Global environmental threats present a challenge to scientists and the public alike. Both the disappearance of species and the accompanying decline in biodiversity urgently require a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary scientific approach. This in turn warrants the application of techniques historically restricted to human and veterinary medical diagnosis or forensic investigations. In particular, there exists an unprecedented opportunity for input by pathologists and the appropriate use of their modus operandi, including necropsy and the laboratory examination of samples. The application of pathological methods to wildlife work is outlined, with particular reference to the investigation of crime and the emergence of conservation forensics as a subject in its own right.