"C'mon, Matt!" "Attention all stations." "Stand by for an urgent tsunami warning for the Big Island and the islands of Maui, Lanai and Oahu." "This warning is based on a 7.5 magnitude earthquake near Kailua-Kona." "Could it really happen?" "Could a giant wave really menace the beaches of Hawaii?" "There is something out there and it threatens coastlines around the world." "It's one of nature's least understood forces:" "Tsunami!" "We often see hurricanes and typhoons that churn up higher-than-normal tide." "They can flood low-lying coastal communities." "But as dangerous as these storm surges can be, they are not the worst of all possible waves." "The real monsters are tsunamis, freak waves usually produced by undersea disturbances like earthquake." "They can race across entire oceans and swallow cities whole." "And they can leave tens of thousands dead." "Throughout history, tsunamis have generated legendary disasters..." "Reversion the shores nearly every ocean and sea." "Without warning and without mercy." "killer waves have struck again and again." "And tsunamis are as mysterious as they are deadly, because so few have ever been observed by scientists." "This extraordinary footage was shot in 1952, in the Kuril Islands off Russia's northern Pacific Coast." "A typical tsunami, it moved inland like a rising tide, but with far greater speed and force." "Fortunately it caused only minor damage here... and no deaths." "But tsunamis can be catastrophic." "In the last century alone, more than 50,000 people have been killed by tsunamis." "Most had little or no warning." "Few were even aware of the danger." "But for the people of the Pacific Rim, deadly tsunamis are not rare events." "They live in the most seismically active part of the planet, an area criss-crossed by earthquake zones and dotted with volcanoes, so it's not surprising that the vast majority of the world's tsunamis occur here." "In the middle of the Pacific, the Hawaiian Islands lie isolated and exposed." "It's people are certainly no strangers to tsunamis." "But some of them are acutely aware of the risk." "Dr. Walter Dudley is director of marine science at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, and a leading expert on tsunamis." "We'll have a little on-site safety briefing." "Today he's taking one of his classes on a snorkeling field trip." "But first, a few words of caution." "Okay guys, everybody listen up." "We're only about 30 miles from the epicenter of two of the largest earthquakes that have ever struck this island." "In both cases, they generated large destructive tsunamis." "The waves took about ten minutes to get here and were about 10 to 15 feet high." "So if you are out there on the reef, and you feel a big earthquake, drop your gear and get out of the water and move ashore as quickly as possible" "Okay, let's have a good lab." "They are among the most catastrophic of all natural phenomenon." "Unlike things like hurricanes, there are no warning signs." "The weather doesn't get bad." "You don't feel the earth shake." "It can be just a beautiful day and then, all of a sudden, the ocean can come up and come ashore 30 feet high." "In the Hawaiian Islands, we've recorded tsunami wave heights as great as 56 feet on this island from the 1946 Aleutian tsunami." "In prehistoric times, wave heights may have reached over a thousand feet." "Hilo has been struck by tsunamis as long as there has been a Hilo." "But it was really in 1946 when there was a built-up downtown Hilo that we had a very, very large tsunami" "Nineteen forty-six..." "after four years of war," "Hawaiians can relax." "At last, their island paradise is safe from attack." "But more than 2,000 miles away, a new threat emerges from the sea." "On April 1, at around 12:30 in the morning, an undersea earthquake off the coast of Alaska generates a huge tsunami." "Within minutes it will make its first landfall on the Aleutian island of Unimak," "90 miles from the epicenter." "Inside the island's Scotch Cap Lighthouse, the men feel the tremor, but they have no idea what's heading their way." "When the wave slams into their island, it's more than 100 feet high." "After it passes, the Scotch Cap Lighthouse has disappeared, and so has its crew." "The tsunami continues racing south toward Hawaii at over 400 miles per hour." "And just as in Alaska, no one here suspects a thing." "It's first impact in the islands is deceptive." "Some waves are as small as two or three feet, barely hinting at the tsunamis awesome power." "By the time it arrives at Coconut Island in Hilo Bay, the tsunami has begun to swell to monstrous proportions." "Its waves wash over the island, easily overtopping the 30-foot palm trees." "Lining Hilo Bay were dozens of homes." "Kapua Heuer's family lived on a bluff high above the bay." "My family ventured as close as it could to the edge of this bluff when we saw this mammoth wave come in." "It's 32 feet from here down to the ocean." "We had to step back because where we were standing, all of a sudden, it was ocean." "In the city of Hilo, residents panicked when the first waves hit, fleeing for their lives." "Many try in vain to outrun the tsunami" "We heard this horrible clash in Hilo and we knew that the buildings on the ocean side were being knocked down." "There was turmoil all day long." "The whole town was awash with water and hurt people and lost people." "We did see people in the ocean struggling, dogs trying to swim ashore." "We saw that." "But you couldn't do anything about it." "The force of the water was so great, you couldn't venture into it." "You had no chance." "You felt very helpless and wondered was there anybody out there that you knew." "One photographer watches in horror as a wave overtakes a dock worker trapped on a pier." "In the next frame, taken after the wave has passed, the worker is nowhere to be seen..." "swept away like so many others." "I had gotten up, gone downstairs to wash up..." "Larry Nakagawa was 14 when the wave struck his home in Hilo." ". ." "And as I was washing my face and brushing my teeth," "I heard this strange sound of gravel being thrown on the pavement." "So my brother came out and said" ""It looks like we are having a tidal wave." "We better get on the tree."" "So he hoisted me up and then my father was hoisted." "He and my father were on the same branch and, because of the way the branch was, he had to hold my father around, to grab hold of the trunk." "And I think that when the wave came, he felt that if he hung onto my father... the way... the force of the wave would push him, and if he hung on, he would take my father in." "So he let go and he went with the wave." "It was strict horror to go into the mortuaries." "When they found somebody, identified somebody all the bodies were covered they put a tag on a toe." "But they were covered with a blanket." "And when you pulled back the blanket to see if you recognized them, the horror on their death..." "was terrible... when they died." "They were frightened." "Eyes open, mouth agape." "And just a terror looked-face on them." "It was very unpleasant to look at." "Twenty-five miles northwest of Hilo, the little peninsula called Laupahoehoe lies exposed to the full fury of the tsunami." "Students have just arrived in the Laupahoehoe schoolyard and are waiting for classes to start." "Among them are Bunji Fujimoto and his two brothers." "That day remains vivid in Bunji's memory." "I could see a wall of water coming in from out in the ocean." "It compared to filling up a cup of coffee." "You just keep pouring and once it hits the brim, it spills over, and that's what happened back here, up on the wall." "It didn't stop with the wall." "It just came over, spilled over." "And we could see we were in trouble." "We had to run." "We started running." "When the water started coming over, we started running up to higher ground to my left, where the school building was." "Fortunately, we made it in time." "A bunch of the other children didn't make it, the other students, mostly students in this area." "My brother was down here and we never found him." "We always wondered what he would have turned out to be like later on." "He was 14 years old and just getting to his prime of life." "You can't do anything about it." "You can't do anything more than just think and talk about it" "Bunji's brother was among the 25 who died at Laupahoehoe, mostly students and their teachers." "Almost all of the bayfront area was nearly totally destroyed." "The businesses were ripped right off their foundations." "Many of the structures were wooden and they were totally collapsed." "The railway which was built on wooden railway ties the wooden ties were floated out by the water and the rails twisted into pretzels." "One hundred fifty-nine people died that day 96 in Hilo alone." "Over time, the city would rebuild." "But this tragedy would mark a turning point." "Those who lived in the shadow of the tsunamis were determined to be better prepared for the next killer wave." "Just two years later, in 1948, the U.S. government established the Pacific Tsunami warning center in Honolulu." "Today, the center remains on alert around the clock, coordinating the efforts of dozens of Pacific Rim countries." "We try to get a warning out as quickly as possible, and we have to go to our resources to find out where the earthquake is and what its magnitude is." "And then, given that information, we issue this warning to the various participants in the warning system in the Pacific." "Equipped with state-of-the-art satellite technology, seismic sensors, and a vast network of wave monitors, the warning center can track any major earthquake on the planet and determine whether a tsunami is on its way." "Scientists know that an undersea earthquake, or a volcanic eruption anything that causes the sea floor to shift suddenly can displace huge volumes of water." "When this disruption reaches the surface, a series of waves spreads out." "They can move as fast as 600 miles per hour." "Unlike a normal wave caused by wind or tides, the energy of a tsunami is evenly distributed all the way to the ocean bottom." "In deep water, there's barely a ripple at the surface" "But as a tsunami wave approaches land, the seafloor rises." "The energy is compressed and the waves can be pushed up as high as 100 feet or more." "It's always a number of thousands of people that could possibly live or die, depending on our decision." "Here in the Hawaiian Islands, for example, every few years, we have..." "That's interesting." "We've got an earthquake to deal with." "It looks like it's a small local quake in the central part of Alaska." "The center detects two or three quakes every week." "Most like this one present no threat of tsunami." "But even when a tsunami alert is issued, not everyone will take it seriously." "When you go from one tsunami to the next tsunami, people don't even know what they are." "So it's hard for them to even consider them a threat." "First of all, you have to convince them that there is such a thing, and secondly, that it can cause destruction." "Even in Hawaii, with its tragic history of tsunamis, people can forget the lessons of the past." "In 1960, 12 years after the warning center was established, a massive earthquake off the coast of Chile generates a tsunami that fans out across the Pacific." "Hawaii lies directly in its path." "Early on the evening of May 22, the warning center issues its prediction" "...a tsunami will hit Hilo sometime around midnight." "But with midnight long past, and only small waves washing ashore, many ignore the alert, and return to the downtown bayfront." "A few even gather at the Suisan Fish Market to watch the waves come in." "The 35-foot wall of water strikes like a bomb." "Once again Hilo is brought to its knees, with $30 million in damage and 61 dead." "This wave will change Hilo forever." "Today, as you look at downtown Hilo, you see the highway along the bayfront, which used to be the railway before the tsunamis." "You see a big expanse of green parkland soccer fields and places where people picnic and play ball." "All of that was homes and businesses... very, very heavily populated before the tsunamis." "If you go there today, you can see the old roads which go in, driveways, all leading to nothing." "They see that area and they think what wonderful urban planning we have in Hilo to have all that parkland." "That's planning thanks to Mother Nature and at great expense to the city of Hilo, both in terms of property and loss of life." "Tsunamis have been rare events." "There has not been a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami in over 30 years." "But if you look at the number of tsunami events over the last century there's been on the average one destructive tsunami every seven years so in many ways you would say that we're long overdue for the next tsunami" "Walter Dudley is not the only scientist who's worried about the next one." "In the Seattle office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration," "Dr. Eddie Bernard is spearheading efforts to alert the public to the dangers of tsunamis." "Most certainly they're killers." "If you look at the history of the United States since World War I I, more people have died from tsunamis than from earthquakes in our country." "It's one of the few natural disasters that has such broad impact." "Most natural disasters are very localized." "An earthquake, although it may be several hundreds of miles, doesn't affect anything outside of that hundreds-of-miles area" "But if you add up the dimensions of the Pacific Rim shorelines, it's on the order of 100,000 miles." "So one earthquake, properly placed, can affect the coastlines thousands of miles away." "In Japan, however, the greatest tsunami threat comes from earthquakes generated not thousands of miles away, but much closer to home." "This island nation lies on top of one of the most seismically active regions on earth." "The Japanese know that the sea's bounty is often matched by its wrath." "In 1896, an offshore quake sent 100-foot waves crashing into villages on the Sanriku Coast." "The next morning," "local fishermen returning to shore were stunned." "A few miles out at sea, they had not even noticed the tsunami passing under their boats." "Now they found their homes destroyed, their families decimated." "More than 22,000 had drowned." "Four decades later, it happened again." "1,500 vessels were swept ashore by the wall of water and many in their crews drowned." "Government aid is being rushed, but it will be a long time before this stricken region can be restored in the land of the rising sun." "The Japanese are no strangers to tsunamis." "Killer waves, like the ones recorded in the news footage, visit their shores with frightening regularity." "But even the Japanese can be taken by surprise." "In 1993, a quake off the coast of Okushiri Island generates tsunami waves that reach shore in less than 10 minutes" "It's the middle of the night, and most do not have time to evacuate." "One of the lucky ones is television cameraman Hiroshi Nakamura who records his own escape on video." "There was a straight road from our hotel to the hills." "We reached the crossroads as we were driving to the hills." "Usually, we would turn to the left, but the driver saw something like white waves ahead on his left side" "The disaster I saw from the hill was just like a war movie." "The devastation was something that made a strong impression on me." "The fact that the whole town vanished is something I haven't forgotten." "Nearly 200 died that night in Okushiri." "On the southern tip of the island, where there were hundreds of homes, only rubble remained." "Dr. Eddie Bernard arrived in Okushiri two days later with a special tsunami task force." "Well, my emotional reaction was... it was like being at ground zero of the atomic bomb or something..." "You just couldn't believe the destruction." "The power of these waves was far more than I had expected." "Although I had been studying this phenomenon for 25 years..." "I'd never seen the power of a devastating tsunami... and what it actually could do." "You just look at some of the structures that were ripped apart and saw how things were destroyed entirely." "Then you start to appreciate the forces at work here." "Looking at a photograph of a young girl who wasn't too much older than my daughter at that time, really brought home the fact that most of the people who died in this event were young children or the elderly." "What we actually could see were the remnants of people's lives." "Then you realize that... these 500 homes had destroyed the lives of hundreds of families." "And, of course, death was part of that process." "And so... you had to be very respectful of what we were actually looking at." "Although it was scientifically important, we didn't want to be disrespectful for those people who had passed away" "And it motivated me as a research scientist to realize that the real reason for studying tsunamis in the research mode is to save a few lives." "And that's the bottom line." "Today Okushiri is slowly recovering from its tragedy." "The people are rebuilding their homes and repairing their lives." "But because space is at a premium here, most new homes must be built where the old ones stood... making them just as vulnerable to the next tsunami." "There is no one spot, however, that will probably never be rebuilt." "The devastated southern tip of the island will likely remain an empty zone, a reminder of what was taken by the sea" "Two hundred miles to the south is another town that has long suffered the ravages of tsunamis." "Over the past century," "Taro has seen 3,000 of its citizens swept away." "The people of this town have learned to carry on in the face of tragedy, to live with the continual threat of disaster." "The last great wave struck here in 1933" "It left Taro in ruins, and wiped out nearly a quarter of its population." "A year later, the survivors fought back." "They built a wall to keep the sea in check the next time it rose." "Today, the wall dominates the town, a reinforced concrete battlement 34 feet high and in some spots, 80 feet thick." "For the people of Taro, it's become a familiar and reassuring part of the landscape" "In the summer, the seawall gets warmed up and I cannot sleep because the heat reflects off of it." "At that time I wish there were no seawall, but I never forget its reason for existing." "If there were no wall, I wouldn't want to live here." "Taro is also protected by its own tsunami warning center." "Besides the usual satellite technology there are video cameras, permitting technicians to monitor the harbor 24 hours a day," "looking for changes in sea levels and awaiting the inevitable." "And if alarms are sounded, Taro is ready." "Crack teams of gatekeepers carry out regular drills, closing the wall's six doors against the sea." "Each of the massive steel doors must be sealed in under four minutes." "They've never been tested against a major tsunami." "The seawall certainly offers the people of Taro a measure of comfort, but that may not be enough." "It's 34-foot height should stop most waves." "But the infamous tsunami of 1896 had waves over 90 feet high." "There's just no way to know how big the next one will be." "Back on the wave-ravaged island of Okushiri, they're building their own wall." "When it's completed, it will surround nearly a quarter of the island, providing at least partial protection against the next tsunami." "But the people of Okushiri haven't put all their faith in reinforced concrete." "In a ceremony held every June, they pay homage to the dead, including hundreds of tsunami victims, enshrining their memories in stone." "As darkness falls, a bonfire is lit to serve as a beacon, guiding home those who were lost to the waves." "Paper lanterns symbolize the souls of the victims, released once again to the sea." "It is an act of remembrance and perhaps a prayer for deliverance." "The threat of tsunami is not as distant as most of us think." "Half a world away from the fishing villages of Japan lies the Northwest Coast of the United States." "The town of Crescent City, California, shares a tragic legacy with Taro and Okushiri." "People here can still recall their own encounter with a deadly wave" "March 27, 1964." "Good Friday." "A violent earthquake off the coast of Alaska generates an enormous tsunami." "The Pacific Coast of North America, from Vancouver to San Diego, lies in its path." "At 11 that night," "Crescent City Civil Defense Chief, Bill Parker, receives urgent news." "My first experience with a tsunami was a teletype that came into my office" "And it said that there was a probability of a tsunami and it gave an estimated time of arrival in Zulu time." "Well, we didn't even know what a tsunami was, let alone know how to spell it." "And we certainly didn't know how to convert Zulu time to our time." "And we were really devastated as to what the threat was and what to do." "On March 27, we received this teletype telling us there was a good possibility that Crescent City would have a tsunami." "And we were really frightened." "But not everyone in Crescent City was frightened." "Many were intrigued by the novelty and went down to the waterfront to watch the waves come in." "Among them was Ray Magnuson." "I parked the car down by the entrance to the dock and I met my wife there and started walking down the road." "As I went down the road, I could hear a roar." "Some guys said," ""Hey look, hey look, it's coming over the jetty."" "Well, I assumed it was a tidal wave coming over the jetty, which was not too good a thing to be hearing, since I was not very far above sea level." "I waited and watched and watched, and pretty soon up the road, you could see water coming." "Then there was a cafe on the right hand side of the road looking down, and the cafe slid across the road." "I thought at that time, I said," ""I better get out of here."" "So I turned and started walking." "The water was chasing me, still behind me, and I got back to the car." "Anyway, the water kept coming and kept coming, and as you know, Volkswagens float." "Well, sure enough, ours began to float" "You could hear the explosions up in town." "Then, as things began to be destroyed you could hear things break a big hunk of lumber stopped in front of the car and it made a breakwater, and the car just floated there." "Water went out and we drove away." "We had no idea of the extent of the damage." "And we were all dumfounded." "When we looked out, we could not believe it." "I gave a report to the director of emergency services of the state of California." "He was giving a report to the governor, and I told him I think that Crescent City is gone." "The final toll: 11 people killed;" "more than $7 million in damage." "And now we all knew:" "A tsunami could happen anywhere, not just far away, but right here at home." "Three decades later, the people of Crescent City are better prepared." "But unlike the Japanese, they have no seawalls, no computerized warning system, no video cameras guarding the town." "If a tsunami struck here tomorrow, this town could be devastated once again." "Was the Crescent City disaster a unique event?" "Or could another tsunami strike the Pacific Northwest?" "Giant waves are part of the oral traditions of many native American tribes who lived along these shores." "The Tolowa people spoke of one such event." "The grandmother told the two children to go right away as fast as they could." "The two children ran as fast as they could," "upstream away from the harbor." "Halfway there, they looked back." "They could see the water come." "They could hear the people cry." "They could hear the cries rise and fade away." "When they reached the top of the mountain, the boy made a fire and they sat around it." "When the sun came up, everything was gone." "They went back to where their house had been." "There wasn't anything there." "Everything was swept clean." "It's only a legend, but it may be based upon a terrifying reality." "Just off shore and several thousand feet down lies the Cascadia Subduction Zone." "It's a 900-mile crack in the earth's crust, capable of producing powerful earthquakes." "A tsunami generated here could reach the coast in less than 20 minutes." "Near the mouth of the Copalis River in southern Washington... geologist Brian Atwater seeks evidence of just such an event... evidence that would correspond to some of the ancient stories." "The first indication of a catastrophe:" "a dreary grove called the Ghost Forest" "These trees were flourishing some three centuries ago, when an earthquake caused the river banks to sink, and what had been high ground became a salt marsh, poisoning the trees." "The same earthquake almost certainly generated a tsunami here." "Atwater believes he's found more clues in the banks of the river telltale signs embedded in the soil itself revealing that this region was indeed flooded by a tsunami." "Got a big piece of burned wood in here." "I assume it's a campfire." "We might have a fire pit coming out of this here." "We got a three-layer cake here." "We go back 300 years or a little more to a time when this site was a forest." "It had sitka spruce, it had western red cedar, and it had native people who were cooking, using rocks like this." "The brown layer records a campsite and the forest floor." "The gray later represents the tsunami generated by an earthquake 300 years ago." "The tsunami comes in, dumps the sand on the campsite." "Then the mud builds up on top of the tsunami deposit, because the land had dropped during the earthquake." "But this wasn't the only great wave to strike the coast of Washington." "Atwater and other scientists have found more evidence of earthquakes and tsunami in the distant past." "There was a tsunami about 1,000 years ago generated in Puget Sound by an earthquake probably as large as the Kobe earthquake, on a fault that goes right under downtown Seattle" "During an earthquake, land was moved upward 20 feet." "The floor of Puget Sound probably moved upward as well." "If the floor moves up, the surface of Puget Sound up here moves up." "Temporarily, it's 20 feet higher than it wants to be." "Gravity takes over and you get a big wave." "So that's what happened 1,000 years ago in Puget Sound." "And it could happen again." "Scientists believe there's a one in ten chance of a major tsunami striking the Pacific Northwest in the next 50 years." "Here in Washington, there are many places where people do not yet have enough information from public official about what they should do in the event of one of these." "They do not yet have posted the kind of tsunami warning signs that one sees in Oregon now that help to direct a person, just sort of put it in the mind, everyday as you drive past it." "You see this on the outer banks in North Carolina:" ""Hurricane Evacuation Route"." "These kinds of signs need to be up on this coast so in the event of one of these kinds of tsunamis, people think, "Oh, yeah, I remember about that sign." "It said, 'Go up that road."'" "And there might be high ground, far enough up that road, far enough away that you could survive the effects of a tsunami." "Brian Atwater isn't trying to scare people." "He just hopes to raise public awareness." "And the message is finally getting across:" "Government officials have begun developing new strategies to save lives when the next tsunami strikes." "The state of Oregon has recently drawn a line in the sand, establishing a 300-miles-long inundation zone along their coast." "Because of the risk, no new schools or hospitals can be constructed close to shore without special permission." "One town that lies within the zone is Cannon Beach." "It's a quiet little resort town whose population swells to as much as 20,000 in the summer." "Cannon Beach is more prepared for a tsunami than most towns, conducting regular tests of its warning system." "Test, test, test." "But they don't want to frighten the residents or the tourists, so the shrill siren is replaced with something a little bit friendlier." "The folks in Cannon Beach have maintained their sense of humor, but they do take tsunami seriously." "They know they have a lot to lose, especially here at Cannon Beach Elementary, only 400 feet from the ocean." "We're going to add "re" to the beginning of the word." "So what would be the new word if you add "re" to the first word?" "Brian B.?" "Regain?" "Regain is right." "And how do you spell regain, Nathan?" ""R-E-G-A-l-N"" "Right." "These kids are well aware of the tsunami threat." "And they know what to do when the alarm bell rings." "Let's exit calmly, class." "They have only a few minutes to get to higher ground." "You guys did it this time in 13 minutes and 30 seconds." "Great job." "Great job." "You hustled all the way up." "I saw people encouraging one another." "You not only focussed on keeping yourself and your partner straight, but you also and safe but you also were encouraging people all the way." "I really, really appreciate that." "Great job." "Give yourselves one more hand." "Alright." "Great." "Plans are in the works to relocate the school, but until then evacuation drills will continue." "It's the only way to prevent a catastrophe." "The last tsunami hit Cannon Beach 30 years ago." "And in the school playground, there's chilling evidence of its power:" "The steel swing set bears scars inflicted by trees, uprooted and hurled about by the waves." "Fortunately, that tsunami struck at night, when the schoolyard was empty." "The next one could happen anytime." "Cannon Beach is well aware of the dangers of tsunami." "But there are other towns at risk along the Pacific Coast... and many of them are simply unprepared" "For the state of Washington, there's a resort area called Long Beach" "It's a low-lying sand barrier." "And during the summer months, sometimes there's as many as 40 or 50,000 people that are out there in recreational activities." "That would be by far the worst case scenario, because there's only one way out of that, and that poses a very gruesome picture." "Probably the people couldn't evacuate in time." "And anything that's not reinforced concrete would be wiped out." "And it becomes timber in the water, then causing more damage, because now it's incorporated as part of the wave." "Automobiles become floating objects and they'd be propelled all over the place." "So as the wave sweeps back and forth, it would probably just bulldoze and leave probably six or eight inches of sand." "So when it's all over, it'll be nice smooth sandy beach without any of man's structures on it anymore." "Warning systems and evacuation procedures are well-established here in Hawaii." "But they're only effective if people trust them." "Leave the area." "This is an update on the civil defense tsunami alert." "At this time, you are advised to stay in your room until further notice." "Roads out of Waikiki are now closed." "In 1994, a tsunami warning was issued here and beaches were evacuated throughout the islands." "Three hundred thousand people responded" "But this tsunami alert may have done more harm than good." "Well, in 1994, there was a large earthquake in the northwest Pacific Ocean." "It was big enough to have generated a Pacific-wide tsunami." "The early indications were that there was significant run-up of the water in the tidal stations closest to the earthquake." "So the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center declared a tsunami warning." "They accurately predicted the arrival time of the waves, but they are incapable of predicting how large the waves are actually going to be." "When tsunamis occur as rarely as they do and with as little money as is available for research, we as yet just don't know how to predict how large the waves will be." "So in Hawaii the waves came ashore six inches high." "And unfortunately most of the public interprets that as a false alarm, when in fact it's just our lack of understanding." "It could've been a potentially devastating tsunami." "The problem with over-warning people is of course, they lose confidence in the system." "They say, "Oh, it's just another false alarm,"" "and we don't bother." "Or the flip side of this is they become so cavalier about it they will actually go to the beach to see what it is." "So I think it's incumbent upon us as scientists to try to find a more accurate way... of forecasting the effects of these." "Now the technology finally exists to do just that." "In a government warehouse near Dr. Bernard's office, you can see the future of tsunami forecasting." "A 20-foot signal buoy, coupled with advanced wave sensors, could put an end to false alarms and help save lives." "Anchored in the middle of the ocean as part of a Pacific-wide network, the system will make it possible to predict the height of tsunami waves as well as when and where they'll strike." "Undersea gauges will take the precise measure of each passing wave and transmit the data to the buoy floating above." "A satellite will complete the link to the tsunami warning center." "The new system could eliminate false alarms and build public confidence in the tsunami warning system." "But there are certain types of tsunamis that can strike so suddenly and with such force that even the most sophisticated system would be unable to provide a warning." "Here in the Hawaiian Islands, where all of the land is built by volcanic eruptions, the islands grow up from the sea floor, and then periodically the sides slide back down onto the ocean floor." "They've created magnificent cliffs along the sides of all of the islands in the chain." "But when those chunks of the islands slide off onto the Pacific Ocean floor as huge landslides and debris flows... they have the potential to generate giant destructive tsunamis" "And there's evidence that they have created waves as high as 1,000 feet on some of the islands in the past." "These landslide waves may be part of Hawaii's future as well as its past." "Here on the Big Island, a huge crack in the earth is opening up" "It's 60 miles long." "And it's growing wider every year." "Some scientists think it's gradually detaching one side of the island from the other." "The great crack is one of these fault zones." "At one time, it may have actually had magma in it." "But now, it's probably serving more like a hinge, where part of the island is beginning to slide down and may someday slip away toward the ocean floor." "A thousand-foot tsunami on the coast of Hawaii would be catastrophic." "But a giant tsunami could happen anywhere, even without earthquakes, volcanoes, or landslides." "A few scientists are beginning to examine another possible cause extremely remote, but terrifying." "Recently, the effects of a meteor impact have been studied." "Depending on the size of the meteor, you could have some very destructive waves generated by the splash from a meteor in the ocean." "You could have a wave formed hundreds of feet high." "It is probably the surprise no one's prepared for." "A giant tsunami generated by a meteor may only happen once every few thousands years." "But it doesn't take a giant tsunami to devastate a community." "At the memorial park near Hilo, where the Laupahoehoe school once stood today's students gather with survivors on the 50th anniversary of the tragedy." "People ask me, "If we have another tsunami..."" "And I say, "No, it's not if we have a tsunami." "It's when the next tsunami strikes."" "Because there will definitely be another one." "It might not be this year or next, or even this decade." "But it could be tomorrow as well." "In Hawaii, they know what a tsunami can do." "The rest of us would be wise to listen to their lament and learn from their experience." "This is the bottom of the ocean" " An ocean of air as vast and volatile as any sea." "Above the earth's surface, currents ebb and flow." "Some spiral into whirlwinds." "The dust devil has more bluster than bite." "Other twisters are downright deadly." "Tornado on the ground on highway 44!" "Damage everywhere." "We've got numerous people injured!" "Get away from the windows!" "Tree just blew over!" "Get away from the windows!" "Get away!" "Get away!" "Tornadoes pack the fastest winds on earth." "But in magnitude, this spinning giant goes unmatched." "Hurricane, typhoon, cyclone all equally fearsome." "By any name, the greatest storms on earth." "Severe tropical storms afflict every continent except Antarctica." "In this century, they have claimed over half a million lives." "Tornadoes have killed over 10,000 in the United States alone." "Today, electronic eyes pierce the atmosphere, and map its shifting winds." "Scientists chart the anatomy of a storm." "Their sensors record speed and bearing." "Make yours the same level as the tripod." "But none can predict the birth of a killer." "That thing's a right mover!" "We gotta get out of here, fast!" "Let's go!" "Nothing in our power can stop the fury of Nature's whirling winds." "Early spring, 1991." "A southern sun heats the waters of the Gulf of Mexico." "Warm, moist air rises, and travels northwest, over Texas, Louisiana, and on toward the central United States." "More than a thousand miles away, cool dry air rushes south from Canada." "Rising over the Rockies, dry upper level air flows east, then spills onto the Great Plains." "These forces collide over Tornado Alley on Friday, April 26th, 1991." "Fast winds high above the ground, over slower winds below, make the air roll horizontally, like a pencil on a table top." "The atmosphere is unstable." "Thunderstorms erupt across the plains." "Here and there, an updraft lifts the horizontal spinning of the air into a vertical position." "Now the storm rotates as it feeds on warm, moist air near the ground." "The day gives rise to "supercells"" "...the most complex and dangerous thunderstorms on earth." "Their underbellies bubble with instability." "Lightning and hail are the least of their threats." "Under the right conditions, they can also spawn monsters." "The National Weather Service has tracked the warning signs for a week, predicting severe weather." "By April 26th, conditions are text-book perfect for a major outbreak of tornadoes." "Throughout the afternoon and evening, across the central states, fifty-six twisters are reported." "Honey, be careful." "Is it going away from us?" "Honey." "Honey." "Is it going away from us?" "I sure hope you're right." "Then, at 5:57 a killer touches down in Kansas." "In Wichita, residents are sitting down to dinner when warnings send them running to basements and storm shelters." "Look at this stuff floating in the air, Ginger." "Take cover!" "Around 6:20, the tornado takes on a pinkish hue as it pulverizes a nursery full of geraniums." "By the time it hits McConnell Air Force Base, the twister is nearly 300 feet wide." "The base hospital, school, rec center and over a hundred housing units are leveled." "6:29." "In Andover, the town siren fails, but most residents heed warnings by police, and news reports." "The tornado's funnel has widened to almost 600 feet." "At 6:40, it tears through the Golden Spur Mobile Home Park." "The twister finally dissipates northeast of Andover." "Within minutes, its parent storm drops another funnel along the Kansas Turnpike." "Can you get in the left lane, Greg?" "Yah!" "I'll like you know this go away." "You're okay, you're okay." "Keep going', man." "Keep going'." "Faster?" "No." "Yeah, yeah, yeah." "Lots faster." "Lots faster!" "A local TV crew tries to outrun it." "Lots faster, Greg." "It's catching us." "You gotta go buddy!" "Even at 85 miles an hour, they can't get out of its way." "They stop at an overpass where a father and his two daughters run for cover." "As the twister spins out its final moments, a dread calm takes its place." "We need some place to sit down." "Along the turnpike, people are pulled from trucks and cars tossed like children's toys." "Andover is hardest hit." "In what was the Golden Spur Mobile Home Park, ten bodies are found." "Is anybody in there?" "Kansas bears a bitter toll:" "over 1,700 homes destroyed or damaged, and 20 dead." "Survivors will never forget." "The car was hovering." "It was about three foot off the ground, and just sort of floating in the air." "Then all of a sudden the car left, and went right out the roof." "What looked like typing paper floating around was really not, it was like Garage doors." "Garage doors and window frames, parts of houses." "Ambushed on a country road," "Brook lbarra took shelter under the nearest tree." "In a flash, she was airborne..." "then dropped a thousand feet away." "The cows all of a sudden started running like a stampede." "I was picked up by the tornado and there was all sorts of debris." "One thing I remember was the cow that flew past me." "He was screaming." "And then, before I knew it, it was over." "I was just laying in the field next to a tractor engine." "Wounds are healed." "Neighborhoods rise from the rubble." "The human spirit endures." "Such is life in Tornado Alley, USA." "Midwesterners once called them "cyclones"." "Early photographs and motion pictures held viewers spellbound." "Tornadoes begat their own myths." "Some claimed they fused coins in people's pockets, and cooked potatoes in the ground." "In truth, they make airborne missiles of everyday objects." "Some have deposited heirlooms forty miles from home." "Do they pluck feathers from chickens?" "No." "Blame that on sheer fright." "They inspire no less terror in people." "April 3rd and 4th, 1974." "In the largest outbreak on record, 148 tornadoes race across 13 states." "March 18th, 1925." "The deadliest tornado in history leaves the longest path." "2 19 miles of continuous devastation." "689 dead." "Until the 1950's, accurate tornado wind speeds remain a mystery." "Then a frame-by-frame analysis of this footage clocks flying debris at 170 miles an hour." "Tornado science takes a leap forward in 1953 when Dr. Ted Fujita leaves Japan for the American Midwest." "Main reason why we are here is to find out what tornado did." "And in case of future tornadoes what people should do." "That's the kind of thing we want to find out." "Four decades of research will earn him the title "Mr. Tornado."" "I think it's a grain elevator up there." "At disaster sites, Fujita proves there's much to be learned without braving a twister directly." "He likens tornadoes to criminals who leave their fingerprints behind." "Ground markings are clues to a twister's inner structure and dynamics." "To test his theories, he builds a tornado machine at the University of Chicago." "He discovers that most strong tornadoes are actually several small twisters rotating around the center of a larger one." "These mini-tornadoes can lay waste to one house, yet leave its neighbor unscathed." "Fujita's ideas have been amply confirmed in Nature, and remain a cornerstone of tornado science." "Although they occur around the world, three out of four tornadoes streak the skies over the United States." "They favor the springtime, and the warm hours between noon and sunset." "We say a tornado "touches down"." "It actually sucks in air from near the ground and carries it upward in a spiral." "Most range from 150 to 1200 feet in width, and travel over land at about 30 miles an hour." "The funnel is often hollow, a tube of condensed water vapor that takes on the color of dust and debris." "In North America, most tornadoes rotate counterclockwise." "Perhaps one in a thousand spins in the opposite direction." "Twisters appear in many guises." "They can bring to mind the snapping of a bullwhip... or the delicate dance of ghosts." "A single storm can spawn several distinct funnels ...a grouping referred to as a "family."" "For all their fury, most tornadoes are short-lived." "Many last only minutes." "To the scientists who would study them, they are elusive prey." "How to penetrate the twister's secrets?" "Aiming weather balloons and instrumented rockets into tornadoes have yielded limited results." "All right." "Three." "Two." "One." "Fire!" "There!" "Perfe..." "No." "In the 1980's, researchers at the National Severe Storms Lab tested the "totable tornado observatory", nicknamed TOTO, after Dorothy's dog in The Wizard of Oz." "This four-hundred pound package of sensors was to record what no human can even approach without risking life and limb." "But predicting the path of a tornado proved to be nearly impossible." "TOTO had one close call, no direct hits." "For now, the safest way to see inside tornadoes is to probe them from afar with Doppler radar." "Like an x-ray of a storm, the system displays wind speed and direction." "In 1981, scientists first detected the spiralling signature of a tornado on Doppler radar." "Today, the system is used to issue warnings to the public." "Still, we're not exactly sure why twisters form at all." "For Howard Bluestein," "Professor of Meteorology at the University of Oklahoma, there's only one way to find out." "Satellite pictures are nice." "Radar pictures are nice." "But you need to look out the window and see the clouds at a very very fine scale to get a feeling for what's happening." "I don't understand how one can study a phenomenon without actually experiencing it." "Seeing it or feeling it or tasting it." "To me, that sets everything in motion." "That makes me want to understan why it's there, what causes it, what's gonna happen to it." "They just issued a tornado warning for right where we are." "Every spring, Bluestein exercises two considerable talents:" "chasing tornadoes, and measuring them with the latest technology." "Portable Doppler radar is like a meteorological magnifying glass." "It allows Bluestein to measure wind speed in very fine detail, in specific regions of a tornado." "Okay, we better get going quickly." "That thing is starting to form a nice funnel." "Actually, hold it." "Hold it." "Hold it!" "Can you turn it on?" "It is starting to form a funnel and it's not that far away." "I'm on the left side of that tight circulation." "Bluestein's success rate is better than most storm chasers'" "The funnel cloud is just to our north, northwest." "We're packing up the radar..." "He estimates one in nine expeditions ends with an encounter." "OK, tornado is crossing the path of the radar." "Debris in the air." "Strong tornadoes almost always form under the southwest edge of a storm." "Bluestein plots his course accordingly, and tries to place his team roughly two miles from touchdown." "Center it right on the funnel!" "Oh, what a classic!" "Should I go to FM?" "Only if you have a good CW signal." "We're detectives." "We're looking for lots of bits of evidence." "And the more pieces of evidence we have, the more likely it will be that we'll be able to solve the puzzle of why tornadoes form and what's their structure." "April 26th, 1991." "Bluestein and his team track the outbreak that will ravage Andover, Kansas." "A spectacular funnel stops them in Red Rock, Oklahoma." "Their Doppler radar will capture the fastest windspeed on record:" "nearly 280 miles an hour." "In the heat of the chase, even Bluestein can miss a beat." "Let's get out of here fast, let's go!" "For less frenzied fieldwork," "Bluestein turns to these hunting grounds: the Florida Keys." "August, 1993." "The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the National Geographic Society reunite Bluestein with Dr. Joseph Golden, expedition chief scientist." "As a graduate student," "Bluestein once joined Golden to explore the skies over Key West." "This expedition marshals state-of-the-art scientific and photographic technology." "The quarry?" "A phantom twister that haunts these tranquil waters." "In 1967, on a vacation trip," "Golden took a sightseeing flight over the Florida Keys, and had a chance encounter with one of our atmosphere's most startling apparitions." "Since that time, he has become the world's leading expert on waterspouts." "Our knowledge of these ethereal ribbons was once based largely on mariners' accounts." "Golden first emphasized their similarities to tornadoes." "Though usually smaller than a twister over land." "They form in gentler weather than most violent tornadoes, allowing close inspection." "Smoke flares will help visualize airflow near the sea surface." "For Bluestein, this is an unparalleled ringside seat." "When we're out in the great plains looking at tornadoes, we cannot see what's happening right at the ground very clearly, nor can we see what's happening at cloud base extremely clearly." "The perspective that we get from the helicopter in that we can look down at the sea surface... and see the effect of rotation at the ground level and also be at cloud base and practically kiss... the condensation funnel that's right outside the window" "is really spectacular." "Ultimately, the ghostly waterspout may reveal the hidden forces that trigger tornadoes." "Joe, I guess climatology works." "That was incredible!" "Other whirling winds demand a more lofty vantage point." "Book a seat on the Space Shuttle for the perfect view of these monsters ...over 500 miles wide, and some ten miles high." "Creatures of the sea, they breed in the warm oceans of the tropics." "Depending on their birthplace, we call then 'cyclones', 'typhoons', or 'hurricanes'." "These giants can stir up more than a million cubic miles of the earth's atmosphere every second, and travel across an ocean at up to 30 miles an hour." "Yet they have humble beginnings." "In the summer and fall, the sun heats vast stretches of tropical ocean to over 82 degrees Fahrenheit." "Warm, moist air rises over these hot spots, forming bands of thunderstorms." "Upper level winds push storm systems westward, as surface winds spiral into the low pressure beneath the clouds." "Occasionally, one such spinning wheel of thunderstorms gathers strength, feeding on moisture and heat." "When winds reach 74 miles an hour, a hurricane is born." "The storm's architecture is highly organized." "Rain bands up to 300 miles long converge in the most violent sector:" "the "eye wall"." "Here, winds of up to 200 miles an hour spiral upward." "Within the "eye", down drafts of dry air create an eerie calm." "Most severe tropical storms spin out their lives, uneventfully, in the open sea." "When one threatens to come ashore, the world's eyes are trained upon it ...including those of Jim Leonard." "A professional storm chaser, Jim checks forecasts religiously." "He prowls the globe for weather that most people would simply flee." "Among chasers, Jim has few peers." "Some say he has videotaped more severe storms than anyone on earth." "He has no formal training, no college degree in meteorology." "Just a life-long passion." "When I was ten years old" "I had my first real hurrican experience with Hurricane Donna." "We got probably winds of 80, 90 mile an hour." "It was quite an exhilarating experience at that point." "People think I'm crazy but, that's, you know, that's their own opinion." "It's not gonna change." "I've always been crazy about storms, I always will be." "The best of them all, probably, was Hurricane Hugo, went down to Puerto Rico and got a direct hit." "And as it got stronger and stronger, debris was starting to be lifted off the parking lot, and it looked like it was gonna get blown back toward us." "So we decided at that point to start going down the stairway." "As we're going down the stairwell, the rain is being driven into the walls through the stairs, coming down the stairway." "And the wind you see up here squealing." "At this point it's probably in excess of 150 miles an hour." "And that was quite an experience." "It was like, one of the chasers called it the Hallway from Hell." "I have no reason to be in a storm if it's gonna scare me." "I'll, y'know, get to the point, y'know, y'know, play the safe route as far as I can." "But if I want to get that ultimate shot, y'know, of course you're gonna take some chances." "1992." "Typhoon Omar, in Guam." "Now is this a piece of wind or is it a piece of wind?" "Really!" "I wouldn't miss a great eye wall like this for anything." "Jim and a fellow tracker have a close call as Omar's eye wall comes ashore." "Now the storm's placid eye engulfs them." "It seems over, it really does, but it's not." "We're gonna get blitzed again." "It's so eerie." "I know." "I can't believe that we're going to get blitzed again." "It seems impossible." "That was flabbergasting." "The unsettling lull does not last." "Here, the trailing edge of the eye wall rushes in, with winds blowing in the opposite direction." "God, I didn't... no way!" "It looked like it was gonna wait a few minutes!" "It wasn't comin' on as fast." "Yeah!" "If I knew it was this, I would've hurried more." "In 1991, Jim achieves a personal best." "Typhoon Yuri, when it came, approached the southern part of Guam," "I did a little bit of carelessness there but I got the storm surge shots that I always wanted to get." "The water came up a little faster than I thought it would." "Winds and low pressure allow the sea surface to rise near the storm's eye." "When it hits land, this mound of water rushes ashore." "That's what you call storm surge!" "Great." "Oh, great!" "When the surge is waist-deep, Jim retreats." "He, more than most, knows that a hurricane's most deadly weapon is not wind, but water." "Nine out of ten hurricane victims are drowned by storm surges." "They can raise tides more than twenty feet above normal, and flood a hundred miles of coastline under ten feet of water." "Fifteen percent of the world's population live at risk from severe tropical storms." "Atlantic hurricanes assault the U.S., Mexico and the Caribbean." "Typhoons born over the western Pacific Ocean batter Japan, China, and the Philippines." "Mostly deadly are the cyclones that strike Bangladesh." "Here, millions farm a river delta in places only inches above sea level." "Escape routes are few." "Loss of life has been appauling." "In a single 1970's storm, over 300,000 dead." "Of all the atmosphere's threats, these giants should hardly catch us off guard." "Weather satellites track them from birth." "But no technology can predict exactly where one will go." "To penetrate the hurricane's secrets, researchers ride a flying laboratory into the eye of the storm." "David?" "Yes, sir." "We're gonna go in at 10,000 feet." "At ten, No?" "Yeah." "We're playin' it safe." "Looks impressive, anyway." "We have about 15 miles to the beginning of the wall here." "External sensors measure temperature, air pressure, humidity, and wind speed as the plane braves the turbulence of the eye wall." "We've got a hundred knots of wind, now." "I thought it might drop off but it hasn't." "Not yet." "If it hasn't by now it probably won't." "We may see some 200 knot gusts here." "25 knot updraft." "Okay, we're just coming into the edge now." "An oasis of calm over nine miles tall, the eye is virtually clear from sea to sky." "You guys see the center down below there?" "I think we're just about directly over it." "Looks good, looks good." "I think we got the center." "OK, I'll mark it." "The eye's exact location and vital statistics are sent to forecasters on shore." "Data also flows to this meteorological think" " Tank, the Hurricane Research Division, in Miami, Florida." "What global ingredients determine how many hurricanes are born each year, and what paths they follow?" "Stanley Goldenberg, research meteorologist, says clues range from the El Nino phenomenon to rainfall in Africa." "He crafts computer models based on the premise that an organized piece of weather like a hurricane can be defined in mathematical terms." "The atmosphere is an orderly universe." "There's physical rules, physical laws that govern these things." "It's just a matter of having the right data," "looking at it with the right tools and the right analyses." "I mean, the real art is pulling the information out of the data." "Goldenberg helped refine one of the models the National Hurricane Center uses to issue forecasts." "But he had never experienced a hurricane on the ground until 1992." "On August 17 th, Tropical Storm Andrew takes shape, about halfway between Africa and the Caribbean." "During the following days, the storm slowly intensifies." "Then, high level winds begin to tear Andrew apart, slowing its momentum." "It's slower." "It's the slowest one." "Three days puts it here." "So by four days..." "To Goldenberg, and most other meteorologists," "Andrew has only the slimmest chance of ever becoming a hurricane." "Friday, August 2 1 st." "As high level winds die down," "Andrew begins to reorganize, and quickly gathers strength." "Computer models show Andrew might head toward southern Florida, but Goldenberg and his colleagues dismiss any immediate threat." "Stan leaves work early, to prepare for an important weekend." "His wife Barbara is due to deliver their fourth child on Sunday." "750 miles from Miami," "Andrew's winds exceed 74 miles an hour on Saturday, August 22nd." "Hurricane warnings in effect for Dade and Brown Counties." "Hurricane watch in effect..." "The first hurricane of the Atlantic season is born." "By noon on Sunday, massive evacuations are ordered along the Florida coast." "Sunday afternoon." "Right on schedule, Barbara has been in labor since around 6 am." "Here we have from the hurricane to the other action in this room." "Which is Barbara going through early stages of labor." "Four centimeters contracted, going through labor pains," "In the birthing suite, Stan videotapes the proceedings with all the fervor of an expectant father." "Still, the meteorologist in him can't help but be distracted." "And we still have, waiting for the hurricane." "Beautiful skies." "Calm." "You'd never know what was going to happen here in the next 12 to 14 hours or so." "Late in the day," "Andrew's winds accelerate to a hundred fifty miles an hour." "Traveling nearly due west, it descends upon the Bahamas." "Around 6 PM, it strikes Eleuthera Island, packing a storm surge 23 feet high, taking four lives." "Having a boy makes you feel like a father and having a little girl makes you feel like a daddy." "Stan steals a few hours with new arrival Pearl, then leaves the hospital." "He'll ride out the storm at home." "In Miami, violent skies herald Andrew's approach." "Inland, residents take routine safety measures." "Seven miles from shore," "Stan and his boys are joined by his sister-in-law and family." "Sunday, 23rd of August." "We have the family here:" "Jonathan, Daniel, Roger, Benjamin, Joseph," "Aaron, Ruben." "We have Ann." "And we're gonna weather it out through the storm." "Say hi, Daniel." "Hi" "In the dead of night," "Andrew suddenly intensifies as it approaches the tip of Florida." "August 24th, around 4:30 AM." "Andrew comes ashore." "Our TV's out, maybe the power's out for the duration of this." "You can hear that outside..." "You'll start hear the rule outside." "In the hallway of the Goldenberg house." "Winds outside," "I think, are at least a hundred, hundred and ten miles an hour or more..." "Arie, are you o." "K?" ".... ." "It's okay, it's o." "K." "And there is the cat..." "And there is... .." "every body here?" "Just waiting it out in the hall because we lost the plywood on the front window" "The rear plant gate would probibly layrers." "And we are sitting backhere resting in the Lord," "In the hall way." "We can feel our ears possibibly cut?" "pressure drops." "Yes, Johnson." "Lord we thank you and ask for your protection." "This is Stan, at 8:30 in the morning." "We have been through a night." "This is our street, trees down everywhere." "The back street is a history in front of me. ." "just one window broken on that car." "Trees down everywhere." "These are our sweet precious neighbors" "These shadows survive the storm every window cover with these type shadows survived." "But our house, which had wood shutters, the roof lifted off." "and as you can see, we have no house." "This wall fell on us, containing the refrigerator, the stove." "This is the wall, fell on top of us, the stove down there, the cabinets, all fell on top of us, and that small space you're looking at, the mattress and everything, that's where we were pinned during the worst part of the storm." "Incredibly, three adults, six children and a kitten emerge, unharmed, from the wreckage that was Stan's home." "The scope of the disaster has not yet dawned on Miami." "At the hospital, Barbara rests assured that her family is safe." "We will perhaps get the first look at what's going on, up in the air." "The hospital had an emergency generator, so we still had power." "And we saw all of the first footage of this destruction and storm, and we were in shock." "The first areas they went through they were kind of relieved, saying, "Oh..." and just making interesting comments about how this car is thrown here and there." "But they became much more sober as they went farther south." "It did not look possible that anybody could be alive." "And that was just a mile or two from my house." "And at that point, I really felt despair." "One two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight." "And there must have been about, oh, let's say, counting and trying to estimate at least three to four hundred mobile homes here." "The rest are just completely gone." "In the morning, my wife finally got through to somebody there just to find out that I was okay, somehow we both had a peace, that each of us was okay." "But I still remember the first time," "I got through to her on the phone, I just wept." "I mean it wasn't just the excitement of me getting through to her, as me pouring out the emotions of what I'd been through." "I mean, we'd been through an incredible experience." "Andrew's storm surge wreaked havoc along the Florida coast." "But its winds devastated an area larger than the city of Chicago:" "some 135,000 dwellings damaged or destroyed." "The homeless numbered 160,000." "It seemed miraculous only 44 died." "Not one official wind gauge survived Andrew's peak winds." "No one knew how fast they had gusted." "Intrigued, Dr. Ted Fujita "Mr. Tornado"" "flew to Miami to study the aftermath." "Roofs ripped from homes." "Trees snapped in half." "Concrete beams carried hundreds of feet." "Plywood embedded in a tree trunk." "Fujita finds evidence of winds up to 200 miles an hour." "But his most startling finding comes from aerial surveys with local meteorologists." "They point out narrow streaks of total devastation near areas with lesser damage." "To Fujita the patterns are eerily familiar." "He develops a theory:" "that the worst damage in Andrew was caused by "mini-swirls":" "tornado-like rotations, brief but violent, embedded in the eye wall." "The theory has personal meaning for Stan Goldenberg." "We never expected the kind of damage we experienced." "Not only were we in the areas of some of the maximum areas of the storm, we had in addition, we believe, an area of more intense winds probably caused by the mini-swirls that Ted Fujita talks about." "There was a strip, right through my house, of homes that were devastated, and I was right in that strip." "Stan would relocate his family to a new house." "Parts of Florida remains scarred to this day." "Andrew also ravaged the Louisiana coast, taking 17 lives." "Finally, the storm would vanish over the mid-Atlantic states, some two weeks after its birth." "Andrew was America's costliest disaster." "But it had a silver lining." "It spared New Orleans, a city defined by water." "Repeatedly flooded and drained over the past three centuries, the metropolis was built on swampland surrounded by the Mississippi River." "Shaped like a bowl, the city's terrain rises near its edges, and dips in its mid-section to below sea-level." "Lake Pontchartrain crowns its northern shore." "Over a hundred miles of levees and flood walls up to 20 feet above sea level keep river and lake at bay." "Massive floodgates fill the gaps." "New Orleans has one of the best drainage systems in the world, powered by 2 1 colossal pumps." "The city has known hurricanes in this century, but not a direct hit from a storm like Andrew ...and not with up to a million people to evacuate over narrow bridges and causeways." "Former Meteorologist-ln-Charge of the New Orleans National Weather Service office," "Bill Crouch fears the levee system provides a false sense of security." "It's a two-edged sword, because it protects the people's homes most of the time." "But if water ever comes over the levees, it's going to get as deep as the levees are tall." "And the lake would be 19 or 20 feet deep." "This means that in parts of New Orleans that are below sea level, the water could be 30 feet deep." "That is you would not be safe even in a three-story house." "So, those are the scenarios we look at, which would force people to go upward in the buildings down town, and even using that refuge, it's my belief there would still be a great loss of life." "One day, five, perhaps fifty years from now, a hurricane like Andrew might descend on New Orleans." "The city might be jammed with tens of thousands of tourists ...oblivious to the dangers of hurricanes." "Evacuation would be ordered, and many would heed the call." "But advance weather could move in quickly and flood the causeway, knocking out bridges." "A hurricane approaching from the southeast could fill Lake Pontchartrain with its storm surge." "Water would rush over hurricane protection levees." "Pumping stations would be overwhelmed." "This grim scenario may be imaginary, but the threat is not." "A hundred thousand might be stranded in the heart of the city." "The city of New Orleans has enlisted federal, state and local emergency management agencies to prepare for just such a nightmare." "There are many other potential disasters along the U.S. coastline." "It is only a matter of time before another great storm exacts its toll." "Nature has given us fair warning." "A gossamer veil of atmosphere is all that protects us from the sterile reaches of space." "What we call 'weather' is simply the Earth's attempt to balance heat and moisture around the globe." "Swirling winds may spawn tornadoes and hurricanes, but they can also breed whimsy." "A hay devil on a summer afternoon..." "Our home is a planet perpetually in the making, forever new." "The same awesome powers that sustain life can also wreak destruction." "It is up to us to be prepared." "There lies the challenge, and the delight, of living on this dynamic Earth." "On the edge of a lush forest in Coastal Siberia, a hunter is on the prowl." "Terney, A small town in Far East Russia." "This is no longer a place of exile, but today's Siberians must eke out a hard living, trapping, fishing, and logging." "They live on one of the last frontiers... surrounded by a vast and largely untamed wilderness." "And still, out there somewhere, a legend lives." "A creature of fearful power and stunning beauty." "It is the biggest cat on earth..." "the Siberian tiger." "Today wildlife biologists seek to study the tiger and perhaps to save it." "About three hundred Siberian tigers survive in the wild." "And they are perilously close to extinction." "These Russian and American scientists must get close to one of the most dangerous animals in the world." "But while some seek the elusive tigers in the wild... one Russian scientist is studying them in captivity:" "mating and hunting." "Made for Siberia, this splendid cat can sprint across the snows at fifty miles an hour." "Magnificent." "Mysterious." "Highly dangerous and highly endangered." "This is the great Siberian - The Tiger of the Snow." "A vast stretch of forest blankets Russia with a fourth of the world's timber reserves." "Until recently the Siberian Tiger thrived here in secure isolation." "Under the strict dictates of the old Soviet system, the tiger was protected." "But today, enforcement is lax." "Rampant poaching has dramatically reduced the population of tigers in the wild." "In the Asian medicine market, everything from the eyes to the tail is valued for its legendary curative powers." "The magnificent coat alone might fetch ten thousand dollars." "But poachers aren't the only threat." "The tiger's habitat, part of the largest natural forest in the world, is rapidly disappearing." "It's being cut at a rate of ten million acres a year." "When authorities confiscate a pelt from the poachers it must be destroyed so it will never find its way to market." "Recalling a poet's famous words..." ""Tyger, Tyger burning bright in the forests of the night..."" "The coast of Eastern Siberia." "The Siberian tiger once ranged across much of the Asian continent." "Once they numbered in the thousands." "Now, only some three hundred survive in a narrow band of mountains on the Sea of Japan." "The Siberia of legend is a frozen wasteland." "In fact, parts of the forest are temperate-even subtropical." "Here, Russian and American scientists are seeking to study wild Siberian tigers in a last-ditch effort to save them." "Dr. Maurice Hornocker, an American big cat authority, has brought desperately needed technology to this crucial effort." ""Yeah, that's good, too."" "In the past, Russian scientists could study the tigers only in winter, when their tracks could be followed in the snow." "Now, with radio tracking devices, the elusive cats can be studied sight-unseen-and year-round." ""My first work with cats, with the mountain lions in North America, in Idaho, everyone said it couldn't be done..." "and I've always liked a challenge." "We've used the tiger population as target species but we've studied the entire ecosystem." "Because of the immense area that the tiger needs to exist defines entire watersheds, entire systems that the prey must also utilize." "So you can literally define an entire ecosystem by studying a big cat."" "The scientists pick up a radio signal from a tiger somewhere in the thick forest below." "In fact, it's a number of tigers." "And incredibly, they're out in the open." "Siberian tigers are so rare and elusive that even a fleeting glimpse like this is a landmark event for the scientists." ""When we saw that female and those cubs on its lakeshore-wide open view-first time that a female Siberian tiger and her cubs had ever been observed and photographed from the air... it was one of the most thrilling events in my professional career."" "Hornocker's team has tracked some dozen tigers by radio, trying to determine such essential facts as their range and distribution." "At the field lab of the Hornocker Wildlife Institute," "Maurice is briefed by Dale Miquelle, who's been coordinating the field study for the past three years." ""...we've got five females that we've got good information on their home ranges." "Um, we've got Olga, the four, first female we captured who's now in a home range that only includes a little piece of the reserve, actually, um, and then we've got..."" "Together with their Russian colleagues, they need to quickly establish a management plan for the tigers." ""The, one of the things that's interesting about all of this is that all these animals travel outside the boundaries of the reserve so, even though the reserve is vast, it's not large enough to maintain these females" "in their entire home range."" "Time is running out." "Even now, logging roads skirt the reserve, where only some twenty tigers roam over 1300 square miles." "The researchers receive word that a tiger has been caught in one of their snares... a chance to add a new animal to their study group." "Bart Schleyer and Dr. Hornocker prepare to sedate the tiger." ""I don't see her."" "There is no way of knowing how securely the tiger is trapped." "He could suddenly pull free and then they would have only a few seconds to save themselves." "A tranquilizer dart should quiet the tiger down." "Still, the dosage required is always in doubt." "Too much endangers the tigers." "Too little, the researchers." "It's a three-year-old male." "When fully grown, at about age six, he'll weigh six hundred pounds or more." "But even now he's an armful." ""This is about all we can do, guys." "He's just too heavy." "This is good."" "They carry the tiger to better ground." ""Gonna lubricate his eyes."" "His eyes must be artificially lubricated since the blink response is sedated." ""Let's get this snare off."" "These massive jaws can crack the spine of a wild boar with a single bite." ""Young male tiger."" "Its feet are like thickly padded snowshoes... with retractable claws!" ""Boy, he's a beautiful animal."" ""Yeah, gorgeous."" "The radio collar allows them to track the tiger and help answer some crucial questions:" "How much territory do the tigers require?" "How many elk and deer and boar?" "How do they react to human encroachment?" "Suddenly, the tiger is having trouble breathing." "They desperately try to revive him." ""I'm gonna give him something."" ""And someone should keep..."" ""His eyes are moving."" ""Yeah, but his breaths are real low."" ""Give it to him."" ""That collar's cut, Maurice?" "That collar's cut?" "'Cause we might have a cat that comes up real quick."" "The tiger must be given a stimulant." "Slowly he resumes his normal breathing rate." ""Yeah, he's breathing." ""Yeah, he's breathing." "I think the danger's passed." "Whew, man, that was..." ""Yeah."" "The biologists must now take their samples hastily... before the great beast fully awakens." "They're reluctant to lose sight of him before he's safely on his feet - but also eager not to be in his way." "Now at a safe distance, the team receives a signal from the radio collar." "The tiger is up and about..." "and on the prowl again." "In another part of the reserve, the team is concerned about the signal from a tigress named Olga." "She was the very first collared with a radio." "Olga, it appears, has remained in the same area for a long time, a sign that she may be dead... or that she has found a den and given birth." "Dr. Evgeny Smirnov, Russian tiger specialist, determines that Olga is, in fact, moving about her den site." "The researchers decide they'll attempt to enter the den to earmark the cubs." "They'll need to wait until night when the tigress should be out hunting." "Hopefully, far from home." ""I asked if he thought, uh, it would be dangerous or we'd, we'd be in trouble if we went there and he said," "'Of course, it'd be dangerous, there's only one variation there, to approach when she's not there, because it's simply too dangerous to make an approach with the, the mother present."'" ""He said, 'Thank God, we have the telemetry equipment to check on whether or not Olga is there and so we know, exactly, when she's left the den site." "Without that it, it'd simply be a, a suicide mission to walk in there. '" "The fading radio signal indicates that Olga has left her den." "But if she returns she would probably attack instantly." "They test flares they hope would drive Olga off." "Protecting a den is one of the rare circumstances when a Siberian will turn man-killer." "Night is the time when tigers are most alert and aggressive." "Their night vision is far superior to humans." "The signal from Olga-once faint... is getting louder." "The team must quickly be in and out of the den." ""Yeah this is it." "This is it, Bart."" ""Yeah, yeah, we've got the spot." ""Do you see a cat?"" ""Yeah."" "Gloves soaked with tiger urine are worn so the mother will not detect their intrusion and reject her cubs." ""Get away."" "It's a healthy male." "Two months old, the cub already weighs about 13 pounds." ""Dale, I'm still getting a signal and it's really not that weak right now, we're probably going to have to hurry, if you can."" "Unlike other cats, tiger kittens never learn to purr." "An ear tag is inserted for future identification." "They christen the cub Sasha." ""I'm getting a signal, we're going to have to hurry, she's back, she's come back over the ridge."" "Their daring has set a new precedent." "For the first time ever, scientists have examined and returned a cub to a den in the wild." "In towns and villages throughout coastal Siberia, people have learned to live with the idea of tigers." "But attacks have happened and some are afraid." "In the village of Guyvaron, however, one man is happy to have tigers in his own backyard." "Maurice Hornocker and Howard Quigley are working with a Russian biologist who has two orphaned cubs in captivity." ""That's a big male tiger."" "Victor Yudin has raised the cubs from infancy." "Victor is the author of a definitive natural history of the Russian wolf." "But he soon learned that Kuchur, the tiger and Niurka, the tigress, are different animals indeed." ""To study tigers in captivity is absolutely necessary, because many of their biological traits cannot be learned in the wild." "Comparing the results of the tiger studies that were done in captivity and in the wild helps us to develop the methods of how to preserve the tiger as a species in reserves like Sikhote-Alin."" "The young tigers have outgrown their cages, and so, with the support of the Hornocker Wildlife Institute an enclosure is built in the adjacent woods." "Though a far cry from the hundreds of square miles a tiger in the wild would roam, these six acres will provide the young captives with the opportunity to run and hunt" " And hopefully - even mate and have cubs." "But there are neighbors in the area." "Victor knows the importance of keeping them well informed." "Especially now, when the tigers will soon be turned loose into the enclosure." "So he brings local school children to the compound." ""Villagers often come to see the tigers." "They often ask me:" "why keep tigers in this enclosure since it's so different from life in the wild?"" ""I explain to them that there are limitations to what we can and cannot learn from observing tigers the way we do in the wild, by simply following tracks through the snow." "Afterwards, when people realize that it's not just for fun, that it's serious work they look at me in admiration, as if I were a superman, I guess."" "The day has come when-for the first time... the tigers will step into the natural world they were intended to rule." "No one knows how they will react to their new enclosure." "For Victor, it's an especially anxious moment, for he hopes the enclosure will be home to these tigers for the rest of their lives." "The male, Kuchur, steps boldly out." "For the first time..." "the light through the trees, the smell of grass and leaf, the feel of the soft earth." "Niurka, the female, is unsure of all this... and even tries to close the gate." "But soon, curiosity overcomes caution." "To Yudin's surprise," "Kuchur begins to feel a little frisky and tries to mate." "But Niurka will have no part of it." "For her, the time has not yet come." "Exhilarated by their freedom, they soon vanish into their little private forest." "To feed his feline charges, Dr. Yudin collects road kill." "Victor feels he knows the mood of his tigers so well he can risk entering the enclosure." "In the wild, most attacks on humans occur when they invade a tiger's territory or when cubs are threatened." "Unlike Bengal tigers, Siberians have never been known to hunt man." "As the tigers settle into their enclosure," "Dr. Yudin begins his observations and controlled experiments." "He hopes to learn which behaviors are innate and which would need to be taught to captive tigers before they could be released into the wild." "Tigers live in a world of feast or famine." "Still, Kuchur must wait his turn." "Dr. Yudin notices it's the female who feeds first." "With the coming of fall, the first brisk winds blow in from the Siberian Arctic." "As if designed for these autumn colors, the tigers blend with the landscape." "In the wild, their coloration becomes lighter as winter approaches, anticipating snow." "Dr. Yudin confronts one more problem that makes the study of tiger behavior so difficult." "The tiger is largely a creature of the dark." "With their extraordinary night vision," "Kuchur and Niurka come fully alive only after sunset." "Recently, they've begun to roam restlessly in the dark." "Victor wonders if night has awakened an instinctive urge to hunt." "When he releases a small rabbit in the enclosure, he quickly learns the answer." "After several weeks, the tigers have established their territory in the enclosure." "How would they react to another of their own species?" "Yudin and Hornocker set up an experiment involving a full-sized model tiger." ""Okay." "A little more."" ""I'm interested to see what you think of this, Victor." "Is that as big as Kuchur?"" ""Yes..."" ""These will match right up on the right side." "You got that back there?"" ""Yeah, it's good."" ""Yeah, that's a good fit." "Okay, let's see what it looks like standing up."" "Victor's dogs are convinced." "They immediately recognize an arch enemy." "Tigers in the wild are solitary animals and fiercely territorial." "Is this behavior innate or learned?" "And, if innate, how soon does it develop?" "The reaction to an intruder by the captive-raised tigers may help provide an answer." "The scale model is covered with tiger urine, the scent that establishes territory." "Recordings of tiger calls will be played into the enclosure." "The stage is set." "Kuchur, the male, is curious." "He spends hours observing this strange creature." "But by light of day, Kuchur keeps his distance." "It's only overnight that the researchers discover the tigers' real attitude towards the intruder." "Every shred of color has been ripped from the model's skin." "Only when the model no longer looked like a tiger, did Kuchur leave it alone." "The defense of his territory is already a powerful instinct." "It was the long Siberian winter that created the tigers of the snow, demanding robust size, padded paws and thick fur." "But it is also winter when they are hunted, when they are most easily seen..." "this time by a scientist." ""We've had to develop and evolve all our techniques here." "No one had ever worked with Siberian tigers before." "So, we utilized foot-snaring to capture the tiger and it's worked very successfully." "But, some of them are becoming very trap-shy, some of them have become very, uh, difficult to capture..." "So in order to maintain the continuity of our data collection, in order to keep track of certain individuals we've had to utilize helicopters."" "The hunt begins to re-collar certain tigers." "The information the collars provide is critical to understanding the boundaries required for the tiger's survival." "Their territories are extensive." "Females may range up to two hundred square miles, males perhaps five hundred." "Losing contact with a study animal is their greatest fear." "Each one is precious to the scientists." ""The collars we put on animals last about two to two-and-a-half years and then the batteries, lithium batteries run out, so they simply need to be replaced." "Once we've invested two years in an animal gathering information, that animal becomes very valuable to us because it has a history." "And the longer we can maintain contact with an animal, the more we learn about its life-history patterns:" "how often it has young, how long they live, its whole life history."" "The pilot spots something below." "It's a wild boar running for its life." "And in pursuit a tiger." "Tigers miss most of their prey." "This time the helicopter provides a distraction, saving the boar." "The tiger is not amused." "Eventually they pick up the strong signal of another familiar tiger." "It is Olga, mother of the cub found in the den." "The helicopter quickly searches the area hoping to spot her cub, Sasha." "And Sasha is there-no longer a small cub, but thriving well." "The young are raised by the mother alone." "Sasha will stay with her for eighteen to twenty months until it's time to establish his own home range." "The search continues for Kouza a young male who has outgrown his radio collar." "Kouza is just beginning to mark off his territory and it's difficult to know the extent of his range." "Tranquilizing a Siberian tiger is not an exact science." "The size of the tiger, its mood... and the placement of the dart can influence the drug's effectiveness." "Always, out of concern for the tiger, the team tries to inject a minimal amount." "After long hours and much precious fuel, the tiger is spotted." "In pursuit, the helicopter must fly very low over dense forest... a dangerous maneuver." "It's a far cry from hunting on foot for Bart Schleyer." ""There's usually just a real narrow opportunity to dart and sometimes there's a limb in the way and there's been a number of times when I probably could have gotten a dart into an animal, but I'm too worried about a deflection of the dart" "and having the, the dart deflect into a improper placement in the animal which would injure it, which we don't want." "So, I'm real, real stressed by trying to get a proper hit on an animal."" "As the tiger moves deeper into the forest, the helicopter follows so closely it almost touches the tree tops." ""The pilots we're using, I'm real confident in the pilots because you are operating real close to tree level and you just hope that the pilots can see what's going on, around behind them particularly with their back rotor" "and particularly the other day when we were in close on one of the tigers, there was a conifer tree that was actually almost butted right up against the helicopter."" "The first shot is a clean hit." "They hover patiently waiting for the tranquilizer to take effect." "But they can't wait too long - for they're running low on fuel." "Bart fires another dart into the tiger." "Most big cats need two doses." "And the second one appears to take effect." "Bart and Rybin Nikolai must quickly be landed." "This too is a dangerous maneuver." "But they can't leave the tiger sedated for long." "The pilot is very concerned now." "They must refuel." "He radios Bart to abort the mission." "But Bart insists - for the tiger's well being... they must remain below and finish the job now." "The helicopter races back to refuel." "As they slowly approach the tiger, their worst fears are realized." "The tiger is up and moving." "The dosage was insufficient." "Still, they must get a closer look to make sure he's all right." "They proceed with caution knowing they are intruding in a fierce young tiger's newly claimed territory." "Kouza appears groggy but otherwise all right." "But he's much too dangerous to follow." "Now they can only await the helicopter's return." "And hope the young tiger has seen enough of them." "For now, the tiger has eluded them, but at least they know where he can be found." "Eventually, he'll be located and fitted with a new collar." "At last, they are brought aboard... to the relative safety of a helicopter hovering in the tree-tops." "Not long after, they spot a tigress named Marivana." "She is very aggressive... and even climbs a tree to attack the helicopter." "She only provides a better target for Bart Schleyer." "Unlike the larger male, a single dose sedates the tigress quickly." ""Let's take blood and that's about it..."" "The old collar is measured against the new one... which is given an extra notch for growth." "They carefully monitor her heart rate and respiration." ""Where's that?" "10?"" ""That's right..."" "Mission accomplished." "The new collar will provide crucial data for at least another two years." "Not far from the cold, forbidding wild, the success of the venture is celebrated" " Russian style!" "It's also Bart Schleyer's birthday." "For American and Russian alike it's a camaraderie born of years of shared dangers and shared dreams." "At Victor Yudin's compound winter has transformed the enclosure." "The Siberian winter seems to invigorate the captive tigers." "This is truly the season of the Tigers of the Snow." "As Victor Yudin observes," "Kuchur, the male, continues to stake out his territory, spraying the trees with his scent." "In what is called a 'flehmen' the female tests the air for his scent." "Then it's Kuchur's turn to detect if his mate is in heat..." "And she is." "Niurka, the female, initiates the coupling." "And so the mating period begins." ""If we succeed in getting young cubs it would be great, because then we can develop the best methods for returning the young tigers back into the wild." "We'll try to bring them up in natural conditions so they will more easily adapt to joining the wild tiger population here in the reserve."" "As for a successful mating, all Dr. Yudin can do is hope for results." "Victor's wife, Lena, has a special relationship with the tigers." "She's nurtured them since they were cubs." "When they must be brought in at night because of the dangers of poaching, only their Babushka can lure them home." "Over the next few days, the tigers breed often." "Sometimes dozens of times a day." "At last, the breeding ends, and Niurka moves into her den." "She should give birth in about a hundred days." "Springtime in Siberia." "Dr. Hornocker receives word from Victor Yudin that Niurka has given birth." "But something's wrong." "Victor's observed that the mother is not taking care of her cubs." "This is not uncommon when big cats give birth in captivity." ""Does Victor think she's fed them at all?"" ""Probably not."" ""Then we better go in and look, Victor."" "They isolate the mother, Niurka, so they can safely approach the den." "One of the cubs is up and about but looks hungry and unkempt." "The other cub is barely moving and Victor is clearly concerned." ""How is he?"" ""Yeah, oh yeah, the poor little guy."" "Suddenly, the cub stops breathing." "Victor rushes it inside where he will try to revive it." "It appears the mother has neither groomed nor nursed her cubs and this one is near death." "With infinite patience, Victor massages the heart." "Hoping-against all odds - to bring the cub back to life." "The mortality rate of Siberian tiger cubs can be up to thirty percent." "With so few born in the wild, the survival of captive cub is critical to the species." "One cub is lost, but her brother-under Victor's tender nursing-recuperates quickly." "He's named the cub Globus... for a world that cares about him, even if his own mother hasn't learned to." "Eventually Globus will be brought to the United States as part of a captive breeding program." "When he is, he'll be following other cubs, orphaned in Siberia and sent by Dr. Hornocker to the snows of Omaha, Nebraska." "They're now part of the world's most successful breeding program for large predators." "The tigers are bred here with the goal of returning the cubs back to the wild." "But what kind of environment will await them?" "Back in Russia," "Dr. Hornocker strives to educate Siberia's future caretakers." ""If we're to save these big carnivores as the world population increases, we must convince the younger generation that it's worthwhile conserving them." "It's always so rewarding to me and gratifying to see how children accept this." "They really love these big animals." "They want to save them." "And if we can convince them that it's in their best interest then it's to their advantage and to ours."" "Soon, much of this magnificent forest... the Siberian tiger's last domain... may be cut down for a world hungry for lumber." "But the years of difficult and dangerous study have given birth to a plan to save the forest..." "by saving the tiger in the wild." "Selecting the tiger as the umbrella species to be saved means that the forest surrounding the reserve must also be protected." "But in a land of political uncertainty, there are no guarantees." "Poised on the edge of extinction, the tiger of the snow evokes an old Russian proverb:" "Hope is the last to die." "In remote corners of South America lives a feisty animal, the elegant camel-like guanaco." "You've got to be taught to survive here, especially if you're a male guanaco." "In the southern Andes Mountains, fierce blizzards and crippling cold threaten to freeze you to death." "Then there are killer cats." "This is the home of the mountain lion known here by the Inca name, puma." "It's strong and powerful predator." "If the puma does kill you, a long list of animals will gladly dine on your remains from little gray foxes to giant Andean condors." "And you can't even trust your own kind." "If the cold or the cats don't kill you, rivals for your territory will certainly try." "But without a territory, you can't get a female to breed." "So a male guanaco's life is filled with conflict." "Supremacy is the objective, physical violence the method, females the prize." "So if you're a male guanaco, tough isn't enough." "You also have to be spitting mad." "Born of volcanic fire, carved by ice and wind, the famous granite towers of Paine are the crowning glory of the world's longest mountain chain... the Andes." "This is Southern Chile's Torres del Paine National Park only a thousand miles from the ice-cap of Antarctica." "And just over the mountains is the Pacific Ocean a birthplace of storms." "So this land is battered by some of the fiercest winds on earth." "To survive here, you need to be a very special animal one that is adaptable, well-organized, alert, and above all tough the guanaco." "And they certainly are well adapted having thick, soft coats for protection against the cold." "Wild ancestors of the domesticated llama, their fleece was much admired by the Inca civilization, providing warmth and wealth." "But a warm coat is not enough." "A male guanaco starts adult life homeless and alone, and to by successful, he has to win a territory and breed." "So he must communicate with potential mates-and rivals." "A raised tail and lowered ears mean aggression." "And the elaborate language makes intentions clear." "The ear flagging, the spitting, the raucous screams means a battle for territory is in the making." "The war dance confirms they will fight." "And the final exchange of insults starts the conflict." "With battle lines drawn, they try to intimidate each other with a show of strength." "If that doesn't work, it's grid-iron mayhem." "These fierce fights are dangerous and could lead to broken bones" " Even death." "But in the world of the guanaco, territory is everything." "The rival must be driven right out of the territory." "The males are fighting for this prime real estate, a lush area with ample food and water." "And by winning this territory, the victor is able to attract females an absolute necessity if he's to breed successfully." "His aggressive defense means the females of his family group can feed without hassle from other males." "Guanacos graze carefully, and their soft, cloven hooves minimize damage to the delicate turf." "These is safety in numbers, too" " Many pairs of eyes and ears provide protection from predators, and in this landscape, predators can hide almost anywhere." "The male deeps a sharp lookout for danger" " Especially pumas, the guanacos worst nightmare." "Pumas are a serious threat to survival and often stalk lake edges for thirsty guanacos." "They are powerful predators, six feet of lethal muscle, capable of pulling down prey eight times their weight." "But a fully grown guanaco is a difficult sharp-eyed target." "If they're seen, pumas won't waste energy with further hunting." "And guanacos sound the alarm with a far-reaching cry." "These powerful cats spend most of their days grooming and resting in preparation for nights of hunting and she'll nees plenty of rest." "For spring is the busy season in the southern Andes, a time of movement and great migrations." "And she hunts an inspiring wilderness, the Torres del Paine National Park, home to the Andean condor." "One of the world's largest birds, the condor's ten-foot wing span looks big even in this mighty landscape, as they cruise the wild skies in search of carrion." "Spring is the time when guanacos give birth." "So still-born calves or after-births will be a welcome source of food." "Young guanacos called chulengos are vulnerable." "And because there is safety in numbers, females synchronize births." "Over about two weeks, nearly 500 chulengos will be born." "So when one mother does it, they must all do it." "It is no wonder that spring is considered the high season in these wild mountains, and the young guanacos are eager to become part of the celebration." "The most precocious chulengos are walking and nursing within half an hour." "And they must all become mobile as soon as their young legs will carry them-and quickly" " For the danger of puma attack is never far away, the cats watching from some lofty crag with hungry eyes." "But even big cats don't have it easy." "Guanaco family groups gather in areas where there is less cover for pumas on the prowl." "And even chulengos are deceptively quick on their feet." "Fast or not, they are in mortal danger, for they are the pumas favorite prey." "Even where there is little cover, pumas are masters of invisibility, stalking their intended victims by using hollows in the ground." "Many chulengos die in their first year, but now is the most dangerous time of their lives, especially if they leave the relative safety of their mother's side." "Life is a constant battle between the puma's stealth and the guanaco's sharp eyes." "In this case, the eyes win." "Guanaco numbers can be seriously reduced by pumas." "But to truly understand the way guanacos live and die requires knowledge." "And to get it, you have to catch the chulengos." "Dr. Bill Franklin and his helpers have been studying guanacos since 1976, and with so many years experience behind him, he knows this mother is being difficult-and dangerous." "This angry female has made it clear that her chulengo is not going to become a part of Bill's scientific data." "But Bill also notices something else about the female." "Not only is she very aggressive, she is also rather fat." "So he leaves her to regain her composure in peace, but instructs one of his students to watch her from a distance." "It soon becomes obvious that this." "Particular guanaco is a very special mother." "She is about to give birth again, though she already has a chulengo barely three hours old." "Only once in 20 years has Bill observed guanaco twins." "But now he has another opportunity to study this extraordinary event again." "The first born chulengo seems a bit confused by this staggering addition to the family." "During the coming months, scientists will closely observe the twins as they face the dual threats of bad weather and puma attack." "But for the study to have meaning, single chulengos must be collared and tagged as well." "The fleet-footed youngsters must be brought to ground." "But sometimes, the only contact is the ground." "When they're just a few hours old, chulengos are easier to catch and can be handled with a minimum of stress to both mother and chulengo." "Wild though they are, quanacos see scientists almost every day and are at ease in their presence." "For two decades, Bill Franklin has given dozens of students the privilege of studying one of the most interesting animals on earth, and he is the world's leading authority on these-toughest of survivors." "Tagging the chulengos allows their habits and movements to be observed and recorded." "And while its mother looks on anxiously, her chulengo is weighed and examined." "Much can be learned, for the health of this chulengo may be a reflection of the health of the region in which it lives." "The chulengos are fitted with radio transmitters so theirlife-and-death struggles can be followed." "In this way," "Bill has discovered that guanacos may live as long as 12 years, but only if they survive the first year." "The chulengos will be closely guarded by its mother for the whole year." "But despite this protection, up to 80 percent of the year's offspring might be taken by pumas." "Separated from its mother, a chulengo is confused and in danger, so Bill is anxious to return it quickly." "In fact, chulengos will readily become attached to humans when they're very young." "And only when they see and smell their mother again will the bond be retied." "And Bill watches to ensure this takes place." "To see the two together again is a heartening moment, and mother and chulengo soon rejoin their family group." "Once all are together again, the dedicated scientific work of following each collared chulengo's struggles can begin." "Summer and winter," "Bill's students take to the hilltops to check on the whereabouts of the chulengos." "The receiver distinguishes between each collared youngster and also register if there is lively movement or not." "So a scientist is able to tell if a chulengo is alive or dead." "If a mortality signal is received, the body must be found and the cause of death determined." "This chulengo was killed by a puma, for the big cats cover their kills to hide them from scavengers." "The puma will return to eat its meal under the cover of darkness." "The cats hunt mostly at night, so evening is the time to wake up." "And with pumas on the prowl, night is the guanacos' time of greatest danger." "Do they have a strategy for staying alive they move house." "Night's aren't entirely friendly to pumas either." "A mother with cubs may be ambushed by a male puma from a neighboring territory, so she delays leading her cubs out of the den until the light is fading, and will be careful as she guides them to the kill." "As night falls, guanacos climb to the tops of bare hills, and the strategy makes sense:" "There's less cover up here, which means that even in darkness, pumas will have difficulty approaching without being seen." "The mothers will ensure that their chulengos are close by and the male will keep watch from the edge of the family group." "Staying alive at night is far more perilous than daylight, for guanacos need moonlight to see, while pumas have sharp vision, even on the darkest nights." "But they still take the precaution of dragging their meal into thick cover." "This is a tough task, for the guanaco carcass may outweigh her by as much as 200 pounds." "But she must struggle on, for thick cover provides a safer place for her cubs to feed." "The family shares the food amicably, with the youngsters getting first bite." "And once they fill their bellies, the cubs can indulge in some late night revelry." "No doubt this play helps develop muscles and hunting skills, but they also seem to be just enjoying themselves." "Their mother must recover the carcass, for it will feed them all for at least two more nights." "At the first hint of dawn, the female leads her cubs back to the den, barking instructions to hurry them along." "It's important they are back in a safe place by daylight, and the sun is rising fast." "Once the pumas are back at their dens, the guanacos come back downhill to the food-rich meadows they abandon at night." "Joining them is a wealth of wildlife that floods into the park during the spring and summer." "Many wildfowl breed here, including graceful black-necked swans and the chest-patting ruddy duck." "There is food for all, especially guanacos." "And though summer is a time for plenty, the park lies in the wildest extremity of South America." "And the weather cannot be taken for granted." "Guanacos must take good care of their soft woolen coats." "So dust bathing is a daily ritual." "Keeping them in tip-top condition could mean the difference between life and death." "For even in summer, icy winds and snow can blast down from the mountains." "Winds of 100 miles an hour have been recorded here." "And driven by these raging winds, freezing snow showers can be a killer." "When the weather has been particularly brutal, the undertakers of the air are never far away." "Most chulengos are born around midday." "For those that are born late have little chance during hostile summer storms." "And once hypothermia sets in, death follows quickly." "There is nothing the distressed mother can do." "The condors will hang on the wind until a chulengo is still." "But its mother is hesitant about defend it." "Perhaps she's intimidated by the condor's impressive bulk." "Only when the condors begin eating her dead offspring does she muster enough courage to chase them away." "Her defense is in vain." "Gray foxes scavenge dead meat, too, and their hunger makes them aggressive." "Though some of the meat will be eaten now, it is vital to store some of the scraps for use in harder times." "So these caches of meat are hidden underground." "In the dead of winter, they'll return for their long-buried meal" "if they can find it." "Summer can be an easy time for foxes." "And like most predators, their cubs are raised on the misfortune of others not just dead chulengos and the remains of puma kills, but eggs, birds, and lots of beetles." "Foxes can raise up to five cubs each summer." "And though puma-killed guanacos are an important source of food, pumas also kill foxes." "So it's best to keep out of sight." "Killing isn't always a big cat's priority." "Eating a guanaco on a hot summer's day is thirsty work." "So she had to abandon the carcass to find much needed water." "The killer cat is watched by many eyes." "The crested caracara is another scavenger that looks to the puma for leftovers, and it already has the chulengo carcass in its sights." "With the foxes frightened off by the puma, it too can benefit from the chulengo's death." "Nothing is wasted in this hungry land." "As with all birds of prey, the caracara's hooked beak and sharp claws enable it to rip meat off the tough carcass." "The caracara also has a family to feed, so scraps are taken back to its nest." "Two chicks are the norm, but conditions are so harsh in these wind-swept mountains that food is difficult to find." "So in most nests, only one chick will survive." "Life is tough in the mountains." "And the short summer is a vital time in the lives of local animals." "Guanacos are no exception." "It's breeding time, a male guanaco's most challenging time of year." "The females in his family group are now in breeding condition, and the territory-holding male has a job to do." "He must not only sniff out those females that are ready to mate he must also ensure that other males are kept out." "With aggressively lowered head, he dashes around, marking his territory by adding to dung piles scattered around the real estate he calls his own." "Each pellet contains his scent and announces ownership to other nosy males." "Only he is allowed to use these territorial markers, so if another male has the nerve to drop dung on one of his piles, it is a serious insult." "This intruding male must be driven out of the territory before it can get access to the females." "But, as he's determined to stay, the manure really hits the fan." "These battles for females can be exhausting, the combatants galloping for miles across the hills." "With the landlord away at war other males may try to mate with his females.]" "And while the cat's away..." "But it's important that everyone does mate during the same few days." "And every male wants a slice of the action." "But some young guys never get the footwork right." "When the territory owner returns, the young guy could be beaten to death, but only if he gets caught." "The landlord means business, so the cheating youngster is literally running for his life." "The outcome of such a battle is often worse than broken bones." "If a puma spots his injury, he could make an easy meal." "If the young guy is to stand a chance of surviving, he needs a place to hide." "And fortunately for him, guanaco society provides just such a sanctuary a sort of bachelor's club between the family territories where dispossessed males can gather." "And if he finds one of these areas before a puma gets him, he will be allowed to join without having to fight for his place." "He is still not safe from puma attack." "But many pairs of eyes give greater security while his wounds heal." "The other members are males who've lost territories or young males evicted from family groups." "And apart from eating, the most important activity is play." "It is here that young males learn the language and ritual of combat." "They engage in playful bouts of sparring to win status in the hierarchy." "But as they get older, they develop the strength and skills for serious fights." "Most members will go through two or three years of cheerful neck chewing before fights become serious." "And by then, the mature males are ready to leave the group and try to win a territoriey of their own." "But they may have to wander the hills alone and homeless for months on end." "And other big changes are in the air, too." "Nights are growing colder." "Autumn mists fill the valleys." "Life is getting harder." "Tougher conditions mean family groups join together to wander in search of food much to the annoyance of the territorial males whose backyards they invade." "With autumn's glorious colors in full bloom, the herds move around even more, forcing the pumas to track them during the day so they can hunt hem during the night." "Like the guanacos, pumas aslo hold territories as much as 60 square miles for a female like this, but often larger for a male." "Guanaco real estate is divided into much smaller areas." "So the national park feeds about 2,500 guanacos, and they in turn feed about 25 pumas." "But all this is about to change." "Real hardship is about to strike." "Winter is sweeping down from the mountains." "Death travels with the wind." "Blizzards and deep snow make survival increasingly difficult." "Most of the birds have fled." "Almost everything else has to move, too." "Guanacos, foxes, pumas" " All search desperately for food." "And in their search, the guanacos' hooves leave a scent trail, making it easy for the pumas to follow." "In the guanaco's mass exodus from their summer range, the migrating family groups coalesce into large herds and the pumas must stay close, both mother and cubs." "Survival hangs in the balance for both predator and prey." "But the guanacos are forced to migrate through unfamiliar terrain, so the pumas have the advantage." "And, if they are skillful, they can maneuver into a position of ambush." "To add to their problems, the guanacos have to migrate into areas where conditions seem particularly bad." "But this is one of nature's classic contradictions:" "it is here that fierce mountain winds below some of the snow off grass and shrubs, making it easier for guanacos to feed." "But starvation is always a threat." "If severe weather persists," "It can take a heavy toll, to the benefit of the little gray foxes." "If they have already exhausted their buried supplies of meat, they are relegated to digging for frozen insects." "But they don't ignore the threat from pumas, it's quite the opposite." "The foxes actually trail the cats," "Waiting for them to provide a larger meal." "And they may be lucky." "Condors also monitor the guanaco herds." "For this is an easy time for scavengers as well as killer cats." "Weakened by hunger, guanacos can be easy prey." "And the puma has killed one on the cliff and dragged it down into the valley below." "She has partially covered it with snow, but with the threat of thieves from above, she must cover the carcass more carefully." "Huge front paws shovel snow effectively, but an even better deterrent against the condors and foxes is her presence, and that of her waiting cubs." "The cats can be seen easily in the snow, so the hungry cubs will have to wait until nightfall to enjoy their meal." "For they're still at risk from other hungry cats" "That could be hiding nearby." "So once the female has covered the carcass," "They will all gather nearby to stand guard." "But deep snow makes traveling difficult, even with the benefit of outsized paws." "With meat stored in the freezer, the puma family's immediate future is assured... the quanacos' future, too." "For winter's last full moon is waning." "As the sun releases winter's icy grip on the land, the guanacos hurry back to their summer territories." "The males reestablish their ownership of prime real estate, and once again they turn their attention to females to their lust meadows." "And with spring at hand, the park becomes a mecca for wildlife." "The year has come full circle." "Large flocks of upland geese and their fluffy chicks join the guanacos." "And within a few weeks, females will drop the next generation of chulengos into a glorious carpet of flowers." "Burgeoning vegetation means there should be plenty to eat, but last year's chulengos eat more as they grow larger, and each family group has a limited feeding territory." "Over-population can lead to hardship and starvation, but guanacos have a solution to this problem, too." "The adult males drive off all of last year's offspring." "This is a dramatic turn of events for the yearlings." "And they're reluctant to leave home, signaling appeasement to the male with a forward-curved tail." "But even if the male gets the message, he must press home the attack." "The future of his whole family group depends on his ruthless aggression." "In a desperate attempt to stay in the family group, the yearling circles back around." "But the more he tries to stay, the more determined the male becomes." "And this could have disastrous consequences." "An injured yearling is in serious danger." "If he's unable to find his way to the security of a male group, its fate is all but sealed." "The puma cubs are now nearly grown now, and have formidable appetites." "So their mother must increase her hunting." "There is little chance for an injured yearling." "For the cubs are bolder now," "Investigating their territory with enthusiasm and no longer waiting for nightfall to eat." "The cub's mother tries to encourage them away from the kill, but one hungry youngster is reluctant to obey." "Future generations of guanacos will have to remain alert when these cubs become experienced hunters." "With the big cats at a safe distance, condors and caracaras can once again take advantage of the guanacos' presence here-foxes, too." "In fact, the guanacos life and death" "Is the essential pivot upon which all life is poised." "For their competitive social system has evolved because it makes maximum use of the land with minimal damage." "Guanacos are now protected in Chile and are holding their own." "But in many ways, they protect themselves." "With so many lone males waiting for a chance to win a territory, it's almost certain that only the strongest males will get to breed." "Their future and that of all guanacos depends on the survival of the fittest." "Their battles are a crucial part of the never-ending cycle of life in the southern Andes." "So the fights for territory must continue, however dangerous and exhausting." "For the land to sustain life, there have to be winners and losers." "And it is essential that the winners are so tough." "For even in this windy, unforgiving land, their vitality helps all guanacos to survive, to thrive and prosper." "For years Susan Middleton photographed objects." ""I took pictures of rare artifacts in museums ...none of if was alive." "But the I began to want to show living things."" ""There, that's beautiful, great."" "At the same time," "David Littschwager worked as a commercial photographer." ""Smile with your eyes."" ""It was, you know, a glamorous life..." "a New York City fashion photographer." "But, I always wanted to make pictures that the world had use for."" ""Chin up just a little bit."" ""Chin up, chin up."" "One day, in 1986," "Susan and David took a photograph of an endangered creature." "It was the beginning of an obsession." ""Excuse me."" "Ever since, the two photographers have taken portraits of animals and plants on the brink of extinction." ""These creatures are known as statistics by most people." "But we're treating them as individuals, trying to capture their personalities."" ""We want to see them face-to-face, eye-to-eye... make them unavoidable."" ""Oooh!" "Ah!"" "This series now their mission in life their calling, and their passion." ""Oh, beautiful!"" ""We fall in love with these creatures." "What 2042X we're trying to show is some of that wonder that we experience."" ""That's pretty funny..."" ""I don't want him down here."" "David and Susan's portraits have gazed at us from books, magazine covers, museum exhibits." "But does the popularity of their work mean that these creatures will survive?" "For the two photographers, it's an endless odyssey across America:" "to show the faces of creatures we may never see again." ""These creatures are in danger." "They're slipping away, but if people can see them, maybe we can make the effort to keep them with us here on earth."" ""Okay, beak here."" ""Great, great."" "The first Europeans on this continent had a common enemy to conquer;" "it was called... nature." "America seemed to be an endless expanse of hostile wilderness." "Bison wandered along the Potomac, grizzly bears strolled the beaches of California." "Human beings did not even know it was possible for a species to go extinct... but we learned." "Hundreds of creatures slipped into extinction." "Even our National symbol was disappearing before our eyes." "But then America did something no other country had ever done." "In 1973, we passed a law to save our wild creatures." "The Endangered Species Act protects the lives and habitats of plants and animals in immediate danger of extinction." "Today, there are over a thousand species on the list." "David and Susan's quest to photograph the endangered species of America has taken them over hundreds of thousands of miles ...through all 50 states and every conceivable American landscape." ""We drive because we have thousands of pounds of equipment to take with us and we can't plan too far ahead because we have to adapt ourselves to nature's timing, so we have to be in Texas when a plant blossoms or in California" "when a butterfly emerges from its chrysalis and that means we drive."" "This time, they're driving toward Laramie, Wyoming and the prairies of the West." "Once the great plains were a song about freedom." "ffalo roamed, prairie dogs ranged everywhere, but they] ngerous habit, they ate grass... and so did a new animal." "the prairie." "cattle ranchers went to war... in the end, the ranchers w." "But it was another creature that suffered most." "The black-footed ferret has a monotonous diet... prairie dogs, and little else." ""It was an accident." "People weren't trying to harm the ferret, but when you kill off one creature, you turn around and something else is gone."" "The ferret disappeared from the prairie." "We thought it was extinct, until a tiny group suddenly turned up." "In 1987, all the black-footed ferrets in the world, just 18 animals, were brought to live in a single building." "Most biologists thought the animal was doomed:" "ferrets are highly susceptible to infectious diseases." ""Everything that goes in that possible will come in contact with an animal or even in close proximity to the animals' cages has to be wiped down." "Um, so we could get you showered through and, uh, then take a look at the equipment."" ""We've never been in a situation where an animal was so tightly quarantined and, of course, that's why we had to go through the showering process and putting on the scrubs and then all of our equipment had to be sterilized before we went in."" ""It feels like we're in some kind of intensive care unit devoted only to ferrets."" ""We'll just need to rinse the bottoms of our shoes with a virucide." "Okay, now we can get you guys some surgical masks, where anytime you're in contact or in a room that has a black-footed ferret in it." "You can just close that first set of doors there."" ""It's not unlike the way you feel when you go into a hospital and see a loved one all hooked up to life-support system."" ""This is the young of the year."" ""Their very survival is so precarious" " Hanging on by a thread."" ""She's pretty inquisitive."" ""If it weren't for a very rigorous captive breeding program, there would no longer be any black-footed ferrets in the world." "You know it's a ferret "factory"." "The point is production..." "make more ferrets."" ""This is the perfect time during the breeding season because we have almost every possible thing going on." "We have animals that have just been paired." "There's the male grabbing the female into the breeding box."" ""Oh, yeah." "Oh my God."" ""If she's not interested she'll fight back, they'll start hissing and chattering."" ""What does the sound like"?" ""It sound like a..." "And the then we know, like, they're fightin' and stuff... yeah."" ""So it feels kinds of voyeuristic."" ""It's little voyeuristic."" "In the past ten years, over a thousand ferrets have been born here." ""You'd think that an animal that slept for 20 hours a day might be easy to photograph, but they never stop moving."" ""You really need everything to be just right for about two minutes, but two minutes is a long time to ask a ferret to stand still."" ""Wow." "So, there's no such thing as like calming down after a while."" ""No."" ""Yeah, Ah!" "Ah..."" ""He's okay, Can you just take it on the floor."" ""Do you want to try another older animal."" ""Yeah, we'll start Gypsy."" ""Let's try gypsy."" ""Come out, Gypsy."" ""Um, beautiful."" ""Yeah." "When she has her head up like that," "I think that's her best look."" "In 1991, the first captive-bread ferret was released;" "the black-footed ferret was a wild animal again." "But many of the released ferrets have died and there is no way of knowing whether the animals born in the factory for ferrets will ultimately die out ...or live on to play in the freedom of the wild." ""When you're driving across America, you understand why so many plants and animals are endangered." "They're losing their homes." "We're building a human world and losing a wild one."" "From Wyoming the road goes East..." "to Cambridge, Massachusetts." "But they're not going to find an endangered creature, they're meeting one of the greatest experts on why species go extinct... distinguished scientist, Edward O. Wilson." ""It's a sobering fact there is an extinction crisis." "They're have always been species going extinct, from time to time... but now human activity's pushing it up a hundred to a thousand times, we're in the midst of a biological catastrophe that's the greatest since the end of the age of dinosaurs," "65 million years ago." ""What I hope you'll succeed in doing is to make endangered species a vivid presence in the lives of people." "Make it clear to them that every endangered species has a name, has a billion year history, has a place in the world." "Bring us face to face with each one of those species." "Make us know that they're our companions in the biosphere." "They're not just something out there you look at once in a while, but they're part of our existence, they're part of us." "Fifty million years ago an animal, related to the elephant, crawled back into the sea." "It was huge and gentle." "It had no enemies, so it had no fear." "Now, after eons of tranquility, the manatees of Florida should fear one creature." "Every year speedboats kill scores of manatees." "Over 90% of all manatees bear scars from propellers." ""What we're looking at right here is actually a, a huge wound from a propeller that just gashed the whole side of Synco, here."" "Biologist Ed Gerstein is working to find out why the collisions happen." ""And after they've been hit once or twice or three times, why don't they learn to get out of the way?"" ""Why don't they... yeah..." the subjects of Ed's research are two captive-born manatees..." "Stormy and Dundee." ""The common perception was that these animals are dumb and they're slow, but actually we've proven that the animals are very intelligent."" ""Hand signal given."" ""Okay, this is run number six, series 99."" "Ed's coworker is his wife, Laura." ""Run number six is a tone at negative..."" ""Each animal has an individual personality and, with Stormy, he's so crafty, he just is interested in entertaining himself and then when he decides to work, he'll work when he's ready."" ""Stormy had been trained to leave the hoop after he sees the strobe light and go make a selection." "If he doesn't hear a sound he'll go over and push the solid white panel." "If he hears it, he'll push the striped panel."" ""Touch." "That's correct."" ""These animals have very good high frequency hearing." "The problem is boats put out low frequencies." "So, we hope, from our research, to come up with a device to put on a boat to make boats audible to manatees so that they can get out of the way."" "Stormy and Dundee ...quiet in their quiet world... just do what they've always done, graze peacefully and almost constantly." ""They eat 30, or I forget how many heads of romaine lettuce a day, and how can these animals get so big like that eating a completely fat" " Free diet..." "lettuce?" "I mean, I can't imagine it."" ""Stormy likes to play tricks." "If he were a human he'd be a juvenile delinquent."" ""There's no feeling quite like being gummed by a manatee."" ""Here we go."" ""Great."" ""Wow!" "A little too close."" ""They're very curious animals and whenever anything enters the water they come over to inspect."" ""Stormy come back." "Oh, beautiful!"" ""There's so much feeling behind what they do." "You can just see it and the playfulness that they have."" ""Oh, no." "Way too close." "Ah!"" ""The more you're around them, eh, it's almost like you can hear them think."" ""Somebody get it."" ""You can get it."" ""Looks like a big smile."" ""Go for it."" "All told, 415 manatees died in 1996." "Today, some 24 hundred remain." ""When you look at the world, eh, you know, the manatee's just a speck." "It's just one other thing that's going... and so many things are going and the, the beauty of a manatee, you know, it'll be a shame."" "Three thousand miles later, they're going to the Sacramento River Delta to photograph an endangered insect." "But the Delta green ground beetle is almost invisible." ""Four times before we've gone out looking for this beetle, never finding this thing."" ""They have big eyes, they're sensitive to movement, they're day active, so this is the time they would be active."" ""Well, this time we are meeting five of the leading experts and, uh, it's like bringing in the big guns." ""The best way to spot them is to sit in one place and become very quiet and them just gaze."" ""You look straight at it, you can't see it, she, it's like it blends in so perfectly."" ""I could see if David and I weren't able to find it, but when you go out with experts and they can't find it, then you begin to wonder."" ""Eureka."" ""Wow."" ""You can see it?"" ""It's at four o'clock from... eh, see it?"" ""Even when she was pointing it out, I still couldn't see it."" ""How do you know it's real?"" ""Fifth try is a charm."" ""Uh, toward his legs." "Yep."" ""Every color of the rainbow is in this beetle, but you have to have a microscope to see it." "And you stop and ask yourself," ""Why did nature do that?"" ""It's very easy to dismiss the bugs and the weeds of the world, but science is revealing, every year, just how important are these little things on which we and other larger organisms depend." "They cleanse the water, they create the soil, they generate the very air we breathe."" "Ten thousand years ago, the last glacier raked over the mountainsof California." "When it receded it left one kind of gold in splendid isolation high in the Sierras." "For over 30 years, this gold has been the object of one man's dreams." "David and Susan are headed for the Little Kern River Valley ...the only place on earth where the gold can be found." ""Dan Christensen, here, pleased to meet you."" "Dan Christensen is the man who saved a species." ""It was 1949." "I was still in high school." "My brother and I would go up to the mountains and go fishing." "It was an incredible experience." "We just feel in love with the place... and with those beautiful fish..." "the golden trout of the High Sierra." "Fifteen years later I started working for the Department of Fish and Game and I came across old reports buried in the files." "They said the golden trout in the Little Kern River might be extinct... so I had to go out and find 'em ...if there were any left alive."" "Fishermen caused the problem." "They introduced other species of trout to improve the fishing." "Golden trout were soon overwhelmed by the aggressive newcomers." ""It was only a matter of five or six years before the golden trout were gone... the just wiped 'em out."" ""So what did it actually feel like when you discovered a Little Kern golden trout still alive?" ""Well, it, it felt like finding gold..." ""Pretty exciting?"" ""actually." "Yeah, it was very exciting."" "Dan spent many years removing all the non-native fish from the streams." "Only then, could he restore the golden trout to their ancient habitat." ""We're almost to the creek so you want to be lookin' for a spot that you can work." "We'll go ahead and start collecting while you guys set up."" ""And then we'll set up our aquarium."" ""Great."" ""David has to build an aquarium, it has to be custom built." "We have to worry about reflections, we have to worry about bubbles, we have to worry about keeping the fish happy." "So it's really a kind of stage."" "To find trout Dan goes electrofishing." "Any fish in the area will be stunned by electricity." ""there we go, oh, there he is, there he is, here it comes." "Oop." "Got him." "There you go." "Okay." ""Ready for fish, huh?"" ""Yeah, I guess I could just put this down in there." "Okay."" ""Perfect, he looks really nice."" ""Okay, stir 'em up and then I'll get out of your way."" ""For me, the thrill of seeing these golden trout has never faded."" ""Come on now, come on guys."" ""These fish are special." "This is the only place in the world that they exist."" "Dan's labors have brought success." "The Little Kern Golden Trout is about to be taken off the endangered species list." ""I'm happy I could bring these fish back-back to their past in the Little Kern River and they've brought my past back to me."" ""Okay, here we go." "Brand new home, all to yourselves." ""The golden trout is going to be with us." ""There you go fella." ""Maybe some high school kid'll go upthere to the Sierras and find these beautiful golden fish and they'll never forget if for the rest of his life."" ""Ah!" "Road burn." "You know, to motels, least expensive motel we can find." "Sometimes we just get really tired and then we go home." "It's a grind... and you never know what the good restaurant is."" ""The special today is chili." ""But, uh, I have done a lot of other things to make a living and this is worth continuing."" ""I want to stop."" ""We're not going to get there on time."" ""I know, but why drive all night long."" ""What is the situation from Flagstaff north to you?"" ""Dave, ask them about the weather, if it's safe to get there."" ""Ah, eh, he's not going to know that."" ""Yes, he is."" ""Ah, we're already... heh..."" ""Let me ask him."" ""Let's find out from here."" ""This is a big country and, eh, you know, some days you don't notice that it's beautiful." "You just get to the next place."" "The next place is costal North Carolina." "In those days we had never heard of passing up a chance to kill a wolf." "In a second, we were pumping lead into the pack." "The old wolf was down." "We reached the wolf in time to watch a fierce, green fire dying in her eyes." "...Aldo Leopold." "The fire nearly died." "Only 17 true red wolves stood between the species and extinction." "But then, it was the first animal we attempted to save with a recovery program." "Jennifer Gilbreath has worked with red wolves at the" "Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge for six years." ""We don't really see the wolves ...all that terribly often, but, we know where most of the wolves are because of their radio collars." ""We can learn a lot by tracking the wolves and, as long as the wolves have a place to live and are left alone, they can be fine."" "When landowners allow it, wolves are often released onto private property, but wolves don't know about boundaries... where they're supposed to be ...and where they're not." ""It's just as much, if not more, about people than it is about wolves."" ""The wolf was actually stalking our, our rams that were out in this pasture because we keep the ewes tied up in the building."" ""Our neighbor took a shot at him and he was moving on down the field right that, at that time."" ""But he was thinking about lamb chops this morning, that's what he was thinking of." "This would be a good little appetizer for him." ""It really would."" ""And we've got nine of these on the ground right now and I don't want them being hurt."" ""Most people feel very strongly about the creature." "A lot of people don't pay any attention really to the facts."" ""Well, I heard that you'd seen some wolves in the area."" ""Yeah." "See 'em, hear tell of 'em, and, uh, so far, they're not bothering me, but they get off of their land and they come on my land, and they start damaging my property, then I ain't got but one resort" "now you know what that is..."" ""That's right."" ""...we talked about that earlier." "I don't like 'em." "I ain't never liked them." "I ain't gonna lie about it."" ""The wolf embodies the concept of wild nature." "All of us grew up with stories like "Little Red Riding Hood" and" ""Three Little Pigs" and it goes back into literally ancient times when wolves represented Satan or the devil, so, because of the myths, some people are afraid."" ""The wolf is more frightened than I am, which is not what I expected at all."" ""And you can feel their fear."" ""I'm just going to roll it out."" ""Two frames."" ""Is there a chance that the wolf could freak out and attack us?"" ""We've never had that happen." "We have never had it happen."" ""The big bad wolf, just terrified, cowering in the corner."" "For the wolves the news has been good." ""They've survived, they've bred, in the wild, and reared young ...two or three generations."" ""Come around this way."" ""It's very near the breeding season so we hope that they'll stay together and form a pair bond and do, do the right thing."" ""Ready?"" ""You wonder: why are we doing this?" "Why make problems for ourselves by putting wolves back in the world?" "The answer is that we don't want our world to be just malls with trees in neat little rows." ""We want wildness out there becauseit puts the wonder of the world in you."" ""We're going to be late to meet these guys."" ""l, th, you know, I think we must have past it or something." "It's not just..." ""It's not fitting with what they were describing at all."" ""Excuse me, can you tell me which way is to the Natches Trace?"" ""Go back to the end of this road to the four-way stop, turn left and it'd be about seven miles, the three-way stop will be right..."" ""Get the, they call it the "Yellow Store" but it's not yellow anymore, it used to be really yellow years ago, but it's gray now, I think..."" ""And you make a left... no, you make a right."" ""Go to the stoplight."" ""Huh, huh."" ""And take your first left."" ""But we want to be right there."" ""And we turned off here and we missed it."" ""Well, maybe you took the wrong, the wrong, left." "If you took the first left the first time, try the second left this time."" ""You turn at the 'Yellow Store' if you don't see a store that's yellow, just turn left at the Fat Woman, you'll find it, it won't be any problem."" "Eventually, Susan and David reach Central Florida and 5,000 acres of deep sand and scrub, called Archbold Biological Station." ""It doesn't look like much at first because the predominant plants is kind of shrubby-looking oak, but it was a, a kind of magic garden we had no idea we were entering." ""Great, great"" ""We've never been in a place that had so many endangered species." "All these unique creatures tangled together in web of life."" ""There you go."" "Eastern indigo snake." "Florida mouse" "Tequesta grasshopper" "Scrub mint" "Blue-tailed mole skink" "Florida scrub jay" "Gopher tortoise" ""Somebody tell me where to stop."" "But of all the unusual creatures in the scrub, David and Susan soon discover one of the most intriguing." ""Two takes... 20,000;" "third take 30,000."" "When off his bike, Tom Eisner is a distinguished scientist." "The pioneer of a technique he calls chemical prospecting" "He searches for chemicals in wild plants and animals." "He's found nerve drugs in millipedes, insect repellents in a tiny mint plant, compounds for the human heart in fireflies." ""There's hidden value to nature." "Nearly half the medicines that we take are derived from nature." "They're chemicals that are used by plants, animals and microorganisms for their own survival." "This is unbelievably important." "To lose that informations is as if it were burning every book on our library shelves." ""What you want to be alert to is shining things in the dark."" "Often, Tom finds chemicals in nature by using the life... and death of animals as his tool." ""Right there." "That's at about 20 feet, there's a tiny little spider there which I could spot just from the eye shine." "There it is." "It's hungry." "And I'm going to feed it a moth." "Okay, typical strike and rejection." "You notice she backed away." "I mean, you can literally enlist the help of these spiders in helping you do research." "You can ask these spiders a simple question..." "what do you like?" "What don't you like?" "And now let's see if she's ready to take something edible." ""Oh, wow."" ""Action."" ""It eats some, it rejects others and the question is why does it reject some?" "And the answer is because the defensive chemicals in those items that are rejected, those chemicals that protect an insect, could be chemicals that have medical uses." "So the spider becomes your partner and it does this free of charge." ""Tom, I'm just completely amazed at what we've seen here." "I mean," "David and I have just been traveling around photographing endangered species isolated from each other and here is the first place where we've been in a habitat that's still intact." ""Well, in nature itself everything is connected, every species is in some way dependent on others." "So you have this fabric of life and, to me, an endangered species is like a critical stitch in that fabric." ""The longer you study any one area, the more you realize that if any one item becomes extinct, the whole fabric falls apart." "Everything depends on everything else."" "Sixty years earlier, another scientist went in search of an endangered species." "Deep into the Louisiana swamps, trying to find one of the rarest birds in America." "He found it and he filmed it." "It was the first time anyone had ever filmed the ivory-billed woodpecker... and the last." ""The ivory billed has always had a special mystique." "You hear rumors that it's still alive, that it's been heard in some deep dark part of the swamp."" ""We're finally getting to photograph the ivory-billed woodpecker ...but it's not the way we had hoped."" "The birds' habitat was decimated by development." "In 1996, the ivory-billed woodpecker was finally declared extinct." ""It was rare and then it slipped away." "The preserved specimen is all that's left."" ""Species do not die of old age, species are killed off and when a species dies, with it dies this genetic history that can never be recreated." "Scientists even begun to think of how they might be able to reassemble a species and the loss is permanent."" "There's only one place in the wild where a certain endangered species can live." "A windy, foggy microclimate in the middle of San Francisco." ""There's endangered species in our backyard and just a few blocks from where we work is this plant, the Presidio manzanita."" ""The manzanita so rare that its exact location has to be kept a secret, for its own protection."" ""Good morning."" ""Good morning."" ""Hi."" ""Hi."" ""I'm, David."" ""Mark."" "Biologist Mark Albert will take them to the plant's hiding place." ""Because it is the last wild individual of this species, it's very, very important that we use extreme caution when we're walking around the plant." "So I'd like to ask you if you could very carefully watch where I walk and even how I walk, just so that we're not disturbing anything that shouldn't be disturbed." "Just follow my footsteps very carefully here." "So you want to walk right along the edge of this plant here."" ""The pressure of our feet and our equipment really endangers the actual plant itself."" ""So there's some rocks here that we should step on when we're near the plant because there are no roots growing under..."" ""Is this one okay?"" ""Yep."" ""I mean, is this like the only place we can stand?"" ""Uh, for any length of time, yes."" ""There it is right there."" ""So this whole green expanse that we're seeing is it."" ""This is it."" ""Oh, my God."" ""This is the only wild individual that we know exists at this point."" ""I'd like to get a, eh, a good look at it." "Can I just walk in, or..."" ""If you have to step off the rock a little bit just don't, you know, try to keep your foot planted in one spot."" ""I mean, it's just not, you know, initially, that spectacular."" ""It looks like ground cover, it just doesn't look like anything you could make of photograph of that anyone would want to look at."" ""I don't know how we're going to pull this off."" ""Be careful with your left hand, David, on the foliage."" ""But we're not choosing our subjects based on what they look like, we're choosing them because they're threatened with extinction."" ""Do you think we could do this with one leaf? "" ""Sure." "In the small scale, it's actually really extraordinary."" ""All living things are amazingly complex and beautiful if you can figure out a way to reveal it."" "This plant can't reproduce by itself, but it's the last one left in the wild, so the manzanita is what some call the "living dead."" ""Plants get ignored." "Almost two thirds of the species on the endangered list are plants." "They're not big and flashy like the giant panda or the rhino, but they're equally as important in how life works." "Without plants the animals wouldn't be here;" "we wouldn't be here."" ""Americans are increasingly absorbed with the artificial, the plastic, with the world of virtual reality." "But we're going to come to realize that the real eagle and the rest of nature are vastly more interesting and satisfying than the artificial replicas... that there's a sense of the touch and smell and sight and hearing and experience that" "the real world of nature can never be duplicated." ""As nature slips away we will have created a world in which we will be deprived and lonely."" "Arthur Bonner is from South Central Los Angeles." ""We don't have trees, we don't have flowers, we don't have insects, butterflies, spiders." "The only thing we have growing is buildings."" "What did thrive in South Central was gangs." ""It was full of violence." "We would beat people with bats, hit 'em in the head with bottles."" "When he was 18 Arthur shot a man in the face." "He spent over seven years in juvenile detention and jail." ""Good morning."" ""Good morning."" ""My name is, uh, Arthur and, uh, you guys are out here to help us out to save an endangered species." "It's called the Palos Verdes blue..."" "When Arthur got out ofjail, he joined the L.A. Conservation Corps ...his life was soon turned around by a tiny six-legged companion, called the Palos Verdes blue butterfly." ""It's only, little small, 300 acres lift for these butterflies."" ""Go ahead."" ""So we all needs to help maintain it." "Nature deserves to be everywhere."" ""It's a catapillar." "It won't bite you, it won't even hard you, you could hold it with your bare hand, it wouldn't do anything to you."" ""Does it turn into a butterfly or a moth."" ""A moth."" ""Yeah."" ""When they come out here and they see the stuff, they find the insects, the butterflies, the lizards, you know, all of it, it's something that they put in their head and they take it back to the city and" "they tell their friends, 'Well, home, we was at a habitat today."'" ""Take him out gently."" "Arthur is one ofjust three people who are permitted to gather the butterflies." ""I'm very dedicated to coming down here." "I love to do what I'm doing." "I love my work." "He uses all his powers of persuasion to help his captives reproduce." ""Okay girls, which one of you laid some eggs for me today?"" ""The, uh, five females that's actually collected out in the wild, you know, I bring them in, I have to watch 'em lay their eggs."" ""There you go, you gave me one."" ""The butterfly only has a five-day life span and it's up to me to keep her baby alive."" ""You're not hungry right now, huh?"" ""But they don't have to go up and get their food, they have somebody to bring it to 'em, I bring it to 'em, you know, they get their food in bed, you know everybody loves to get breakfast in bed."" ""Doesn't want to eat it." "That's okay, you're going to eat it before the day is over with."" "Like all creatures, the butterfly needs a place to live." "If its habitat goes, it goes and the Palos Verdes Blue Butterfly has a precarious home... a postage stamp habitat surrounded by oil refineries." ""So that's the one that you think is probably going to go first?"" ""And this is going to be the one that's gonna actually hatch due to the fact that it has a, a better wing formation than any of the, uh, other pupas that you actually see on the, um, format here."" ""It's been an egg, it's been a catapillar, and it's been a pupa for a whole year."" ""It emerges in this one-inch butterfly; this bright jewel comes out of a little tiny brown package."" ""It comes out; it exists in the world as a butterfly for five days, it finds another of its kind;" "they made, the female lays the eggs and the whole process starts over again."" ""Now, do you think she's going to open her wings soon?"" ""Yes, she will." "She's gonna open 'em up."" ""Oop, look at that."" ""Yeah, see, their wings are dried now." "The wings are actually dried now."" ""Look at that." "It's taking a little walk."" ""If you'd been in pupation for over a year, it's going to take a little time for you to actually, um, get out and fly away."" ""Oh, there we go, there we go."" ""Ah see, what it is, she knows, everybody's watching."" "For ten years, the Palos Verdes blue butterfly was thought to be extinct." "It is still considered one of the rarest butterflies in the world." ""Come here, come here."" ""Those are my girls." "I love 'em all." "They actually kept me from being extinct just as much I'm, I'm saving them from being extinct." "They're saving me and I'm saving them."" "Less than 30 miles away from Arthur's quiet butterflies, a more prominent air borne creature is at risk." "Catalina Island, just west of Los Angeles, is home to 12 bald eagles." "But the eagles have an unseen enemy ...DDT." "The pesticide, long outlawed, still lingers in the surrounding water, drastically weakening the eagles' eggs." "Dave Garcelon has come to Catalina to fool eagles." "The eggs in his box are dummies." "Dave's mission is to switch the contaminated eggs with the fake ones." "Human beings are now the indispensable caretakers for our national symbol." "The creature that is supposed to stand for strength and independence." "The egg's new home is the San Francisco Zoo, where John Aiken runs the Avian Conservation Center." ""These eggs that come from Catalina Island are in bad shape." "We've got to help them every step of the way." "We check them for cracks and repair those and then put them in very humid incubators." "Unfortunately, most of the eggs die."" ""And, you, you are actually going to make it out of there, look at this."" ""All right." "Gotta get ya out of there."" ""This is the first egg in five years from Catalina that's hatched."" ""Yes, look at that, you are a healthy little chick."" "Twelve days later, the eaglet is on her way home." "In a few hours, she'll be placed in her nest again." "The question is:" "will her parents except her ...or leave her to die." ""I'm really happy we've gotten this far." "The eaglet's odds were not good." "She was a contaminated egg." "She definitely would have died if we'd left her in the nest," "But she survived and she seems like a survivor and we just hope she's going to make it from here."" ""You look great."" ""Is that your mark."" ""Oh, very nice."" ""Beautiful, wonderful!"" ""That's great."" ""Oh, that's ideal."" ""We don't know if this is the beginning or the end for this little eaglet." "We don't know if her parents will come and feed her and take care of her."" ""Beak up."" ""Hey, you."" ""It's tough to, to watch 'em go." "You know, it's like sending your kids away to college or something, you know." ""People ask, 'Why do you take your precious babies back to a contaminated environment?" the answer, to me, is simple." "The eagles belong here and maybe in 20 years they'll be able to breed without us, but, for now, they can't do it unless we help them."" ""We've led to the decline and extinction of a lot of species and now we know better." ""We're the only ones that can make a difference because all these animals and plants can't do it on their own."" "The biologists end the last leg of the human part of the effort." "Now, it's up to the eagles." ""Seeing that little eagle on that giant cliff face, it seemed so fragile, eh, and our hope is that this eagle and all endangered species ...that they survive and we carry them with us into the future."" "An hour after the climbers have left, the mother accepts the chick." ""It's really a symbol of hope to see this little eaglet put back into the nest and the parents coming back to nurture it."" ""It's a gesture of hope for not only the eagle, but for the human species, too."" ""Human beings are the masters of this world now." "We can take these animals and plants with us as we travel into the future ...or we can say goodbye and send them into the night." "But whether we realize it or not, we depend utterly on other creatures for our very survival." "They are part of our existence they are part of us."" "Africa's Kalahari is 100,000 square miles of dust and blowing sand." "But in this place where dry winds vibrate with the sounds of life, one creature lives by the faintest whispers and cries." "These are bat-eared foxes, and they survive here because of their enormous, oval ears." "From their first days as pups, they enter an unforgiving world where their survival will depend on detecting sounds whether it's a meal hiding in the dirt, or danger approaching on silent at feet." "And at night, when vision dims, they truly come into their own... hunting their prey... dodging those that stalk them." "This is the story of one family's struggle to survive... a year in the realm of the desert fox." "In an isolated corner of Botswana, along the dried-out bed of the Nossob River, a fox we call Selene keeps her small eyes and big ears wide open." "Together, she and her mate, Ajax, have found a home in this inhospitable land." "They've borrowed a den from their closest neighbors, the meerkats." "Selene and Ajax need the underground shelter." "It's November, early summer in the Kalahari, and the foxes are raising a family." "As afternoon draws to a close, Selene heads off in search of food, leaving Ajax behind to baby-sit." "Only three weeks old, the pups are just beginning to emerge from the den, and Ajax is a protective father." "But these four little bundles of fur will prove enough to challenge even the most watchful parent." "There's Ajax's daughter, Flash, and her three brothers." "Adventure is the explorer, always first out of the den." "Kinky has a bent tail and, as his father can see, a feisty little disposition... unlike the runt of the litter, Little Joe." "The young pups are growing up in a dangerous world, but in this part of the Kalahari, there's a neighborhood watch... a meerkat sentry keeping an eye peeled for predators." "Ever vigilant in a precarious realm, the meerkats are extremely protective of their young." "And what these animals lack in ears, they make up for with their eyes." "A guard is always ready to raise the alarm." "They spot the neighborhood menace, a black-backed jackal on the prowl." "From a distance, he may look like another fox, but he's a definite threat to their young." "Ajax senses the coming danger, rising to meet the threat." "The jackal is bigger, but when it comes to defending his pups, the little fox is ready to fight..." "...unlike his adversary." "The end of the dry season brings many animals to the Nossob riverbed in search of water and a place to graze." "The bat-eared foxes' home range can extend up to two square miles of this scrubland." "An area they constantlyforage for food." "In daylight, Selene often hunts by scent or sight." "Termites are a dietary staple and it's no problem finding them as they scamper in the dirt." "As night falls, her hunt does not stop." "Instead, it begins in earnest." "The dark hours are a dangerous time to be alone in the Kalahari." "But Selene is now in her element." "And all night she will rely on her ears." "She uses those unmistakable ears like radar and they guide her to meals burrowed underground." "By comparison, a scorpion is loud..." "and dangerous." "But bat-eared foxes will eat them, stinging tail and all." "The jackal also stalks at night... and Selene's determined to send him on his way." "Arching her back and bristling her hair, she confronts the intruder and defends her ground." "But the jackal isn't up for a fight tonight." "A cautious victor, Selene sees him off... then settles down to the more productive business of listening." "This time her search is interrupted by an unfamiliar sound." "It's another bat-eared fox, crippled, and on the run." "This little one was most likely injured by a predator." "Now it will be lucky to last the night." "Selene recognizes her own species, but she can't afford to stay." "His injury is a magnet for danger... and in the night, danger comes in the form of lions." "The crippled little fox never had a chance." "The Kalahari is home to many predators... and bat-eared foxes are always at risk." "Next morning, Ajax is still keeping watch over the pups, waiting for his turn to feed." "Adventure is already up and about, investigating." "Flash, on the other hand, never misses a chance to get in a little extra grooming... and a snuggle with her father." "Little Joe and Kinky stick close to the burrow." "There's relative safety by the den... especially when a meerkat sentry sounds the local alarm." "It seems some new neighbors moved in during the night." "And the meerkats aren't at all happy about it." "They're cape foxes and they're not welcome." "They may be relatives of the bat-ears, but these are full-blooded omnivores." "They'll eat anything, even a meerkat baby." "One cape fox youngster has been left at the den while its parents are off on a hunt." "He's just a pup no a real threat but the meerkats want to bully him out." "They inch their way closer, testing the wind, just in case his parents return." "Then they set out to give him a good scare." "The young cape fox is frightened, but no more than those who torment him." "The truth is, even half a dozen meerkats don't amount to much of a threat." "And now it may be too late." "The mother cape fox is on the horizon." "Cape fox parents may spend more time away from home than the bat ears, but they do eventually return... which could mean trouble for the meerkats." "As the mother heads back to her youngster, the meerkat guards are clearly agitated." "But there's nothing they can do except stand by and watch." "With the father returning to the burrow as well, there's no question they're outgunned." "The mother tends to her offspring, but it's the meerkats that need consoling." "They built this neighborhood." "But now it's been taken over." "They gather the troops and leave." "Safe neighborhoods are hard to find on the open Kalahari." "They stop often to check their surroundings." "For Ajax's family, this departure could be a problem." "Their early warning system has just fled across the desert." "In a dry riverbed not far away, the meerkats arrive at a new home one they excavated earlier." "Still, it has to be inspected." "Sure enough, there are other occupants... another family of bat-eared foxes." "The meerkats decide to stay." "The bat-eared foxes will chase away any jackals that could come near." "While protecting their young, they'll be guarding the meerkats as well." "For the second fox family, the meerkat alarm system is extremely useful." "There's always at least one meerkat on guard." "The only other animals around are a harmless group of ground squirrels." "The new place seems safe enough, but the meerkats are always curious, always cautious." "With new neighbors, everyone's a little on edge." "Soon the guard announces a real threat:" "the menacing jackal's back on the scene." "The male fox races out, urging the jackal to move on." "At the other den, Ajax, Selene, and the pups don't realize the jackal is circling back toward them." "With no meerkat sentry, the foxes are more vulnerable than ever." "Slipping through the shrubs, the jackal gets very close..." "...before he's spotted." "The jackal has been out-foxed yet again, but he'll never stop trying." "For all the animals here, this is a lean and hungry time... a time of long hunts and little food." "At midday, Ajax returns to the den to rest." "Daytime foraging can be rough under the summer sun, when temperatures of over 100 degrees take their toll." "It's December, the end of the hot dry season, and the Kalahari bakes like an open-air furnace." "Some of the animals here are well-adapted to the heat, but almost all seek out whatever shade they can find to conserve their energy." "Only the hungriest are out on the prowl, like this gaunt mother cheetah." "Ajax must shepherd the pups back into the burrow to wait out the threat as the cheetah stalks nearby." "Little Adventure does not know enough to hide." "The cheetah calls to her three offspring." "Luckily for little Adventure, the cheetahs have another meal in mind." "With the danger past, Selene calls the other pups from the den." "Only Adventure shows little interest in nursing." "He's well on his way to being weaned." "Now almost 2 months old, it won't be long before the other pups follow suit." "But they still haven't lost their interest in having fun." "There's always time for a good romp." "These rough and tumble games may be practice for more dangerous encounters to come." "In the cool of the early evening, games give way to more serious matters." "The cheetahs have focused on a herd of springbok." "The hunters eye their prey, waiting for the right moment to strike." "The springbok are unaware of the predators... but these young cats are still learning the rules of the hunt." "They launch their attack." "But it's too late." "The inexperienced cheetah has let the prey escape." "Over the next few hours, the cheetahs will test their skills again." "By night, the cheetahs would make the kill that eluded them by day." "Of course, the jackal is never far off." "If he's hoping to find a meal here, he'll have to settle for scraps." "All he can do is wait." "But other hungry eyes watch from the darkness." "And the jackal decides to move in." "The cheetahs won't stand for it." "The scavenger continues to lurk in the shadows." "Finally, the jackal can stand it no longer, and grabs at the only thing it can the discarded entrails." "And then the brown hyena launches its assault." "Powerfully built, with bone-crushing jaws, the hyena is a dangerous rival." "The cheetahs won't risk injury just to keep a few bones." "They've had their fill." "But as the carcass disappears into the night... the loss is harder on the jackal." "With their stomachs full, the cheetahs settle in to groom and lounge." "With all this action so close to home," "Ajax and Selene set off in search of another den." "But moving at night can be risky." "The jackal is already on their trail." "And this time... he's brought his mate." "Out in the open, the foxes have nowhere to shelter their pups if trouble begins." "Suddenly, Selene senses danger." "Ajax repels the first assault." "But this time, the jackals aren't running away." "Selene looks for her pups one's missing." "Little Joe has wandered off." "Ajax goes on the offensive." "But as he fights off the first jackal, in the confusion... the other goes for the prize." "In a matter of seconds... little Joe is taken." "There's nothing Ajax can do." "The Kalahari has claimed another victim." "As a new day breaks, it's an unsettling time for our fox family." "They've moved to a new home, but paid a terrible price." "And there are more hard times to come." "In this part of the Kalahari, the rains are late this year." "The land has turned to dust." "The sun wrings... every drop of moisture out of the land." "The wildebeest are skittish in the heat and with good reason." "As herds gather at the riverbed, predators follow." "In these difficult times, the lionesses are reluctant to share even with their own cubs." "The winds that blow now bring only trouble." "Sand storms are on the way." "Great clouds of dust swirl across the land." "The animals wander in a choking haze." "But the parching winds will soon bring relief as well." "Finally, the drought breaks." "The lions luxuriate in the shower..." "and the foxes get a new lease on life." "The deluge may continue off and on for months." "In February, the rains temporarily subside, and a new world is revealed." "The Kalahari has been transformed." "The Nossob is once again a river, and it will draw life from miles around." "Storks arrive in search of the hordes of insects that appear after the rains." "Many animals are getting their first drink of water in months." "Springbok find a great green pasture spread out before them." "For the foxes too, things are changing." "These are fat times for everyone." "Even nervous meerkats will take advantage of this season of abundance." "The fox pups are growing up." "The family no longer needs to stay close to the den." "For Kinky, Adventure and Flash, there's a new world to explore." "The small animals that endured the dry season now find themselves surrounded by the grazing herds that follow the summer rains." "Gemsbok, springbok, hartebeest all return to the riverbed in this time of plenty." "For grazers like this wildebeest, there's a banquet at their feet." "The bat-ears, like all the animals in this part of the Kalahari, take advantage of the bounty." "Ajax has had a successful day of foraging." "He's got a gecko a tiny lizard." "And he's bringing home the treat." "For the pups, this wiggly snack will present a new challenge." "Flash is still angling for easier meals, but her brothers go for the gecko." "Selene is only reluctantly willing to nurse." "The pups are getting too big." "With a full set of teeth, they are now well equipped to chew up a lizard." "A neighboring family of cape foxes makes its presence known." "The bat-ears aren't glad to see them." "For the first time," "Kinky and Adventure show a Cape Fox who's in charge." "Selene gives her feisty youngsters a grooming reward." "While Ajax always pugnacious adds a bit of bravado to the display." "Of course, intimidating the youngsters is easy." "It may be a different story when the Cape Fox mother returns." "But the belligerent Ajax won't stand for any trouble." "The Cape Fox mother will keep her distance for a while leaving her youngster to defend for himself." "As long as Ajax is around, the pup will have to wait for his next meal." "As it turns out, there are big events afoot for the bat-eared foxes." "As the sun begins to set, the pups are heading out to forage for themselves." "The whole family sets off together." "For Selene and Ajax, this marks a turning point." "It's been hard work caring for the pups, but they're on the way to taking care of themselves." "No longer tied to the den, the pups can explore the landscape." "The pups... and the family itself are quickly coming of age." "In the Kalahari, night is the time of the hunter." "And now the bat-eared fox family can make the most of it." "They'll hunt like this for hours and there'll be some surprises along the way." "For the pups, this gecko will offer another chance to test their skills." "Flash already knows insects, but lizards still present a challenge." "Of course, Ajax knows exactly what to do." "Flash begs for a bite, but she must learn to catch her own." "It's time for Ajax to give her a lesson, he stuns the gecko, then waits as his daughter draws near." "She's happy to try a morsel..." "now that it's stopped running around." "Not far away the cape fox mother is also out foraging." "For these accomplished omnivores, catching a gecko is second nature." "The young cape foxes know just how to handle fresh meat." "Even as pups, they have the killer instinct." "A night-jar chose the wrong place to rest." "These ferocious youngsters will go after anything from a bird to a baby meerkat." "But on the other side of the river, the young bat-eared foxes are still learning." "For Kinky, a scorpion is definitely a mouthful." "Which end should he grab?" "Instinctively, he seems to know it's not entirely harmless." "But subdued, a scorpion is a crunchy treat." "Meanwhile, Adventure's inquisitive streak... leads him off into the night." "But he's not alone." "The lion is closer than the foxes realize." "And in an instant, it's too late." "Selene searches for her youngster, but he's gone." "For a moment," "Ajax seems to consider a run at the lion." "But for all his posturing, there's nothing he can do." "Another young member of his family has been taken." "The family regroups at their old den, seeking safety on familiar ground." "For the bat-eared fox family, times are tough." "They've lost half the litter only two pups remain." "The rains have passed and winter comes to the Kalahari." "It's June, and Kinky and Flash are nearly grown." "The land is dry again." "And food is dwindling." "But there are more than enough termites around." "Their mounds are everywhere in this part of the Kalahari." "With the cooler temperatures, the bat-ears can forage all day." "Now that Flash and Kinky are grown, the jackal is no longer a threat, and he actually forages alongside the family." "There's plenty here for everyone." "By now, the grazing animals have all gone." "But an exotic visitor drops by a kori bustard." "One of the heaviest of the flying birds, it's also come to partake in the termite feast." "The youngsters have seen a lot of things by now, but nothing quite like this." "Flash stays out of the way." "By August, the foxes are nine months old and their lives take another turn." "A newly mature Flash is leaving scent markings letting males know she'll soon be ready to mate." "But Ajax, the protective father, covers her markings with his own." "Still, Flash's instincts won't be denied." "While the family forages, Flash is on her own persistent mission." "She's done her advertising, and it's been noticed." "A young male fox has caught her scent." "Flash welcomes him, and the courtship begins." "Over the next few days, the two foxes will bond." "Flash isn't ready to mate, but she's interested." "And her suitor, even more." "None of this sits well with Ajax." "Flash and her suitor take their first tentative steps together." "He seems a little pushy." "She seems inclined to go along." "Ajax has seen enough." "Heads down the youngsters beg for forbearance" "Flash interceding as her beau cowers behind." "But Ajax wants him gone." "His parental work done, Ajax settles down with the family." "Flash rejoins them." "Her first flirtation has been a failure." "Or has it?" "Her would-be mate hasn't gone far." "He's just a quarter-of-a-mile away." "Foraging to keep us his strength, he intends to stick around for awhile." "Ajax seems to be feeling complacent." "He's managed to keep his family intact at least for now." "But Kinky, too, has reached sexual maturity and now he's in the market for a mate." "He leaves the family in search of his future." "Soon Flash's persistent... suitor tries another approach." "This time, he advances with deference a young suitor seeking approval." "This approach goes over much better with Ajax, who allows the young suitor to leave with Flash." "The young couple set off to begin their new life." "Meanwhile, Kinky has discovered the scent of an available female, and in passing, leaves his own." "As night falls, the female's family discovers his markings." "Kinky's potential mate appears receptive, adding her own scent to his." "She is, in fact, the fox next door from the riverbed family." "Kinky tries his luck." "They seem a little touchy, so he takes a low-key approach." "And it appears to be working." "Ears back, crouching low, he's a study in submission." "The new couple leave the family behind and, in time, their courtship will begin in earnest." "Meanwhile, Flash and her mate have moved to her family's first burrow." "But she's still not ready to mate." "When the time finally comes, he's still not sure which end is up." "At last, he gets it right." "To help insure the success of their union, the mating will go on for days." "In just over two months, the couple will know if they've accomplished their goal." "With luck, there will soon be new additions to the neighborhood." "By November, Flash has pups of her own a healthy litter of three." "Despite the hardships of life in this unforgiving land," "Ajax and Selene's bloodline now has a chance of living on." "A feisty new generation of pups has arrived... desert foxes... with an ear to the winds that blow across the great Kalahari."