Following protests at a public meeting about a proposed nuclear power plant in Kenya, one person was shot and several residents were arrested. The Kenyan government plans to build a 2,000-megawatt nuclear power plant near Bondo, a town in Siaya County near Lake Victoria. Officials, including representatives from the Nuclear Power and Energy Agency (NuPEA), were holding a public consultation meeting in the town on July 24 when the protests started. Dickens Ochieng, a lawyer and community member who attended the meeting, told Mongabay by phone that the landowners invited to the meeting started shouting “Wadagi,” which means “we refuse" in Dholuo language, in reference to the nuclear project. "And then one of the police officers who was guarding the government agencies used his firearm and as a result one person was shot on the leg and the meeting turned chaotic instantly," he said. According to Ochieng, residents of Bondo began throwing stones at police officers, who responded with tear gas. In the days that followed, 17 people were arrested and detained. An official document reviewed by Mongabay shows that the arrested people are now under investigation for assault as well as Kenya's Prevention of Terrorism Act. Ochieng, who has taken on their legal defense, said there “is an intense government crackdown on people who are opposed to the project.” “As a lawyer, I just keep on telling the community that they have to stand firm, because terrorism charges have nowhere to do with the incident that happened,” he said. “They are meant to intimidate and to silence you, not to convict anyone.” So far, 15 of the 17 suspects have been released after community members raised money through crowdfunding to pay their bail, which costs between 15,000-180,000 Kenyan shillings ($116-1,391), Ochieng said. “In the community, most people are fishermen, small-scale traders and they do small businesses,” he said. “According to the statistics, most of them live below $1 per day. The defenders coalition was able to pay the lower bail amounts, but for the others, it's complicated." Mongabay contacted both the Bondo police commander and NuPEA for comment. Neither had responded by the time of publication. In May, communities held demonstrations against the proposed nuclear plant, while a petition calling for the project to be halted has continued to circulate online. The Strategic Environmental Assessment report for Kenya’s nuclear power program published in 2023 noted that the Lake Victoria region should be avoided since it is vulnerable to volcanic disturbances, “which may impair the safety” of a nuclear power plant. Lake Victoria, Africa's largest freshwater lake, is shared by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and millions of people across the three countries depend on it for their livelihoods, food security and drinking water. Banner image: Fishing boats in Luanda Kotieno, in the Bondo area of Siaya County, where the Kenyan government is planning to build a nuclear power plant. Image by Victor Ochieng via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0).

In a small area of Namibia’s Erongo Mountains, a tiny, pebble-like plant grows on a very thin layer of gravel. This succulent, Lithops werneri, is found in just one tiny 4 square-kilometer (1.5 square-mile) area, according to the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. With more than an 80% decline in its population since 1981 and fewer than 200 plants remaining in the wild, the species was listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List in February 2026. Sonja Loots, manager of the Threatened Plants Programme at Namibia’s National Botanical Research Institute, told Mongabay by email that the plant “has always had a restricted range”. After it was first scientifically described in the 1950s, the succulent was “heavily harvested for the horticulture market in Europe”, she said. “Since then it was searched for numerous times by several succulent enthusiasts, but additional populations were never discovered.” The plant was even once thought to be extinct, but was found again in the original location in 2012, Soots said. A census in 2012 recorded 659 plants, according to the IUCN, but subsequent surveys found only 118 plants in 2019 and 163 in 2020. Lithops are a group of dwarf succulents, commonly called living stones or pebble plants, found across South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. These plants only grow on certain rocky outcrops and typically have just a single pair of water-storing succulent leaves attached to some roots, Loots said. L. werneri grows in a very thin layer of gravel, approximately 2 centimeters (0.8 inches) thick, on top of a granite sheet, she added. Illegal collection, which historically wiped out populations of Lithops plants, may still be a factor in L. werneri’s decline, Loots said. Now, climate change is a major threat as well. “The plants have a very shallow root system,” Loots said. “Mature plants can only survive a few years without water. The seeds can survive for a long time inside their capsules (which is why they should not be collected) but seedlings need follow up rain showers for several years to survive.” Harsh droughts might also compel animals to look for edible plants they don’t normally feed on, such as L. werneri. “There was evidence of such disturbance by some observers since 2012, when the population experienced a severe drought,” Loots said. “A significant number of plants were found dislodged and therefore died because the roots were exposed, they were eaten or the habitat was disturbed.” Flooding is also a threat to the unstable habitat. With L. werneri found in just one location, any random or extreme disturbance could wipe out the entire species, Loots said, “Any species where a 100% of the population occurs in a single location is important to conserve.” “Plant poaching, although it has exponentially increased in the last 5 years is also being addressed by various collaborators in Namibia,” she said. [caption id="attachment_325170" align="alignnone" width="768"] Lithops werneri © Sonja Loots/National Botanical Research Institute of Namibia.[/caption] Banner image of Lithops werneri © Sonja Loots/National Botanical Research Institute of Namibia.

Founder's Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries.

In the Central African Republic, a country often seen mainly through the lens of instability, a different story is unfolding in its southwest. In March, Mongabay Africa program director David Akana and I spent time in and around Dzanga-Sangha National Park, speaking with researchers, conservationists, community members, and park officials. What we heard was not quite reflected in the usual narrative. Bayanga, the town at the park’s edge, has seen a modest rise in visitors. Dzanga Bai, where forest elephants gather in high densities within the park, and a population of habituated lowland gorillas, remain the main draws. According to local officials, around 800 tourists visited in 2025, a small figure by global standards, but meaningful locally. “There is growth,” said Gervais Pamongui, a deputy director of the Dzanga-Sangha Protected Areas. He attributed this to both the site itself and a degree of stability that has held in the region. Others made similar points, though often with caveats. A tour guide, Léonce Madomi, described the country’s reputation for insecurity as “both true and false,” noting that Bayanga has largely avoided the disruptions seen elsewhere. Lodges report steadier business. Guides and trackers have more consistent work. Some residents point to income that supports school fees or medical care. Yet the gains are uneven and limited in scale. Tourism employs a narrow slice of the population, and basic constraints remain, from poor roads to food shortages. The model is still developing. Revenue-sharing arrangements are in place between communities, the park, and government agencies, with the park and its management partners supporting local services, including health facilities and a mobile clinic, a solar farm to supply the town with power, a human rights center, a community radio station, and other services in the surrounding area. There are plans to upgrade Dzanga Bai's viewing platform. Even so, it is not clear that wildlife tourism alone can support a broader local economy. For now, Dzanga-Sangha stands as a partial answer to the challenges facing conservation in places with limited economic opportunity. It has created visible benefits, but its future will depend on whether those gains extend beyond the park and into the wider local economy. Read the full story by David Akana here. Banner image: Most tourists who travel to the Central African Republic are drawn by the western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) in Dzanga-Sangha National Park. Image by Rhett A. Butler/ Mongabay.

July 31 is World Ranger Day, which celebrates the work rangers do for the natural world and commemorates those killed or injured in the line of duty. Among them was Anton Mzimba, head ranger at Timbavati Private Nature Reserve in South Africa, where he had served for 25 years. On July 26, 2022, Mzimba was shot dead outside his home by two men, allegedly in connection with his rhino protection work. Four years later, the case remains open, with no arrests made. “If a ranger of Anton's standing and integrity can be killed for doing work that serves the greater good, and there are still no consequences for the people who perpetrated this crime, what confidence does that inspire in the men and women holding the line on the front lines of conservation?” John Jurko II, lead director of a documentary about Mzimba titled Rhino Man, told Mongabay by email. In 2024, Jurko II launched a “Justice for Anton Mzimba” campaign to help speed up the investigation. Mzimba’s killing is being investigated by the Hawks, a specialized unit within the South African Police Service. Hawks typically investigate organized crime and police murders, but took over Mzimba’s case because of its links to rhino poaching and an ongoing investigation, according to Nico J. Gerber, the police general who heads the Hawks in Mpumalanga province, where Mzimba was killed. Gerber told Mongabay by email the case “has progressed well” and the case file was submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions, which decides whether there’s enough evidence to bring criminal charges. “As the matter currently stands they declined to prosecute based on the available evidence,” Gerber said. “The matter is still being pursued and further leads are followed up as they emerge.” Jurko II said justice for Mzimba is essential for his family, friends, and the generations of rangers and conservationists to come. “The system must back them up,” he said. Rangers often work in dangerous environments, guarding elephants, rhinos, tigers and other wildlife against poachers and organized criminal networks. However, rangers themselves have also been a source of controversy. In some areas with military-style policing, rangers have been accused of human rights abuses, including deadly violence against local communities. At the same time, rangers continue to be killed or maimed in the line of duty, at the hands of militias, poachers, mining mafias, or by the very wildlife they set out to protect. On March 3, for example, a militant attack on the headquarters of Upemba National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo left three rangers and four civilian staff dead. Between June 1, 2025, and May 31, 2026, at least 147 rangers were killed across 40 countries, according to the nonprofit International Ranger Federation (IRF). Forty-three of those deaths were homicides, while 32 rangers were killed in wildlife attacks. Banner image: Anton Mzimba (front right) on patrol in Timbavati Private Nature Reserve. Image courtesy of Nick Smith/Global Conservation Corps.

Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) is investigating the deaths of 15 elephants in the Amboseli savannah ecosystem, near the border with Tanzania. KWS told Mongabay that some preliminary laboratory investigations have found a toxic substance in the dead elephants. The animals were found between June 24 and July 24, 2026, at the Kimana Sanctuary and Kuku Ranch, an area at the crossroads between three national parks in southern Kenya. “Ten elephants exhibited similar clinical signs, including partial paralysis that left them unable to stand before dying within one to two days,” KWS communications Director Duncan Wanyama said in a statement provided to Mongabay.  “The remaining five carcasses were too decomposed or had been scavenged, making it impossible to establish the cause of death. The condition primarily affected adult females and their calves, with only one adult male reported.” The University of Nairobi detected a toxic substance in the elephant samples they tested. However, test results from Government Chemist, a Kenyan national lab, were negative for toxic substances. “Further quantitative analysis is underway,” KWS stated. Some elephants were equipped with tracking devices, and authorities were alerted to the deaths when the tracked animals stopped moving, Wanyama told Mongabay in a phone call.  He said investigations, including analysis of water sources and other resources, were underway to determine if the elephants were exposed to a common source. “The condition observed is confined to the affected elephants, and there is no indication that it is transmissible to humans,” Wanyama said. Meanwhile, local leaders want answers. “We have never seen something like this. We want a report stating exactly what killed our elephants,” Joseph ole Lenku, the governor of Kajiado County, where Amboseli is located, said at a public event. At the same time, the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) has called for sustained investment in services to support wildlife. "This incident is deeply alarming. It reminds us just how vulnerable wildlife remains to emerging and often unpredictable threats,” IFAW Kenyan country director Ben Wandago said in a statement provided to Mongabay. “When we lose elephants on this scale, the impact reaches far beyond a single herd. It affects the resilience of the entire ecosystem and reinforces why we must continue investing in science, monitoring, and collaborative conservation efforts.” Benson Leyian is the CEO of Big Life Foundation, a conservation organization operating in the mostly Maasai-owned land surrounding Amboseli National Park. He told Mongabay that decades of community-centered conservation had virtually eliminated elephant poaching in Amboseli. “Aside from losses during periods of severe drought, we haven't seen a cluster of elephant deaths like this for some time, so it is certainly a cause for concern,” he said. The KWS says it has intensified surveillance across the area and continues to monitor elephant populations closely. No elephant deaths have been reported in the last week. Banner image: An elephant at Amboseli National Park in Kenya. Image courtesy of KWS.

Researchers have tracked down 28 individuals of a palm tree species last recorded in Madagascar nearly 100 years ago. Nearly every tree of the species, Ravenea latisecta, was found within four protected areas in the Andasibe-Mantadia region of Madagascar, according to a recent study. “Andasibe–Mantadia is one of Madagascar’s best-explored botanical regions, and Ravenea latisecta is not an inconspicuous plant, it is a palm several metres tall,” Louis Aureglia, study lead author with Aix-Marseille University in France, told Mongabay by email. “Yet confirmed populations remained undocumented for almost a century. This is a good reminder that botanical exploration is far from complete.” There are around 20 known species of palm trees in the genus Ravenea. All are only found in Madagascar and the Comoros, and nearly all are endangered or critically endangered. For the study, Aureglia and his colleagues launched a survey in Andasibe–Mantadia in 2024 to document Ravenea palm trees in the wild. They also examined historical specimens kept in herbariums. Palm trees are usually large and difficult to miss, yet some Ravenea species can be tricky to tell apart with confidence if they’re not flowering, Aureglia said. The “real turning point” in their fieldwork, he added, was when they found “fertile” plants: male or female trees containing inflorescences, or branched structures with clusters of flowers. “Ravenea latisecta is dioecious, meaning that male and female flowers are produced on separate plants,” Aureglia said. “Once we found both male and female individuals, with inflorescences matching the original description, we could confirm the identification confidently.” Eventually, they found 28 individuals of R. latisecta, mostly at four sites: Vohimana Reserve, Analamazoatra National Park, Mantadia National Park, and Vakona Forest private reserve. These records come nearly a century after R. latisecta was first described from a specimen collected in 1927 in eastern Madagascar. Four herbarium specimens collected in 1992 were also previously labeled as R. latisecta, but three are other Ravenea species and one can’t be confirmed, Aureglia said. With fewer than 50 mature individuals known to exist, R. latisecta is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List. The researchers don’t yet know whether the palm tree is naturally rare or if certain threats have reduced the population to just a few dozen individuals. The protected areas where they’ve been found are under pressure from slash-and-burn agriculture and forest loss at the edges, Aureglia said. But the team “found no evidence that R. latisecta itself is specifically harvested or used by local communities,” he said, adding more monitoring is needed to understand its population trends and threats. Aureglia said his team doesn’t know if any verified individuals of R. latisecta are being cultivated in botanical gardens. “We also found no fruiting individuals during our surveys, which means that we have not yet been able to collect seeds for propagation or other ex situ conservation measures,” he added. [caption id="attachment_324737" align="alignnone" width="952"] Ravenea latisecta. Image courtesy of Louis Aureglia.[/caption] Banner image of Ravenea latisecta courtesy of Louis Aureglia.