After 65 years of absence, the Asiatic wild ass has returned to eastern Mongolia. The species, which are members of the same family as horses, are known locally as khulan, the species is under threat from illegal hunting, climate change and habitat fragmentation. For decades the mammals also faced an additional challenge: fencing along the Trans-Mongolian Railway prevented them from travelling eastwards. Removal of some of these barriers, and the creation of a ‘safe passage’ zone on the China-Mongolia border in May 2025 has allowed the khulan to expand and thrive in new territory. Buuveibaatar Bayarbaatar, a scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society, described the animals’ return as ‘an extraordinary conservation breakthrough’.
A British start-up aims to plant over 4,500 native trees using fertilizer made from the urine of festival-goers. NPK Recovery trialled the idea last year, producing 540 litres of fertilizer from toilets at Boomtown festival in Hampshire. They say it will now be used to plant native trees in the Bannau Brycheiniog (the Brecon Beacons), in Wales. ‘Using a waste product to grow trees is a circular solution that can revitalise our struggling native species,’ Lucy Bell-Reeves, NPK Recovery’s product manager, told the Guardian.
