Through research and community-based conservation, the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) has "played a major role in ensuring the continues existence of some of Africa's most rare and treasure species such as the elephant, the mountain gorilla, rhinoceros, and cheetah." The AWF Web site offers loads of information on the current programs and program locations, including factsheets and photos of...

Created by veteran naturalist Jim Conrad, Backyard Nature is an excellent resource for information about many aspects of the natural world. The website provides extensive, well-organized sections for backyard Ecology, Plants, Animals, and Fungi -- to name just a few. The site contains a section on Naming & Classifying living things, as well as information about tools for backyard naturalists such...

Since the days when John Muir walked across its campus, there has been a keen interest in the environment at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. The Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment keeps this tradition alive through its different projects and publications. Perhaps the best part of the site is the Atlas of the Biosphere, which contains numerous maps documenting...

At 4,000-square-kilometers, Gorongosa National Park is one of the world's great wildlife preserves, featuring spectacular flora and fauna, a looming mountain peak, and sweeping grasslands and forests. Sadly, the ecosystem was profoundly stressed by the civil conflict that swept through the region in the 1980s, and many species, especially large mammals, are only just beginning to recover. The E.O....

Provided by the World Resources Institute (WRI) with assistance from several sponsors, EarthTrends is an environmental information portal, offering searchable databases, data tables, country profiles, maps, and feature articles in ten topical sections. These include Coastal and Marine Ecosystems, Climate and Atmosphere, Agriculture and Food, and Forests and Grasslands, among others. The databases...

Eco-Index, a project of the Rainforest Alliance, is "a searchable almanac of current and past conservation projects in Mesoamerica, with project descriptions, goals, achievements, lessons learned, and more." With current, well-presented features covering a range of biodiversity conservation issues, Eco-Index offers an excellent way for conservation researchers and practitioners to keep abreast of...

Along with increasing concerns about the extinction of different animal species, there has been increased interest in monitoring the fate of plant species, particularly those of various trees. Drawing on a partnership between Flora & Fauna International and the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre, the Global Trees Campaign Web site serves as an online conduit for information about endangered...

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) works to help nations find "pragmatic solutions" to the world's most difficult environmental and developmental challenges. The organization's multimedia page is home to dozens of wonderful videos, photos, and audio content. Readers may want to start with the Video area, where they will find beautifully filmed productions shot around the...

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has recently placed online three reports focusing on conservation efforts in the Asia/Pacific region. Offered in .pdf format, all three reports provide overviews of WWF's current (the reports were originally published in 1997 and 1998) and planned efforts in their respective areas of concern, both at the regional and national levels. While aimed particularly at WWF...

This great Nature & Science website from the National Park Service (NPS) was recently redesigned, and offers visitors a wide variety of information about how the NPS uses science to protect natural resources. The site links to main topic areas for Biology, Natural Sounds, Water, and more. The Biology section includes short informational features on Migratory Birds, Invasive Species Management,...