A rugged mountain range in southern Arizona provides a home for a major military base and communities that value the lifestyle and magical beauty of the landscape. Bobwhite quail suffer serious decline in Kentucky, where native grasses have been replaced by exotics for cattle pastures and conservationists try to reverse the damage. Private landowners in Arkansas manage their forests to supply a growing market for sustainable wood products. Once reviled and exterminated, wolves in Yellowstone National Park are now widely recognized as essential to a balanced ecosystem.
Digging for Dinosaurs: Talk about a special delivery! Co-host Caroline Raville got to witness the recovery of thousands of pounds of dinosaur fossils by helicopter, deep in the Utah desert. Paleontologists from the Bureau of Land Management call Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument one of the best “bone yards” on the planet. Scientists continue to identify new species of dinosaurs and other reptiles in this remote area. Many are 75 million years old!
Sonoran Desert Protection: There’s a quiet beauty in Arizona’s Sonoran Desert. A wide range of residents work to make sure wildlife and ancient artifacts here are protected, now and for the future. You’ll meet a pastor who’s come up with a game for his young parishioners to learn about nature. Local farmers embrace the daily visits of wild animals to their land. Conservationists, and even the U.S. Air Force, realize the need to keep this land safe for future generations.
“Swamp People”: The Okefenokee Swamp is constantly changing, from its river trails to its alligators and beautiful bird populations. Sharon Collins of Georgia Public Broadcasting joins some self-proclaimed “swamp people” who make their living in this National Wildlife Refuge. It is a wetland of international importance, but for anyone who visits, it is simply a captivating place to watch plants and animals.
The Colorado River brings drinking water, irrigation, recreation and livelihood to millions of people in the West. But it’s clear now that there’s not an unlimited supply of this precious resource. Business owners on and near the river are working to make sure their neighbors, and policy makers in Washington, get a complete picture of how critical this river is. Traveling through Arizona and northern Mexico, Bruce Burkhardt shows us there’s a lot that needs to be done to protect these waters now and for the future.
Different hikers get different inspiration from the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee. An artist takes photos that she will later paint; a woodworker studies how trees grow to get ideas for the furniture he builds; and a retired Marine gives back to his community by clearing fallen limbs from the trail. They all support a Congressional designation of this beautiful area as wilderness, so it will be preserved from development for future generations. From the amphibians to the wildflowers to the fishes—the array of diversity in the southern Appalachian forest is just astounding!
Shy, smart, curious and vulnerable: Manatees are slow-moving marine mammals that have not had it easy in recent decades. Diseases and red tide, but mostly strikes from boats and propellers, have killed and injured hundreds of them. Both Florida and federal authorities are stepping up protection of manatees, especially in their winter sanctuaries on the state’s west coast. Veterinarians and volunteers conduct physicals on these gentle giants to gauge their health and long- term outlook. Our host Caroline Raville swims with some manatees to bring us the story!
Removing a dam can cause big changes to a community, and to the environment. Before cities make the decision to take down a dam that’s either deteriorating or no longer needed, they must be prepared. Researchers at Dartmouth College use sophisticated tools to study river systems to help predict what will happen when the dam is gone. It’s all about “shoring up” what we know about how rivers flow, in order to make smart choices when it is time for a dam to come down.
Paleontologists find new dinosaur species in nearly two million acres of deep canyons at Grand Staircase Escalante Monument in Utah and Arizona. Fly-fishing is almost a spiritual endeavor for some Georgia anglers, and keeping waters clean is one of their
aims. Clean water is hard to find around the port of San Diego — decades of shipbuilding have left a toxic mess. In Wyoming, energy companies contribute to a fund that preserves migratory pathways. Rising sea levels threaten the delicate balance of fresh and salt-water marshes around the world.
Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument
Grande Staircase Escalante Partners
Fly Fishing
San Diego Coastkeeper
Natural Gas Drilling Supports Conservation
The Conservation Fund
Wyoming Game and Fish Department
Marshes and Sea Level Rise
A paradise for birdlife, Arizona’s San Pedro River faces threats from development. Conservationists race against time to save Florida panthers from extinction. Locals debate whether the Rock Creek area of the Bighorn Mountains deserves federal protection as wilderness. It’s about the size of a garbage can, but a new ocean-going device helps scientists do critical water analysis. Innovative ideas for growing winter vegetables in the frigid Rockies.
Arizona River
Florida Panthers
Lab in a Can
Rock Creek Wilderness
