable data for protecting threatened species, especially when expert-led projects validate observations.

 

Introducing the New NAA Resource Store

 

In Other News

- Items with an asterisk may require registration or a paid subscription to view*

- Items that are italicized represent academic titles

  • 600 Acres of Forests at Bear Run Nature Reserve Now Part of the Old-Growth Forest Network in Pennsylvania
  • America’s retreat from wildlife protection will be felt far beyond its borders
  • Bears Ears cuts also end first-of-its-kind tribal land commission*
  • Canelo Hills ladies’-tresses (Spiranthes delitescens) grow only in the Southwest’s vanishing ciénegas. Can they be rooted there again?*
  • Chaco Canyon Protections Open for Public Comment as Rollback Moves Forward: Comment Deadline is July 29, 2026
  • Court Ruling Leaves Some of New York’s Most Important Wetlands Unprotected
  • Drone on the range: Improving land stewardship with technology
  • Esri Introduces ArcGIS for ServiceNow, Bringing Location Intelligence into Everyday Enterprise Workflows
  • First Major Overhaul of Public Lands Grazing Regulations in a Generation Looks to Cut Out Public Involvement*
  • First Populations Of Invasive Pale Swallow-wort (Vincetoxicum rossicum)  Confirmed In Wisconsin
  • From Water Samples to Conservation Insights: The Growing Role of eDNA to Track Ecosystem Changes and Monitor Biodiversity
  • Loopy Five Firefly (Photuris forresti) to be Considered for Endangered Species Protection
  • Most Americans support conservation – here’s how the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative got politicians from both parties on board too
  • New Bipartisan Research Shows Western Voters Strongly Oppose Selling or Transferring Public Lands
  • Officials propose expanding Warren Dunes State Park Natural Area in Michigan*
  • National monuments downsized as administration reshapes land management
  • Plum Run Prairie becomes Ohio’s 156th State Nature Preserve
  • Satellites are transforming biodiversity monitoring for global nature targets, but major gaps remain
  • State of Hawaii seeks proposals for community-based conservation projects
  • The plan to make climate science harder to erase
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Revises Canada Lynx (Lynx canadensis) Critical Habitat Designation
  • Why Trump’s move to gut the Endangered Species Act likely won’t hold up in court
  • Biodiversity buffers the effects of drought on productivity most in drier grasslands and less so in forests*
  • Roadless rule rescission threatens highest integrity forest ecosystems in the United States*
  • Seventy-five years of conservation and the Wisconsin State Natural Areas program*

Want more content? Check out our Resource List to discover the latest on natural areas.

 

Recent YouTube Releases

 
  • Dibaginjigaadeg Anishinaabe Ezhitwaad - A Tribal Climate Adaptation Menu 
    July 17, 2026 

  • An Ecological Model for Fire Reintroduction in an Old-Growth Red Pine Woodland
    July 10, 2026 

  • Leech Lake Snowshoe Hare Habitat Project 
    July 3, 2026

 

Job Opportunities

 
  • Have a Job Opening? Please remember to post with NAA. 
  • Need a Job? Be sure to stay in touch with the Job Board positions that are being updated regularly. 

Funding Opportunities

 
  • U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act FY 2026 
    Deadline: August 3, 2026
  • U.S. Fish & Wildlife: Fiscal Year 2026 - Tribal Wildlife Grants
  • Deadline: August 14, 2026
  • Bureau of Land Management: Rangeland Resource Management
    Deadline: August 14, 2026
  • California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE): Tribal Wildfire Resilience Grant
    Deadline: September 8, 2026
  • Bureau of Land Management: U.S. Wildland Fire Service BLM-National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP) Primary Announcement
    Deadline: September 17, 2026
  • Bureau of Land Management: Department of Interior Wildland Fire Service BLM-National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP)Fire Leaders And Managers, Emerging Scientists (FLAMES)
    Deadline: September 17, 2026
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Competitive State Wildlife Grant
    Deadline: September 18, 2026
  • RESTORE Act Grant: Strengthening Gulf Coast Ecosystems
    Deadline: October 31, 2026
  • National Park Service Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Units (CESU) Master Cooperative Agreements
    Deadline: December 31, 2027
  • U.S. National Science Foundation: Long Term Research in Environmental Biology
    Deadline: Ongoing
 

Natural Areas News curates diverse, timely resources from multiple sources to promote objective and balanced information sharing. Inclusion does not imply endorsement by Natural Areas Association.


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