Willan Gualinga first stepped onto a stage in his home community of Sarayaku, in the Ecuadorian Amazon, in the province of Pastaza. He recalls his hands sweating, his body trembling, and his mouth freezing up as words crowded his mind. Three years after that debut, he performed the same song at the Rizoma 2026 Festival in the Amazonian city of Puyo. This time, he was no longer in front of dozens of people. He was seeing thousands chanting his lyrics in his Indigenous Kichwa language. On this occasion, his body moved with the rhythm and with the strength his message demanded: “Allpamanda kawsay manda jatarishun,” or “Let us rise up for the land and for life.” That was the title of his first track and the phrase he shouted at the top of his lungs throughout his performance. The song draws on elders’ stories about the origins of Sarayaku (his traditional territory) and, like his other compositions, spotlights the threats facing his people. “Through music we can transmit the knowledge of our ancestors and, above all, defend the territory,” said Gualinga, a 23-year-old artist known on stage as “Taki Supay.” Like him, a new generation of Amazonian artists is using rap to bring attention to the threats facing Indigenous peoples and nationalities across the Ecuadorian Amazon — and to show why the rainforest must be protected. “Rap is talking about what you feel, what is happening, and our struggle,” Misael Elías Criollo Grefa, better known as Misa17, said. He is…This article was originally published on Mongabay

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Heavy rains lashed much of central Vietnam on Friday and caused flooding in parts of the historic city of Hue, a day after floods and landslides hit the coastal port city of Danang. Troops were mobilized and amphibious armored vehicles readied for rescue operations, state media reported. More rainfall was forecast through Sunday morning and authorities warned that continued downpours could trigger flash floods and landslides in mountainous areas and flooding in low-lying communities. In Hue, the country’s former imperial capital known for its centuries-old palaces, rainfall over the past three days exceeded 800 millimeters (31.5 inches), increasing the risk of flash floods and landslides. The rain was heaviest in coastal lowlands and hilly areas in the city’s south. In Danang, residential areas and streets were inundated on Thursday, with water levels more than waist-high in some areas, exceeding 1 meter (3.3 feet). Rescue teams helped evacuate children and move residents’ belongings to safety. A man remained missing after a boat carrying him and his wife capsized on the Truong Giang River on Wednesday afternoon, state media reported. The couple were returning home after cutting grass when their boat overturned. The woman, who could not swim, clung to a sack of grass and was swept nearly 300 meters (yards) downstream before residents rescued her. Her husband was carried away by the current. The military deployed nearly 130 troops in Danang and more rescue teams were formed. Amphibious armored vehicles were readied in case conditions worsen, state…This article was originally published on Mongabay

Happy World Octopus Day!  Every Oct 8, the world celebrates one of the more unusual creatures of the sea. Octopuses are well-known for their eight legs and ability to squirt ink when frightened. They’ve also been known to use tools, a sign of intelligence, and can shape-shift to mimic the colors and texture of their surroundings, an effective way to disappear from both predators and prey. Mongabay has reported on several octopus discoveries this year, including: Ancient octopus were apex predators Modern colossal squid are believed to be the largest invertebrates in the sea, but Mongabay’s Shanna Hanbury recently reported on an even larger ancient octopus species whose fossils were described by Japanese researchers in April 2026. The Japanese team found a fossilized jawbone from the now-extinct Nanaimoteuthis haggarti. Based on its jaw size, researchers suggest the octopus may have reached 6.6 to 18.6 meters (22 to 61 feet) in length. On the higher end, that’s around two-thirds the size of an adult blue whale, the largest animal to ever exist. “It suggests that it may have been among the largest invertebrates ever known,” study co-author Yasuhiro Iba, a paleontologist at Hokkaido University in Japan, told Mongabay by email. They were likely gigantic predators that roamed the late Cretaceous seas between 100 million to 72 million years ago. A rare look at baby octopuses From long dead octopus to newly born, Hanbury also reported on baby Argentine octopuses and a rare photo of them. Patagonian octopus eggs in Puerto Lobos Protected…This article was originally published on Mongabay