Segment 604

Bobwhites on the brink: Kansas croplands

State(s) featured in this episode: Kansas

Farmers are learning how changes to cropland management can make a big difference for the survival of bobwhite quail, pollinators and other wild species.

Related Segments

Segment 604

In southern Oregon, a little-known wilderness called Kalmiopsis is a source of clear water for downstream communities and a core for surrounding wildlands that conservationists want to protect from and mining. Changes in cropland management in Kansas can make a big difference for the survival of bobwhite quail and other wild species. Gunnison County in Colorado offers stunning mountain scenery, thriving agriculture, and outdoor recreation – and residents there support more wilderness protection for public lands including wilderness and special management areas. Following lead contamination of the water supply in Flint, Michigan, scientists in North Carolina reveal another dangerous chemical making its way through water pipes to thousands of homes.

State(s) featured in this episode: Colorado /  Kansas /  North Carolina /  Oregon
Segment 301

Farmers and ranchers work with NRCS advisers to find ways to conserve the Ogallala Aquifer, a vast expanse of prehistoric water now threatened by overuse.

State(s) featured in this episode: Kansas
Segment 303

In Kansas and Delaware, NRCS advisers assist farmers with measures to improve their productivity and protect habitats for threatened wildlife.

State(s) featured in this episode: Delaware /  Kansas
Segment 303

National monument would be first for West Virginia: Supporters say the monument would be a job-creating natural asset, protecting the headwaters of six regional waterways — including thousands of acres of wild terrain with some of the best hunting and trout fishing in Appalachia.

Private landowners protect prairie chickens and bog turtles: In Kansas and Delaware, NRCS advisers assist farmers with measures to improve their productivity and protect habitats for threatened wildlife

Developing “bioswale” techniques to filter water runoff: In an Oregon high school, students design and develop strips of land with plants that filter silt, oil and grime out of the runoff from the school’s parking lot; it’s hands-on learning about pollution, watershed management and environmental impacts

State(s) featured in this episode: Delaware /  Kansas /  West Virginia
Segment 301

Critical aquifer underneath the Great Plains
Farmers and ranchers work with NRCS advisers to find ways to conserve the Ogallala Aquifer, a vast expanse of prehistoric water now threatened by overuse

Trout in the classroom
Students in the Sierras in California help to restore threatened Lahontan cutthroat trout by raising the fish from eggs and releasing them in an approved stream

Yellowstone grizzlies achieve dramatic recovery
While the need for continued listing under the Endangered Species Act is still debated, grizzly bears have multiplied under federal protection since 1975, re-occupying areas where they had been absent for decades

State(s) featured in this episode: California /  Kansas /  Montana /  Wyoming
Segment 108

Facing spreading development, how can wildlife habitat be saved in Montana? In Kansas, researchers develop revolutionary ideas for growing perennial food crops that slow the degradation of cropland and offer greater food security in the face of everharsher climates. Is the Colorado National Monument the right place for a Tour de France style bike race? Counting tree rings, scientists solve history’s mysteries and predict our future. Just a few minutes from downtown Washington, D.C., a wildlife preserve is an oasis for hikers, bird watchers and anyone who needs a natural retreat.

More Information

Montana’s Wild Legacy
The Land Institute
Lord of the Tree Rings
Dyke Marsh
Friends of Dyke Marsh
Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve: An Injured Jewel 

State(s) featured in this episode: Colorado /  Kansas /  Montana /  Washington D.C.