The Wild with Chris Morgan

When a backcountry skier hits the high mountain slopes above Jackson Hole, Wyoming, they’re not alone. These high elevation hide outs are also home to Bighorn Sheep. And there may not be room enough for both in this western landscape. Skiers and sheep are competing for space and wildlife officials are taking drastic measures that some people are not super happy about.  I’ve seen this kind of tension on every continent I’ve ever worked on - ramming heads in the world’s wild places. But this story is unique because the conflict isn’t strip mining, it's not logging, or housing developments, it’s people playing in the mountains - maybe that’s the hardest thing in the world for humans to give up. When we’re out loving nature, might we just love parts of it to death? Even if we don’t know we’re doing that? Well, it’s all unfolding in the bighorn sheep country of the Wyoming Rockies.  Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community atwww.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written byChris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! We’re also on Tiktok! Check us out @chris.morgan.wildlife.

It’s time for me to face my fears! Oysters are iconic here in the Pacific Northwest. The glistening, oval shells and salty aroma are like having a tasty piece of the ocean on your plate. (Well…tasty for some). For a lot of people, including me, you try them once and hope you never have to again.  They’re also critical to the ecosystem. A single oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water a day. Their shells stick together as they proliferate, creating “reefs” that make habitat for over 300 other species from crabs, and herring, to sea anemones and young salmon.    But our native Olympia oysters have taken a real hammering. A combination of pollution, habitat degradation, and… the Gold Rush…. brought them to the brink. That’s when a strong group of oyster enthusiasts stepped in to help. On today’s episode, we’ll meet the folks going to some extraordinary lengths to save this local population…and I sit down at a downtown Seattle oyster bar to taste this slimy delicacy and learn why eating them can also help support their future. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community atwww.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written byChris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! We’re also on Tiktok! Check us out @chris.morgan.wildlife.

How do you save sage grouse inside Grand Teton National Park? With robot birds… of course.  A group of sage grouse have started using the runway at the Jackson Hole Airport for their mating dance. Not an ideal place for birds or humans.  On today’s episode, THE WILD producer Matt Martin sits down in front of the mic to tell me the story of how park rangers plan to relocate this unique bird species away from danger. It’s a fascinating story that involves jet airplanes, a couple teenage engineering geniuses, and some very convincing robot decoys. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community atwww.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written byChris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! We’re also on Tiktok! Check us out @chris.morgan.wildlife.

Almost everybody has seen the Grand Canyon, whether it’s on a road trip to northern Arizona or on a postcard. It’s one of the seven natural wonders of the world.  It’s one thing to see the canyon from a distance, even if that is standing on one of its storied rims. But it’s a whole other experience when you step down into it... to hike deep inside and walk along its ancient ridges. Best-selling author Kevin Fedarko did just that. In fact, he walked the entire 750-mile length of it. Over the course of his ambitious trek, Kevin faced serious heat exhaustion, dehydration, and had multiple near-death experiences, including almost running out of food during a snowstorm. But he lived to tell the tale. On today's episode, I sit down with Kevin Fedarko in the woods of Bellingham, WA to hear the remarkable story of his relationship with the Grand Canyon, his journey to uncover the human-made threats it faces, and what he learned along the way - through pain, misery, humiliation and laughter. GUEST: Kevin Fedarko, NYT best-selling author of A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon We’ve been nominated for a Signal award! A real honor. This award would mean the world to us and help us reach even more listeners. If you’d like to vote for us, click here. Voting closes October 15, 2026. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community atwww.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. Writing for this episode by Christopher Preston. It is hosted, produced and written byChris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! We’re also on TikTok! Check us out @chris.morgan.wildlife.

Bears in swimming pools… in Los Angeles? Of course I had to find out more. I've been studying bears and working with them in the wild for over 30 years, and I thought I'd seen it all. Polar bears in Canada, grizzlies in Alaska, Andean bears in South America. But I never thought I’d be racing to see a family of black bears lounging in a pool in a swanky LA  neighborhood.  A lot of my work is about keeping bears and people away from each other. Avoiding bear-human conflict. Bears belong in the wild, doing wild things surrounded by roots, berries, and forests… not hanging out with inflatable unicorns in swimming pools. But these LA bears are doing just that. And as you’ll hear, opinions about it run the gamut.  On today’s episode, I travel to LA to get to know these famous pool-loving bears, and see if it is possible for bears and humans to live side by side. What happens when bears make our home their home? We’ve been nominated for a Signal award! A real honor. This award would mean the world to us and help us reach even more listeners. If you’d like to vote for us, click here. Voting closes October 15, 2026. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community atwww.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. Writing for this episode by Christopher Preston. It is hosted, produced and written byChris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! We’re also on Tiktok! Check us out @chris.morgan.wildlife.

Welcome back to THE WILD!   All around the world, humans are getting up close and personal with wildlife. In Los Angeles, black bears are playing with floaties in swanky backyard swimming pools. Mountain lions are dodging cars trying to get across 10-lane highways. In subarctic Norway, generations of Eider keepers are bonding with vulnerable ducks. But when is getting too close to wildlife too far?  Join host Chris Morgan for Season 8 of THE WILD, where he'll travel the world to meet the people defending space for wildlife, from deep in the wilderness to their own backyards. How can wildlife, wild places, and humans share our beautiful planet?  New episodes of THE WILD come out starting on October 6, 2026. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

We lost a good friend a few days ago. A friend of the owls, and a man who made a real difference for them. I was very lucky to spend time with David Johnson for an episode we did about his delightful burrowing owls a few years ago - an experience that’ll always stay with me. David was a kind and inspiring man. He looked like an owl - inquisitive, wide-eyed, and full of magic, and possibilities. David Johnson passed away on June 15th from cancer. So in his honor, we’d like to share the episode we did that featured his work with burrowing owls. David’s owl work continues through the Global Owl Project and the people all over the planet that he brought into the world of these magical creatures that he loved with all his heart. Including the hundreds of young people he inspired to DO something for owls - so many of them are professional experts in the field now. 

You look amazing, you look beautiful. Those are the words of Victor Glover, pilot of NASA’s Artemis 2 mission. He spoke those words less than a month ago on his trip to the moon. His way of describing our planet as he peered out the window of his space capsule and took in the view. I couldn't think of a better message than that as we reshare our special episode to celebrate our planet. So I hope you enjoy and happy Earth Day!  Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

When I was eight, growing up in England, I was already really into birds. I was in the Young Ornithologists Club for goodness sake! I didn't have one friend who was into birds. But these days, things are different. Here in the USA, almost 100 million people birdwatch. And that number's growing. There's a lot going on between the birds, as they flit around chirping and singing  To us, it might just sound like beautiful little tunes. But to birds, and even other species in the forest,  there’s a whole hidden world of conversation out there— love songs, alarm calls, turf wars, parenting struggles — entire dramas unfolding above our heads.  So what are they saying? And why are they saying it? Naturalist Libby Mills has spent almost her entire life learning how to make sense of what the birds are saying.  Today, I take a walk with Libby in her backyard where she helps us slow down, listen deeply, and try to better understand what’s going on in a bird’s world. GUEST: Libby Mills, naturalist at the North Cascades Institute Check out our Great British Birding Show episode to meet a wildly enthusiastic birder on the other side of the pond. Bird book Libby recommends: The Sibley Guide to Birds - Second Edition Birding app: Merlin Bird ID This is our last official episode of the season. It’s been so much fun - thank you for coming along with us to some truly wild places. We will be back in the fall with more episodes. But in the meantime, we want to hear from you! What kinds of stories do you want to hear? What should we do differently? Please consider takingTHE WILD survey. It will only take a few moments of your time. Thanks! Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

Today, a fun trip down memory lane!  Lots of things have shaped my life and work as an ecologist, and this experience when I was 25 was one of them. As I wrapped up my master's degree at the University of Durham in England, I was hired onto a grey seal project on some tiny, uninhabited islands off the coast of Scotland.  While I was there, I recorded the seals and the six weeks of fieldwork on my Walkman cassette recorder. I had no idea I’d be digging into those archives 32 years later!  Hear the tape, learn about the seals, and listen to our conversation when I track down Dr Sean Twiss who hired me all those years ago. This was a fun one! GUEST: Dr. Sean Twiss, associate professor of animal behavior and behavior ecology at Durham University in England We want to hear from you! What kinds of stories do you want to hear? What should we do differently? Please consider takingTHE WILD survey. It will only take a few moments of your time. Thanks! Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership withChris Morgan Wildlife andWildlife Media. It is produced byMatt Martin andLucy Soucek, and edited byJim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking byApryle Craig. Our theme music is byMichael Parker.

Anton Mzimba was the head ranger at the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve in South Africa. Anton and hundreds of wildlife rangers like him risk their lives every day to protect endangered species, mainly the rhino, from poachers and organized crime.  Anton is the focus of a documentary film called Rhino Man. It tells the extraordinary story of the rhinos, and the brave rangers that are out to protect them. In this episode, filmmaker John Jurko ll tells us about his relationship with Anton, the threats to rhinos and how he finds hope in the face of so much evil.  You can support this work by contributing to a fund for Anton Mzimba’s family and the Future Rangers fund Audio in this episode and photo courtesy of Rhino Man, © Global Conservation Corps. Music courtesy of composer Simon Wilson.  We want to hear from you! What kinds of stories do you want to hear? What should we do differently? Please consider taking THE WILD survey. It will only take a few moments of your time. Thanks! Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

De-extinction! You probably saw the headlines - big, splashy statements about bringing the dire wolf - the ancient wolf species - back from the dead. But are they really back? Dr. Helen Pilcher says no. She’s an author, science communicator and an expert on genetically modified wildlife. And she joins me to make sense of this controversial idea of “editing” the genes of animals. It’s a heated conversation in the scientific community. Because it's not just about bringing back animals from the dead, it's about changing the genetic makeup of animals that still exist.  Today, we’ll dive into the pros and cons of modifying wildlife and the ethics behind changing the very DNA of a wild animal. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. Writing by Christopher Preston. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

I drive across the mountains and forests to a small corner of Washington state, where there's a group of ranchers from the Kalispel Tribe of Indians. They’re known as ‘The Buffalo Boys.’ Generations ago, members of the tribe would migrate hundreds of miles to the great plains to hunt buffalo. There were millions of buffalo until white settlers hunted them to near extinction, and the Kalispel were pushed from their land. But now, they have a herd of their own. On today’s episode, I visit the Buffalo Boys and their herd of buffalo to tell the story of how they got these buffalo, and what they’re doing to make sure that this magnificent creature will forever be a part of their lives. My huge thanks to the Kalispel for their warm hospitality.  Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. Writing by Christopher Preston. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

Animals and music? What a tantalizing mix! In a fascinating conversation with scientist and musician Dr. Diego Ellis Soto we learn about the way animals move - through music. When animals swarm, mill, or migrate, patterns are revealed. Soto explains that animals all prefer to move together with proper space, time, and direction....just like harmony in music. Soto’s work combines his academic work and his passion for music to create a fresh look at how we should think about nature in motion. It is a way to express complex data about animal movement in a way that is easy for people to understand. And that can be a powerful tool to inspire conservation. This episode might just make you think very differently about how you look at, or maybe hear, nature and its creatures. If you’d like to learn more about Diego’s work, I recommend you watch this lecture he gave as part of Yale University’s Franke Program for Science and Humanity.  Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife  and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership withChris Morgan Wildlife andWildlife Media. It is produced byMatt Martin andLucy Soucek, and edited byJim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking byApryle Craig. Our theme music is byMichael Parker.

There was a time when the existence of the giant panda was nothing more than legend. A fairytale to those in the western world. Whispers of a black and white beast echoed around the early 1900s. In this episode, my conversation mixes three of my favorite things - bears, mystery, and adventure as I hear an incredible story that Dr Nathalia Holt tells in her book The Beast in the Clouds: The Roosevelt Brothers’ Deadly Quest to Find the Mythical Giant Panda. But this story is about way more than just two brothers’ dangerous search for a mystery species in a strange part of the world. It’s also about the moment in history when humans began to understand their real impact on the natural world. A realization that led to the birth of the modern conservation movement. Oh, and there might be some Himalayan bandits and bone-chilling blizzards along the way! Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

Humpback whales in the Salish Sea have a complicated history. They were hunted to near extinction a century ago, with whalers turning some of the largest creatures on Earth into buckets of oil, slabs of meat, tubs of cheap margarine and fertilizer. These coastal waters were emptied of these magnificent creatures who once called them home.  But now, in an amazing turn of events, Humpback whales have started to come back. And what they’ve found is a whole new world of dangers. On today’s episode, I’m out at sea off the coast of Vancouver with scientists on a high speed chase for answers. Why are they coming back? And are they here to stay? Some groundbreaking research techniques might tell us. Check out our eDNA episode about the groundbreaking things scientists are using it for Whale Report app for reporting Humpback whales in the Salish Sea Marine Education and Research Society's Whale-Safe Boating course Listen to more whales around the Salish Sea Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek and edited by Jim Gates. Writing by Christopher Preston. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Photo Credit: Ocean Wise. Photo Taken Under DFO Permit MML-18, BCZ0180 "Monarch" Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

Happy holidays! Thanks for tuning into THE WILD. I’m so glad you’re here.  THE WILD team is hard at work on some more brand-new episodes that will come out in the new year. But for now, I want to revisit a very popular episode from last season that I think is perfect for this busy time of holiday travel.  It’s a conversation I had with author Ben Goldfarb about roads and their impact on pretty much everything in the natural world.  So, if you’re piling into the car to get to the airport, or taking a road trip to visit your friends and family, give a listen to this episode. I bet it’ll get you thinking differently about America’s roads. We'll be back in your feed in a few weeks. Have a happy and safe holiday season! GUEST: Ben Goldfarb, is an award-winning environmental journalist and author of Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership withChris Morgan Wildlife andWildlife Media. It is produced byMatt Martin andLucy Soucek, and edited byJim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking byApryle Craig. Our theme music is byMichael Parker.

Bear attacks in Japan have been in the news a lot recently. There have been over 220 attacks so far this year, and a record 13 people dead.  Why is this happening? And what can be done about it? There’s a lot of information out there, and it’s hard to separate fact from fiction when it comes to conflicts with wildlife. So I made two quick phone calls: one to a reporter from The New York Times and another to a Japanese bear biologist to figure out what’s really going on. Guests: Javier C. Hernández, Tokyo Bureau Chief for the New York Times Masahiro (Masa) Ohnishi, Principle Research Scientist at the Wildlife Management Office in Japan Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife  and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership withChris Morgan Wildlife andWildlife Media. It is produced byMatt Martin andLucy Soucek, and edited byJim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking byApryle Craig. Our theme music is byMichael Parker.

JAWS can only mean one thing! The movie that forever changed how we feel about sharks. It did me, that’s for sure. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the movie, we thought it might be time to help separate fact from fiction in a fun way……by playing audio clips from the movie and having a real shark expert react to them and tell us the truth about how dangerous they are, how sharks really think, why there’s been a surge in sightings in recent years, and so much more. Spoiler alert: you may or may not sleep better after this episode. Join me as I “dive deep” on sharks with Amani Webber-Schultz. And revisit our conversation with Dr. Rachel Graham on how to love a shark Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife  and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

“Life is earth, animated.” When I heard this statement for the first time it made me think about my relationship to our planet differently. That all life on earth is part of a giant feedback loop, a process of self-creation that has been ongoing for billions of years. This is the idea that Ferris Jabr explores in his book, Becoming Earth: How Our Planet Came to Life. Jabr traveled the world to find examples of this creation: from climbing a colossal tower over the Amazon to tunneling a mile underground towards the core of the earth. Ferris now believes that life doesn’t just exist on this planet, but that the planet itself is alive. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife  and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

This is not an easy story to tell. In the town where I live, Bellingham, Washington, there’s a beautiful urban creek. It flows just four miles from a lake, through a city park, down through the town to the sea. But in the summer of 1999, disaster struck. A gasoline pipeline ruptured, causing an explosion. Young lives were lost, and the creek and the ecosystems around it were obliterated.  But amid the destruction, amid all the loss, the creek found a way to find life again. And the people of Bellingham somehow found a way to move forward.  This is a story about the strength of the human spirit and how a community, a creek, and the once-thriving forest that it passed through began to recover after losing so much.  We would like to dedicate this episode to the memory of Liam Wood, Wade King and Stephen Tsiorvas. Our hearts go out to their families. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. We'll be back in your feed in two weeks on December 2. Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving holiday! Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action.

Have you ever wondered why your dog takes such a long time to sniff a patch of grass? Or why flies buzz around so sporadically? It’s because most of what a creature actually senses is invisible to us. They perceive their world as differently as we perceive our own. Pulitzer Prize winning science writer Ed Yong wrote a book about this called An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us. Join me for a fun conversation with Ed about the astonishing ways animals sense the world around us. From birds that navigate the open ocean by smell, to penguins that sense vibrations underground. By learning how animals perceive their world, it just might change the way we perceive them, and make us look at our own world a little differently. Check out our episode about AI and Animal Communication: Digital Dr. Dolittle: decoding animal conversations with artificial intelligence. Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action! THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership withChris Morgan Wildlife andWildlife Media. It is produced byMatt Martin andLucy Soucek, and edited byJim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking byApryle Craig. Our theme music is byMichael Parker.

Blink and you’ll miss ‘em! In this episode we get to know hummingbirds eyeball-to-eyeball.  The world of the hummingbird is changing fast in the deserts of Arizona. So much so that even an animal as quick as a hummingbird is struggling to keep up. Native plant ecosystems that make up the nectar landscape that hummingbirds use to migrate are shrinking. Join me as I travel to the mountains and deserts of the American Southwest with two experts to experience how these tiny but tough little birds manage to survive in such a harsh environment. And I get to experience these acrobatic marvels more up close and personal than I ever imagined possible.  Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife  and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

Environmental author Brooke Williams believes that dragonflies are messengers of wisdom and enlightenment. This idea got my head buzzing so I invited Williams to join me at a pond near my home to talk about it. He told me he has been on a 20-year journey to forge a new relationship with nature and that the dragonfly has been his guide to discover unseen forces in nature that are so captivating when we learn how to see them. In his book Encountering Dragonfly: Notes on the Practice of Re-enchantment, Williams opens himself up to the poetic and mystical meaning of the dragonfly. A doorway I really enjoyed walking through with him and hope you do too.   Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife  and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

Twenty-nine years ago cowboy Warner Glen took the first photograph of a jaguar that crossed from Mexico into Arizona. His surprising story opens our show. Today though, there is something very different happening on the border. Chris and his producer Matt Martin follow two biologists, one from Mexico and one from the USA, as they track the biggest cats in the Americas along the border. Jaguars are expanding their range from Mexico into the United States but now there is something that is getting in their way: a 30-foot steel border wall that now snakes across the mountains between the two.  Enjoy BONUS CONTENT and help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife  and you can donate to KUOW at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. A special thanks to the crew at Cuenca Los Ojos - Valerie Gordon, Jorge Chacon, and Anays Blanco for their help with this episode. Learn more about their work to preserve biodiversity in the borderlands. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram @chrismorganwildlife and @thewildpod for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

Welcome back to a brand new season of THE WILD! Travel with Chris as he uncovers unexpected stories from nature. Like jaguars - America’s biggest cat - trying to navigate the giant steel wall on the Mexican border; tiny hummingbirds searching to find their next meal along a landscape of nectar; a magnificent humpback comeback right off the coast of Vancouver, and many more. There's so much inspiration among creatures that are facing a new world of threats and finding ways to adapt and thrive.  New episodes of THE WILD come out starting on October 21, 2025. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Matt Martin and Lucy Soucek, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker. Follow us on Instagram (@thewildpod) and (@chrismorganwildlife) for more adventures and behind the scenes action!

Happy Earth Day! There is a lot of uncertainty in the world right now when it comes to the environmental health of our planet. Political leaders seem unable or unwilling to take action on climate change. And we continue our rapid loss of biodiversity. But I wanted to give you a little hope on this special day by sharing a little different perspective on this tiny blue marble we call home. If you enjoy this episode, please share it with others. After all, we're all in this together. And thanks to the wild team Matt Martin, Lucy Soucek, Jim Gates, and Brendan Sweeney. And thank you Gordon Hempton and Quiet Parks International for the beautiful audio.  

Tom Mangelsen is one of the most gifted and prolific wildlife photographers of our time. He may be best known for documenting the life of Grizzly Bear 399 in and around Teton National Park in Wyoming. I’ve spent thousands of hours alongside, and guiding some of the best wildlife photographers in the world, but I’ve never been lucky enough to spend time in the wild with Tom. And he has always seemed to possess a connection with animals that is rare. Whether it be gorillas, penguins, tigers, or our beloved grizzlies, Tom’s work over the last 50 years captures moments of true nature that inspire people all over the world. I went into our conversation wanting to talk about the most famous bear on earth, but also wanting to understand how he sees the world through his camera lens. What I got was a lesson in being still. We’d love to hear what you think of THE WILD. Which shows did you like the best? What would you like to hear more of? If you have a moment please fill outthis quick survey. Your feedback will help us plan for future episodes. Thanks! You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced byMatt Martinand edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

You can’t come to Yellowstone without thinking about the grizzly bear. This thriving ancient ecosystem is like a sacred space for them. And a critical source for food which they are constantly in search of in order to get the needed calories that will sustain them through their long winter sleep. But what many grizzly bear lovers might not think about are the fish at the heart of the bear feeding frenzy. Yellowstone has the largest high elevation lake in North America, and under the surface, a fight is going on between the native cutthroat trout and the invasive lake trout. And for a long time the invasive lake trout have been winning the battle, throwing the whole lake’s food chain into disarray. On today’s episode, Chris visits Yellowstone to see how scientists are turning an ecological disaster into a rare invasive species success story, and how the beloved Yellowstone grizzlies are faring amongst this drama. We’d love to hear what you think of THE WILD. Which shows did you like the best? What would you like to hear more of? If you have a moment please fill out this quick survey. Your feedback will help us plan for future episodes. Thanks! You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Lucy Soucek, written by Christopher Preston and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Behind most wildlife documentaries is someone who has spent countless hours, often in challenging conditions, waiting for that perfect shot. Chris talks to filmmakers Jeff Wilson and Mark Smith about their experience filming Adelie penguins for four months in Antarctica. With wind gusts up to 150 miles per hour it is one of the coldest and harshest continents on earth.  We’d love to hear what you think of THE WILD. Which shows did you like the best? What would you like to hear more of? If you have a moment please fill out this quick survey. Your feedback will help us plan for future episodes. Thanks! You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martinand edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Maybe you’re eating an apple, or a piece of lettuce right now. Could be a broccoli stem or perhaps a lovely juicy tomato. If you are, are you wondering how intelligent that plant is? I’d guess not. But here’s a conversation that might make you think twice.  Zoë Schlanger, a science writer for the Atlantic, has written an eye-opening book on the topic. It’s called The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth.  On today’s episode, Chris sits down with Zoë to talk about what it means for a plant to be intelligent, even without a brain, and how this revolutionary field of research might help us look at plant life a little differently.  We’d love to hear what you think of THE WILD. Which shows did you like the best? What would you like to hear more of? If you have a moment please fill out this quick survey. Your feedback will help us plan for future episodes. Thanks! You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Lucy Soucek and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Melting ice is usually bad news, but this place in Alaska has turned from frozen to flourishing in just 200 years.  Nestled in southeast Alaska, the stunning and famous Glacier Bay National Park is often called a “living laboratory.” Scientists from all over the world come here to study ecological succession: the step-by-step return of plants, insects, forests and animals. It’s a unique place to do that because just a couple hundred years ago, this whole landscape was covered in ice. But then, the ice started melting, uncovering a clean slate for nature to show us how she creates a flourishing ecosystem.  On this episode of THE WILD, Chris time travels through Glacier Bay National Park to discover how fast biodiversity can build when nature is left alone, in the surprising spectacle of life after ice. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Lucy Soucek, written by Christopher Preston and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD  is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

We are taking a break over the holidays in order to finish up our series about national parks. We’ll be back in your feed on January 7 with a visit to Glacier Bay National Park in southeast Alaska. We’ll learn how the trickles of chilly glacial meltwater are creating a flourishing ecosystem.  But in the meantime, I wanted to share an episode from a podcast I think you’ll really like called How Wild. It’s from our friends at KALW Public Media and the NPR Network. The podcast looks at the meaning of wilderness, sixty years since the passage of the Wilderness Act of 1964.  The law set aside areas within national parks and forests and other federal public lands for an extra level of protection. These wilderness areas have to be “undeveloped” and “natural” and they have to have opportunities for “primitive, unconfined recreation” and “solitude.”  But so much has changed since the passage of the Wilderness Act. In this episode, host Marissa Ortega-Welch looks at solitude and what that means these days with so many people hitting the trails. 

It started as a glacier. Then, about 13,000 years ago, it was a trickle, then a stream, and eventually a rushing river meandering through the Olympic Peninsula. For thousands of years, life thrived off the ecosystem served by the Elwha River that fed into to the Strait of Juan De Fuca. Then it stopped. A century ago, a dam was built to harness the power of the water and convert it into electricity. The salmon that the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe relied on were cut off from their spawning grounds. Ten years ago, that dam was taken down. In this special reprise episode, we look at the impact of the dam removal and how life in and around the Elwha is fighting its way back.  You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Nature writer Leigh Ann Henion has spent countless hours uncovering mysteries of the darkness that unfold while we’re asleep. She’s explored bats, moths, glow worms, spotted salamanders, and she’s written a new book about it called Night Magic: Adventures Among Glowworms, Moon Gardens, and Other Marvels of the Dark.  Today, Chris talks with Leigh Ann Henion about what we can find in the darkness and how we can preserve it, even from our own back porch. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Lucy Soucek and edited by Jim Gates. The Wild is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Once a year they come out, by the thousands. Fireflies. But these aren’t just any fireflies. These are Photinus Carolinas, also known as synchronous fireflies They blink on and off together. It’s an amazing site. On this episode, I head to Great Smoky Mountains National Park to experience the synchronous fireflies and learn how light from human development is threatening the future of these delicate, glowing insects and what the park is doing to try to protect them. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.  

Four times in the past decade Lake Abert has completely dried up, a barren lakebed encrusted with salt. Salt lakes are among the world's most threatened ecosystems. Lack of water could lead to many of these lakes permanently drying up in the American West.  But there is one tiny bird that could change all that. The Wilson’s Phalarope depends on salt lakes on their 6500-mile migration between North and South America. There is a movement to get the phalarope listed as a threatened species by the federal government as a way to protect the habitat they need to survive. Caroline Tracey is an environment reporter who grew up in the American West - a place that flows through so much of her work. She recently signed a book deal for a memoir about her love of salt lakes - these often-ignored ecosystems that are crucial to the world’s water cycle, migratory bird populations, and human health. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Chris remembers Bear 399, "The Queen" of Grand Teton National Park that was struck and killed by a vehicle near Jackson Hole, Wyoming on Tuesday, October 22. You can see the trailer of the PBS Nature documentary on Bear 399 here.  Team 399 Facebook page

In the Florida Everglades, the Burmese python is an invasive species that's close to triggering an ecological collapse. We'll head out with python hunters who track down these massive snakes for a bounty. Then we wade through the waste deep murky waters of the Everglades to see what researchers are learning about Burmese pythons in their waning hopes to remove them from this fragile tropical wilderness. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Lucy Soucekand edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Cuyahoga Valley National Park is nestled between Akron and Cleveland, Ohio. It once was an industrial wasteland, filled with debris from the nearby auto factories. The Cuyahoga river was so polluted that it literally caught fire. That fire was a moment that sparked an environmental movement. But I'm headed upstream. I'm going to follow the river and its story from its grim past to becoming a national park. We’ll look at how a toxic dump was transformed into a national park and a thriving ecosystem, teaming with life. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

We’re on a short break as we finish working on our stories for our series about America’s National Parks. I can’t wait to share with you what we’ve learned. Amazing stuff. We’ll be back with new episodes on October 15. But today, I’d like to play an episode of a podcast from our friends at Montana Public Radio and the Montana Media Lab. It’s called The Wide Open and tells stories about the places where people come together and fall apart. It’s a new podcast and this is their first episode. It’s about the Endangered Species Act, and what that 50-year-old legislation says about living with wildlife and living with each other. You can learn more about The Wild Open and listen to more episodes here.  THE WILD would not be possible without listener support. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by donating at kuow.org/donate/thewildnotes. Thank you!

We’re taking a short break from releasing episodes so we can work on more new stories for our series on our National Parks. I hope you’re enjoying it! In the meantime, I wanted to share a special episode of a show I think you’ll really enjoy: Outside/In from our friends at New Hampshire Public Radio. Each week, the show explores topics around science, wildlife, environmentalism, and more. It takes listeners on journeys across the natural world from wherever they are – and includes a healthy dose of goofing off. In this episode, the host and award-winning reporter Nate Hegyi explores wild horses. For many, these creatures are a symbol of freedom and the American West but for others, they’re an ecological nuisance. Nate visits a rancher on the Blackfeet Reservation where free-ranging horses have become more plentiful than deer. They’re outcompeting cattle for forage and putting livelihoods at risk.  Wild horses are a lot more controversial in the American West than most people realize.  You can learn more about Outside/In and listen to more episodes here.  THE WILD would not be possible without listener support. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you!

A decommissioned military base in northeast Oregon provides sanctuary for a recovering burrowing owl population.   David Johnson is founder of the Global Owl Project to protect endangered owl species all over the world. And one lucky owl species that’s been David’s main focus for these past 12 years is the little burrowing owl. His rescue mission involves some chemical weapons, an old military base, and a very large plunger.  You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. The Wild is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.  

Just two hours from Rome is one of the richest ecosystems in Europe, a little island of mountains that to this day is home to wolves, wild boar and bears. It's not just wild animals that call this place home: Farms are scattered across the area as part of this ancient mosaic of life here among the wild animals. It's a place where the excesses of Italian culture mingle with the wonders of nature. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. The Wild is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

For the first time in 100 years, wolverines are back in Mount Rainier National Park. How did they get there? In the summer of 2020, there was some big news for wildlife in the pacific northwest. In the wild spaces of Mount Rainier National Park, a female wolverine was discovered along with two babies known as kits. It is believed that these tenacious predators haven't been in the park for over a century. The wolverines were back. This is the story of the return of the wolverines and the woman who searched for 15 years to find them. Dr Jocelyn Atkins is a wolverine biologist and founder of the Cascade Carnivore Project.  You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. The Wild is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Top secret military dolphins, exploding whales, and invasive green crabs. These are all things Dr. Eily Andruszkiewicz Allan is interested in learning more about. And she is doing it all with the help of a simple cup of water. It's a revolutionary bit of technology called eDNA and it is changing the way biologists are doing field work. eDNA could hold the mysteries of a new frontier in our understanding of the natural world. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. The Wild is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Chris joins a team of scuba divers...in the desert!  Death Valley National Park is the hottest place on Earth and the driest place in North America. The heat that builds beneath Death Valley’s cloudless skies radiates off barren rocks and sinks into the valley bottoms, where it warms, baking everything it touches and evaporates any water foolish enough to linger at the surface. But beneath miles of dry desert land - in the largest national park in the lower 48 - is something you can't see from the crusty surface. A secret watery world, hidden underground. And a cave system that is home to the world’s rarest fish. The Devil’s Hole pupfish is less than an inch long, but has caused quite a stir. In this episode of THE WILD, Chris travels to Death Valley National Park to learn about how this tiny fish has made history and has changed our understanding of desert water in some remarkable ways. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Lucy Soucek, written by Christopher Preston and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Artificial Intelligence is making the stuff of science fiction a science reality, changing how humans interact with the world. It could also change the way we interact with wildlife, giving us the ability to talk to animals...but are we ready? On this episode Chris talks to Aza Raskin, co-founder of Earth Species Project and Karen Bakker, a professor at the University of British Columbia, about animal communication and the pros and cons of the latest AI technology.   You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. It is produced by Lucy Soucek and Matt Martin, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Here’s an episode for movie buffs, music nuts, animal lovers, and anyone dealing with anxiety. Yes, that's quite the range in a 40-minute chat, but Dr Dan Blumstein delivers them all in a fascinating conversation with Chris about FEAR. Dan is a professor of conservation biology at UCLA and author of the book The Nature of Fear: Survival Lessons from the Wild. He spent his career trying to better understand the emotion by looking at marmots. He says that animals can help us better understand ourselves. And we will explore what makes a scream a scream, and how to embrace our fears.  You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Matt Martin and edited by Jim Gates. The Wild is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

One day, Chris was on the search for a very rare animal: a single wolf that had made it to the western side of the North Cascade mountains. That day, to his amazement, he found a set of fresh tracks on a sandy riverbed. Wolves had been extinct here in Washington state for nearly a hundred years, so the find was incredible.   These mythical creatures are very slowly returning to the North Cascades. It’s a sign of hope for both Jason Ransom, a biologist at the National Park, and Scott Schuyler from the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe. But it’s taken a lot to get to this point, and there’s still a long way to go before this place is truly healed. On his journey searching for this lone wolf, Chris asks the question: will the wildlife and human ecosystem make space for them as they trickle back? The image pictured is the first wolf track Chris found on the west side of the North Cascades that triggered the story told in this episode. You can help us continue to create this special immersive storytelling by joining THE WILD Patreon community at www.patreon.com/chrismorganwildlife or donating at kuow.org/donate/thewild. Thank you. For some great photographs and clips from our journey through the national parks, check out our Instagram @thewildpod and @chrismorganwildlife. THE WILD is a production of KUOW, Chris Morgan Wildlife, and the NPR Network. This episode was produced by Lucy Soucek and edited by Jim Gates. THE WILD is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.