Creepy Crawly With Hidden Past Wins Bug of the Year in New Zealand

New Zealand's bug of the year is the ancient and unique Peripatoides novaezealandiae, a velvet worm with pudgy legs and galaxy-like skin. These living fossils shoot sticky goo from their heads to dissolve prey. Despite their appearance, they are not worms or caterpillars but a missing link between worms and insects. The elusive creatures are hard to study but play an important ecological role in New Zealand's forests. The bug of the year competition aims to celebrate and raise awareness about these often overlooked creatures.

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Great Dane Trains to Replace Beloved Therapy Dog Hulu at St. Cloud Hospital

The math of dogs and people rarely feels fair, and Wayne Chmelik lives with that imbalance every day. His Great Dane, Hulu, keeps close by his side, a little slower now and showing more grey than before. Wayne looks at him and quietly admits, “That’s going to be hard. That’s going to be difficult.” Hulu’s absence will be felt far beyond Wayne’s yard. At CentraCare St. Cloud Hospital, Hulu has become part of the rhythm of the hallways. His size draws reactions before he even gets close. A visitor stops mid-stride and blurts, “You’re like a little horse.” Someone else follows with, “You look like a miniature donkey.” Hulu collects comparisons the way most therapy dogs collect pats on the head. For Leah Anderson, his impact runs deeper. Leah is a mom from Clearwater carrying twin boys who tried to arrive far too soon. She has been in the hospital for almost four weeks. She watches Hulu settle beside her and says the visits “bring me joy and happiness.” The loneliness lifts, even if only for a moment. Wayne wishes those moments could stretch on forever. But Great Danes age fast. Their life expectancy tops out around 8 to 10 years. “He'll be 8 in April,” Wayne says, his voice dipping as he considers what is coming. Last year, Hulu’s sister Tootsie, another familiar face at the hospital, died of cancer. Wayne looks down at Hulu asleep by his feet and says, “I don't know who took it harder, me or him.” The changes have been hard to ignore. Hulu has dropped from 82 kilograms to about 70. Wayne realized he could not wait any longer to begin preparing someone new. So he walked into the Paynesville Health Care Center with a Great Dane puppy at the end of his leash. “This is Wren,” he says, introducing Tootsie’s granddaughter. “She weighed 23 pounds at 8 weeks, and now she’s 123, a puppy at 12 months.” She moves through the nursing home halls with the curiosity of a young dog still learning her size. Residents reach for her as if she has been visiting for years. Carol Heitke holds Wren’s snout, presses a kiss to her forehead, and says, “I love you.” Wayne watches closely. “When a dog and a person do this, it’s called a lock,” he says. “Nobody else in the room but those two right now.” The nursing home is familiar ground for Wayne. Staff there cared for his wife, Pat, in memory care. He used to bring Tootsie and Hulu to visit her. “She would say, ‘My babies are here,’” nursing assistant Kathy Olson says. “She loved her puppies.” Before she loved Wayne, Pat loved Great Danes. She competed with them in shows and later convinced Wayne to bring the dogs into his life, too. Now Wayne brings Hulu and Wren into places where people need comfort, just as he once brought them to Pat. And though the dogs help others, Wayne is quick to admit the truth. “They have been my island, they have been my safe space,” he says. “They’re my therapy.” At the hospital cafeteria, Wayne buys Hulu a cup of ice cream. “This is his reward for being such a good dog,” he says. Hulu eats most of it, with enough splattered on the floor that a kitchen worker kindly steps in to mop. Wayne laughs softly and lets the moment linger. He knows these visits will end one day, quickly or quietly, so he treats each one as something he does not want to forget. His hope is simple. He wants enough time for Wren to learn from Hulu, and enough chances to give her the experience she needs. “The more experiences that I can give her, the greater the chance that she’s going to be a good therapy dog,” he says. He says it with the confidence of someone who has already learned from the best.

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New Study Finds That A Lifetime Of Reading And Writing May Cut Dementia Risk By More Than A Third

A lifelong habit of reading, writing and learning new languages may be one of the strongest tools we have to keep the mind sharp. A new study from Rush University Medical Center says those activities could reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by as much as 38 percent and lower the risk of mild cognitive impairment by up to 36 percent. Researchers followed 1,939 adults with an average starting age of 80 for almost eight years. They built a “cognitive enrichment” score based on book reading, visiting libraries and museums, learning languages and even using dictionaries. Then they compared the people with the highest enrichment scores to those with the lowest. “Our study looked at cognitive enrichment from childhood to later life, focusing on activities and resources that stimulate the mind,” neuropsychologist Andrea Zammit said. “Our findings suggest that cognitive health in later life is strongly influenced by lifelong exposure to intellectually stimulating environments.” Participants were asked to recall their habits at age 12, age 40 and their current age. The more reading and language exposure they reported across their lifetime, the larger the benefit. On average, high enrichment delayed Alzheimer’s by five years and delayed mild cognitive impairment by seven years. Researchers also examined brain tissue from participants who died during the study. They found indications that people with richer childhood learning environments showed a degree of protection against the buildup of proteins commonly associated with Alzheimer’s. Because socioeconomic status can shape access to books, schools and learning resources, the team checked whether SES explained the results. It did not. “Our findings indicate that cognitive enrichment is not simply a proxy for socioeconomic advantage,” the researchers wrote. Enrichment scores captured long term intellectual engagement beyond what SES alone could predict. The study does not prove that reading or language learning directly prevents dementia. Memory based reporting has limitations, and brain health depends on many factors, including sleep and physical activity. Still, the link between mental stimulation and long term cognitive resilience has appeared in many studies, whether the activity is reading, solving puzzles or picking up new skills. Researchers say one message is unmistakable. It is never too early, or too late, to build habits that support the brain. Zammit put it this way: “Our findings are encouraging, suggesting that consistently engaging in a variety of mentally stimulating activities throughout life may make a difference in cognition. Public investments that expand access to enriching environments, like libraries and early education programs designed to spark a lifelong love of learning, may help reduce the incidence of dementia.” The study appears in the journal Neurology.

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Amid Climate Anxiety, These Stories Show The Planet Is Still Moving In The Right Direction

With major countries rolling back protections and global temperatures edging closer to dangerous limits, it can feel like the bad news never lets up. For people who report on climate issues every day, climate anxiety, climate doom and even environmental dread are more than passing phrases. They describe the fear, stress and grief that come with covering near constant stories of destruction, extreme weather and loss of life. Experts say those feelings are understandable, but they do not have to leave us stuck. They encourage people to turn that energy into action. At Euronews Green, the team sees its reporting as part of that shift. They aim to be accurate about the realities without greenwashing them, but also to remind readers that progress is still happening. For the past four years, they have kept a running list of good environmental news. Hundreds of stories each year highlight breakthroughs, small local wins, bold climate commitments and unexpected inventions that make life a little better. Here are some of the standout stories so far this year. In Sweden, commuters in Stockholm got a new way to cross the capital in late 2024. A “flying” electric ferry completed its first year of service and has now been declared a major success by the Swedish Transport Administration. The pilot route proved that fast, stable, low emission water transit can work in a major city. On the Italian island of Sardinia, griffon vultures have made a remarkable comeback. The population had crashed by 2010 due to indirect poisoning from chemicals in the animals they fed on. Today more than 500 vultures live on the island, making it one of the country’s strongest conservation turnarounds. In France, thousands of kilometres of old railway tracks have been too expensive to modernize for heavy trains. A startup called SICEF has another idea. Hybrid vans called Ferromobiles will use the lines instead, putting neglected infrastructure back to work. Portugal started the year with a surge in clean power. The country generated 80.7 percent of its electricity from renewables in January, its best performance in nine months. That places it second in Europe behind non EU Norway, which produced 96.3 percent renewable electricity that month. Denmark followed with 78.8 percent. Finland is experimenting with an unusual energy source: sand. Industrial heat is one of the hardest areas to decarbonize, and sand based thermal storage is emerging as a promising tool. The system can hold heat for long periods and release it when factories need it. Researchers also found that air fryers may improve indoor air quality compared with conventional ovens, as long as they are used correctly. They already save electricity for many households, so this adds a surprising new benefit. From January, several other encouraging stories stood out. Nearly a dozen countries signed the Hamburg Declaration, an agreement to build 100 gigawatts of offshore wind projects across shared North Sea waters by 2050. That is enough power for about 143 million homes and signals a united push to move off fossil fuels. France banned certain fungicides long relied on by winemakers. A UK tech company, Eden Research, offered a sustainable alternative that growers say gives them a fighting chance in a changing climate. Wind and solar surpassed fossil fuels in EU electricity generation for the first time in 2025, a moment analysts called a major milestone. The High Seas Treaty also came into force for the first time. Almost half the planet’s surface sits beyond national borders, and until now there was no dedicated legal framework to protect biodiversity in those waters. The treaty aims to change that. Evolutionary biologist Toby Kiers won the 2026 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement. Her research on underground fungal networks has been described as a key to understanding ecosystems and an “invisible” opportunity to strengthen climate resilience. Researchers at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute say coral reefs could play a role in improving global nutrition. Rebuilding coral fish stocks and managing them sustainably could bolster food security in some regions within six years. One of the world’s rarest whales, the North Atlantic right whale, is showing a cautious uptick in births. The population is estimated at 384 animals, still dangerously low, but the rise offers a small sign of hope. And France’s ban on “forever chemicals” became law at the start of the year after more than 140,000 citizens urged lawmakers to act. The restrictions target pollutants that have raised serious health concerns. These stories do not erase the scale of the climate challenge, but they make something else clear. Progress is happening. People are working on solutions in labs, in governments, in cities and in small towns. Against the backdrop of climate anxiety, that is something worth holding onto.

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Mom and Daughter Host Virtual Black History Celebration to Honor Black Women

Audrey Muhammad and her daughter, Hasana Muhammad, are teaming up to host a virtual event designed to get children excited about their history. The celebration, called Black History Night, is sponsored by Virtue Today Magazine and the Mothers of Civilization Assembly and takes place on Saturday, February 28 at 8 pm EST. This is not a traditional Black History Month lecture. It is a lively, story-driven celebration that shines a spotlight on the women who built the world and the mothers who continue to hold communities together. Women from around the globe will share poems and stories about influential Black men and women, inspired by Mothers of Civilization Day, a national day created to honor Black women but still unfamiliar to many. Past versions of the event have featured well-known historians and community leaders. Anthony Browder, Chairman Fred Hampton Jr. and Student Minister Ishmael Muhammad have all joined to pay tribute to their mothers. Dr. Iman Muhammad Ali honored the mother of Emmett Till in a previous program, underscoring the deep ties between history, courage and family. “As a Black woman and mother, I think we should do more to show honor and respect to ourselves. We nurture everyone else and often neglect our own needs,” said Dr. Audrey Muhammad, the founder of Mothers of Civilization Day. “I know that learning positive things about your history can have a profound impact on a person. We want to leave feeling like a queen who knows her worth.” Service is part of the family’s identity. Dr. Muhammad is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated, and her daughter is a North Carolina A&T graduate. The event has two main parts. The first is a storytelling session, mixing historical lessons, rhymes from blacknurseryrhymes.com and uplifting profiles of Black inventors and women. The second is a wind-down meditation designed to help mothers relax and de-stress before ending the evening. Registration is free at mocablackhistorynight.eventbrite.com. More information about events for Black women can be found at MothersOfCivilization.org. Press inquiries can be directed to (336) 901 0122 or virtuetoday@gmail.com.

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New Light Therapy Suppresses Key Hair Loss Marker by 92%

Scientists in Korea are working on a light therapy hat that could make treating hair loss a lot more comfortable. Early lab tests show the system can suppress age related changes in human hair cells by nearly 92 percent compared with untreated cells. That is far higher than what current red light therapy helmets usually produce. The technology relies on near infrared wavelengths tuned to target human dermal papilla cells. These cells sit at the base of each hair follicle and help drive growth. By focusing on them directly, the researchers aim to slow the aging process that leads to many forms of hair loss, including androgenetic alopecia. Most devices on the market today use LEDs or lasers housed in rigid helmets. This new approach uses Organic Light Emitting Diodes instead. OLEDs emit softer, more widespread light and can sit inside a flexible cap that fits closer to the scalp. The idea is to make a treatment that someone could wear in public with less hassle. Kyung Cheol Choi, an electrical engineer at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, put it this way: "Because OLEDs are thin and flexible, they can closely conform to the curved surface of the scalp, delivering uniform light stimulation across the entire area." The hat itself has not been tested on a person yet. The underlying system has only been used in controlled lab experiments at KAIST with support from City University of Hong Kong. Still, the initial results are encouraging. As hair cells age, they release an enzyme called β galactosidase. It is a marker scientists use to measure decline. The custom OLED platform dramatically reduced that marker, and the team says the 730 to 740 nm wavelength range is ideal for activating dermal papilla cells. In the United States, hereditary patterned hair loss affects up to 40 percent of people. Treatment options are limited. Minoxidil works for some but not all. Finasteride can slow loss but carries side effects that many patients find troubling. Light therapy has grown in popularity as a noninvasive alternative, and these results suggest it may be possible to improve on the current systems. The research team is already thinking ahead. They want the hat to be comfortable and washable so it can handle daily use. Choi said, "Going forward, we plan to verify safety and efficacy through preclinical studies and progressively evaluate the potential for real therapeutic applications." The study appears in Nature Communications.

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This Heart On A Chip Could Change How We Treat Disease

Scientists in Canada have built a three dimensional heart on a chip that behaves much like the real thing. It beats on its own, moves calcium to trigger each contraction, and reacts to medication in ways that mirror a human heart. For a field that struggles to test drugs without putting patients at risk, this tiny device offers a promising new option. The team calls it a significant advance in cardiac tissue engineering and pharmacological testing. What sets it apart is a dual sensing system that tracks activity across the heart tissue while also zooming in on individual cells. Current platforms lack that kind of resolution, which matters because many cardiovascular diseases originate in cardiomyocytes, the individual cells that make up heart muscle. To build the chips, researchers collected cardiac muscle cells and connective tissue cells from rats. They placed the cells in a gel containing fibrous proteins and nutrients to help them grow, then seeded them onto small flexible silicon based chips. From there, they embedded two sets of sensors. One measures the larger scale forces of each beat. The engineer team sandwiched the tissue between elastic pillars that bend with every contraction. The amount of bending shows how strong the heartbeat is across the tissue. The second set of sensors works at a much smaller scale. They placed tiny hydrogel droplets inside the tissue. Each droplet is about 50 micrometers in size. As the tissue beats, the droplets deform, capturing the mechanical stress that individual cells experience. These measurements help researchers understand how cells behave as they form tissue, remodel, heal, or struggle through disease. The approach also helps simulate disease in a lab setting, which is essential for studying conditions that otherwise unfold deep inside the body. Once the device was built, the next step was testing. The team treated the tissues with norepinephrine, also known as noradrenaline. The compound triggers the fight or flight response and is used in hospitals to increase heart activity and maintain blood pressure, including during cardiac arrest. As expected, the heart on a chip reacted with stronger and faster beats. They also added blebbistatin, a drug that inhibits muscle activity. This slowed the contractions. The predictable reactions showed that the chip can model how the heart responds to medication. It also hints at its potential for drug screening, something that could speed up preclinical trials. Ali Mousavi, a biomedical engineer at the University of Montreal, described the value of the system this way: "The ability to observe the tissue's response to different compounds in real time represents a major advantage for preclinical development and translational research." The team now wants to use cells from patients who live with specific cardiac disorders. They plan to build tissues that reflect conditions such as dilated cardiomyopathy, a genetic heart muscle disease that can lead to heart failure, and arrhythmias, which are disorders that affect heart rhythm. These tests would let scientists study disease without exposing patients to experimental treatments. In the future, doctors could use the same approach to tailor therapies. Instead of guessing which medication will work, they could run tests on tissue made from a patient’s own cells. Houman Savoji, senior author and mechanical and biomedical engineer at the University of Montreal, said the work brings us closer to "true precision health" by giving researchers a way to identify the right medication before treatment begins. The study appears in the journal Nano Micro Small.

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Canada Got A Surprise Visitor As A European Robin Shows Up In Montreal

The new year brought an unexpected guest to Canada, and bird watchers across the continent are buzzing. On January 7, Montreal resident Sabrina Jacob stepped outside to take out the trash when she heard a birdsong she didn’t recognize. Moments later, she spotted a small bird with an orange face and chest perched in a tree. She pulled out her phone, captured a quick video, and later uploaded it to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s eBird tool. It turned out to be a European robin, a species never before recorded in Canada. Only a handful of sightings have ever been documented in North America. Jacob told CTV News’ Christine Long that she knew instantly something was different. “I watch birds, so I was like, ‘I don’t know this sound.’ I just looked up, and I don’t know this bird either. He came straight up in front of me for two seconds, and I took the video.” Her friend later confirmed the identification. That revelation set off a frenzy. Since the sighting, birders from across North America have flocked to Montreal hoping to see the robin for themselves. One man told Global News’ Dan Spector that he had flown in from Victoria, British Columbia, and planned to sleep in his car until the bird reappeared. European robins, common in western Eurasia and parts of North Africa, aren’t closely related to American robins. The connection is visual. Both have distinctive orange chests, which inspired the shared name. How this robin reached Montreal remains a mystery. Maggie MacPherson, an evolutionary ecologist at Trent University, told the Guardian’s Danielle Beurteaux that the bird’s arrival is remarkable. European robins do not typically migrate long distances. Some do not migrate at all. “That makes this sighting just amazing,” she said. Whether the robin was pushed across the Atlantic by a storm or drifted in aboard a ship is still unknown. Joel Coutu, cited by CTV News as a bird behaviorist, said it is unlikely the bird was carried on a plane in someone’s luggage. He believes the robin may have arrived in the fall and simply gone unnoticed. The appearance was so surprising that some people online wondered if the images were produced by artificial intelligence, City News Everywhere reported. Montreal has faced its coldest winter temperatures since 2018, but experts say the robin should manage. Sheldon Harvey, vice president of Bird Protection Quebec, told the Guardian that survival depends primarily on access to food. “As long as they can find food, their metabolism will keep them through the cold,” he said. The sighting comes alongside another unexpected bird story. On January 23, passengers on a boat off the California coast spotted a waved albatross, a species usually found along the coastal regions of western Central and South America. It was another reminder that rare visitors sometimes appear far from home, surprising scientists and bird enthusiasts alike.

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These Construction Workers Pause Every Day To Brighten This Little Girl's Day — Here's Why

Around 3 p.m. each afternoon in Cleveland, a handful of construction workers climb to an upper floor of a building still taking shape. Before heading home, they pause, turn toward a nearby hospital window, and wave. Sometimes they form heart shapes with their hands. Inside that window, 4 year old Brinley Wyczalek is waiting for them. She waves back every time. What started as a few flashlight signals has grown into a daily ritual filled with encouragement and kindness. The Cleveland Clinic said the connection began in January, after Brinley had already spent weeks in the hospital. One night, while she was playing, her father, Travis, shined a flashlight toward the construction site next door. “To our surprise, someone flashed a light right back at us,” her mother, Berlyn Wyczalek, said. Soon after, the workers taped a sign to the building facing Brinley’s room. “Get Well Soon.” The family responded with their own message. “Thank you. Waiting for a heart.” Another note soon appeared from the job site. “Praying for you and your family. Keep fighting.” The crew is helping build Cleveland Clinic’s new Neurological Institute. They decided to do more. They organized donations for Brinley, sending over coloring books, games, a stuffed bear nearly as big as she is, and a hard hat covered in signatures. Union carpenter Devan Nail said the connection meant something to all of them. “We build hospitals to help people heal. But seeing Brinley made it personal. We wanted her to know she has a whole crew behind her.” Brinley was born healthy, but at age 2, doctors discovered her heart had been severely weakened after a combination of viruses. She has now spent more than 100 days at Cleveland Clinic Children’s while waiting for a transplant. Until then, she relies on a Berlin Heart, a ventricular assist device that supports her circulation. Her pediatric cardiologist, Dr. Shahnawaz Amdani, said care involves more than medical support. “Healing isn’t only physical,” he said. “Human connection matters deeply.” Those daily waves and heart signs have become part of Brinley’s day, a small but steady reminder that she is not facing this alone. Berlyn said it all began with something simple. “All of this started with a flashlight,” she said. “And it’s shown us that even in the hardest moments, there’s so much good.”

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Here are the Most Incredible (and Hidden) Migrations of Earth's Fascinating Creatures

Migration is one of nature’s most recognizable spectacles. Long before modern life made wonder optional, our ancestors relied on understanding these movements to survive. Some migrations happen in plain sight. Others unfold under moonlight, deep underwater, or in places so remote that scientists are only now piecing them together. Some span thousands of kilometres, and others just a few hundred meters. But every journey has the same purpose. Survival. Here are eight of the least known, most astonishing migrations in the animal kingdom. Christmas Island’s red crabs transform the landscape each austral summer. Hundreds of millions swarm from forest to ocean to breed, a moving carpet that shuts down roads and fills streams. Males arrive first and dig burrows on the shore. Females follow, mate, then return later to release their eggs during a narrow window set by rainfall, tides and the moon. The hatchlings emerge weeks later and march inland. These crabs keep the forests healthy by clearing leaf litter, fertilising soil and turning over earth as they dig. The common green darner dragonfly doesn’t look like a long distance migrant, but many populations travel from Canada to Mexico. The catch is that it takes three generations to finish the trip. Smithsonian scientists uncovered this in 2018 by analyzing hydrogen isotopes in dragonfly wings, essentially reading each insect’s geographic signature. One generation flies north in spring, another returns south, and a third overwinters in warmer regions. Temperature seems to trigger their movements. With climate change altering seasonal cues, their finely timed cycle could be disrupted. The saiga, an antelope of the Central Asian steppe, looks like something out of a storybook with its large, flexible nose. In summer, that nose filters dust. In winter, it warms icy air before it reaches the lungs. Saiga can migrate more than 600 miles across harsh terrain. Hunting, poaching and disease devastated populations after the fall of the Soviet Union. But in Kazakhstan, strong protections helped the species rebound. By 2025, saiga numbers rose to more than 4 million animals. Dusky grouse do the opposite of what most birds do. They migrate toward snow and cold. These birds spend summers in sagebrush flats, then climb to high elevation forests in winter, where they perch in pine trees and feed almost exclusively on fir and pine needles. Moving into harsher conditions gives them a food source that other animals ignore, reducing competition when calories are hardest to find. Every night, the largest migration on Earth unfolds beneath the ocean’s surface. As daylight fades, trillions of zooplankton rise from the deep to feed near the surface. At dawn, they sink again to avoid predators. Some travel more than 900 meters in a single night. Larger animals like lanternfish and squid join this commute, turning the ocean’s twilight zone into a living highway. This daily movement also helps store carbon in the deep sea, shaping marine ecosystems and even global climate. Bogong moths of Australia take on a different challenge. They migrate more than 1,000 kilometres from agricultural lands to the Australian Alps. There, they pack into cool caves beneath boulder fields and enter a summer hibernation called aestivation. Many alpine species depend on them for food, including the endangered mountain pygmy possum. A severe drought collapsed their population by more than 99 percent in 2017. Numbers are recovering slowly, but the episode showed how vulnerable even abundant species can be. Mole salamanders, such as tiger and spotted salamanders, spend most of the year underground. Their migration begins on the first warm, rainy nights of late winter. Adults travel through the dark toward temporary woodland pools, guided by moisture, temperature, geomagnetic cues and the scent of their home wetlands. They breed, lay eggs on submerged vegetation and return to the forest. Juveniles emerge later, beginning the cycle again. Many communities celebrate these migrations with “Big Night” events to protect salamanders as they cross roads. Only two parrot species migrate, and both live in Australia. Orange bellied parrots breed only in southern Tasmania before flying north to coastal mainland marshes. In 2016, their population fell to 17 birds. A strong captive breeding program has pushed their numbers to about 80, but the species still depends on human intervention. Swift parrots, bright green with flashes of red and blue, breed in Tasmanian blue gum forests and migrate to the mainland in winter. Habitat loss and predation from introduced sugar gliders have pushed them close to extinction. Fewer than 500 remain, and scientists warn they could vanish within a decade. Across mountains, oceans and forests, these migrations reveal the lengths animals go to survive. Some journeys are ancient. Others are only now coming into focus. All of them show that even the smallest creatures can undertake astonishing feats, often hidden just out of sight.

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Conservationists are Celebrating This Gorgeous Snail Species' Revival After Decades of Efforts

In the early 1990s, scientists thought the greater Bermuda land snail might have disappeared forever. Searches across the North Atlantic archipelago turned up only recently dead shells, enough to offer faint hope but not enough to confirm the species was still alive. For years, the hunt for a living specimen went nowhere. Then in 2014, a tiny group turned up in a surprising place, tucked inside a narrow concrete alley in Hamilton, Bermuda’s capital. Fewer than 200 snails were found. They were collected and sent to Chester Zoo in England, where conservationists began a captive breeding effort that would reshape the species’ future. A decade later, more than 100,000 captive bred snails have been released into the wild. The zoo now says the species is “confirmed as safe and secure” thanks to the work of teams in Bermuda, Chester Zoo and Biolinx Environmental Research in Canada. “It’s every conservationist’s dream to help save a whole species, and that’s exactly what we’ve done,” Tamás Papp of Chester Zoo told the Guardian. “This scientific confirmation that we’ve saved them is testament to the role zoos can play in preventing extinction, and in the power of collaboration, and is something everyone involved will carry in their heart.” The greater Bermuda land snail is a button-sized native species whose fossils suggest it once crawled across much of Bermuda’s larger islands. Its decline came from multiple stressors such as climate change and habitat loss. But one of the most damaging threats arrived about 70 years ago when rosy wolfsnails were introduced to control another species, the milk snail. The plan backfired. “They took one look at the milk snail and thought, ‘I'm not going to eat that one. I'm going to eat the tinier Bermuda snail instead,’” Chester Zoo keeper Katie Kelton told CBC’s As It Happens. The Hamilton alley population kickstarted the rescue. After arriving in England, the snails were placed in climate-controlled pods meant to mimic the conditions needed for breeding. Thousands of hatchlings followed. Since 2019, conservationists have begun reintroducing them to protected woodland areas across Bermuda. A forthcoming study in Oryx confirms that six strong colonies are now established on the islands. “They’re doing absolutely brilliantly,” Kelton told As It Happens. “We’ve had confirmed breeding on the island, and the numbers are starting to build now. So, really, we can say that this project has been a success.” Their return matters for more than symbolic reasons. Kristiina Ovaska of Biolinx Environmental Research said the snails help restore degraded ecosystems by consuming vegetation and serving as prey for larger animals. They help cycle nutrients through their habitat, a small but essential link in Bermuda’s ecology. The announcement came on Reverse the Red Day, an initiative focused on removing species from the IUCN Red List. The snails remain classified as critically endangered, but for now, their situation looks better than it has in decades. Experts say the effort is a strong model for how captive breeding can reinforce species on the edge of extinction. Timothy Pearce of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History told CBC that the research behind this work provides a valuable blueprint for future conservation programs. Still, he warned that long-term success will depend on keeping predators like the rosy wolfsnail away from restored populations.

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