Episode: 1109
Desert Creatures
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The kangaroo rat can live its entire life without even a sip of water. Agave cacti provide their own shade. Desert fish can survive extremely high temperatures and periods of draught. How do these and other living things cope? This program focuses on the many clever and unique survival strategies of desert mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, insects, fish and plants. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 1108
The Devil's Highway
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What was it really like to journey through the desert before the days of air-conditioned vehicles and cell phones? Travel on foot, on horseback and by Model T Ford in 120-degree heat was torturous, sometimes fatal. Many people didn't make it. This episode vividly illustrates the rigors of yesteryear journeys on the aptly named El Camino del Diablo (The Devil's Highway). People still risk their lives to get from Mexico to California on this route. To this day, it is one of the deadliest in the world. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 1009
The People of the Mangroves
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This episode looks at the lives of the people of Magdalena Bay along the Pacific side of Baja, California, and how they live off the bounty of the Mangroves. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 1003
In the Land of the Guarijio
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The Guarijío Indians live in the southern portion of the state of Sonora, Mexico in the Sierra Madre Mountains. The tribe has lived in these mountains for centuries, but until the 1970s where held in virtual slavery by wealthy landowners. This program is about the Guarijío and their land. Through an uprising they regained control of the land they call home, located in a tropical deciduous forest rich in plants and animals. The Guarijío are intimately tied to the land. The program features ethnobotanist David Yetman from the University of Arizona's Southwest Center. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 1002
River of Iron: Dreams of a Grand Canyon Railroad
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Follow a group of modern-day adventurers on a raft trip down the Colorado River into the heart of the Grand Canyon as they retrace the historical exploits of Robert Brewster Stanton, an engineer cum explorer who set out to investigate the possibilities of building a railroad through the harsh, extreme terrain. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 909
Killer Bees
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"Killer Bees?" Africanized honey bees are here to stay. The program explores how this aggressive species of honey bee arrived in this country and why it's important that we learn more about them. This show tracks where these "killer bees" came from, how long it took them to establish their colonies, and highlights the differences between Africanized and European honey bees. This newcomer to the southwestern United States has a well-deserved reputation for ferocity, and they are not going away. The program examines how far north these ferocious bees may migrate and looks at what can you do to prepare and protect yourself. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 905
Ancient Culture-Enduring Architecture
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Ancient Culture - Enduring Architecture" visits the Chaco Culture National Historical Park in northwest New Mexico. Follow along with a professional and amateur archeologist as they take a look at the culture of the ancient inhabitants of this beautiful area through their architecture, rock art and migratory patterns. The native culture of the Chacoan people of this region extended for more than 100 miles, yet how the society vanished is still a mystery to this day. The two archeologists explore various theories for the disappearance of an entire society of people. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 902
Across the Great Desert
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Across the Great Desert" follows the 1909-1910 expedition of Norwegian scientist/explorer/writer Carl Lumholtz to the Gran Desierto (the Great Desert) in Sonora, Mexico. The adventurer explored the the last undescribed, unexplored region of North America in the early part of the 20th century, spending months among the waterless sand dunes and salt mines of Northern Mexico from the Colorado River delta to the coast of the Sea of Cortez. The Lumholtz Expedition is an incredible story of survival for scientific purposes, featuring a recreation of the journey. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 807
Jewels on the Wing
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Explore the wonder of butterflies, moths and dragonflies. Southern Arizona contains some of the highest diversity of species of butterflies in North America. This episode offers a sampling of some of those species, offering a spectrum of colors highlighting the richness and beauty of nature. Researchers examine behaviors of moths, which are sometimes referred to as "nighttime hummingbirds" because they hover and aid in natural pollination. Scientists study olfaction and what attracts moths. The section on dragon and damselflies focuses on these aquatic and terrestrial jewels with a brief examination of their life history. They are one of only a few species of insect that, throughout their lifecycle, require water, air and land. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 802
Pinacate the Mysterious
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Exploring The Pinacate, as one of the dryest and last explored regions of North America, has been the goal of explorers through the ages. In 1907, at the end of the "Age of Discovery," a group of men set out on the last grand adventure, to explore what they believed to be the final great unknown surface on the planet. This group of sportsmen, photographers, geographers, lawmen and writers intended to write a book about their experience in this harsh, unmapped environment. The program recreates the expedition and corrects some of their impressions. Unbeknownst to them, humans have lived in and around the Pinacate for ages and live there still. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 705
Birds of Passage
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Imagine traveling across mountain ranges, tropical forests and bleak desert wastelands. Now imagine such travel with no means of transportation, no luggage or money, and no hotel reservations when you get th ere - if you get there. And, of course, theres the return trip. Thats basically what millions of birds do each year as they follow their instincts and migrate from Colorados Rocky Mountains to Guadalajara, Mexico, dealing with a wide range of geograph ical extremes along the way. The program looks at recent studies on migratory birds, and examines the resources of these winged frequent flyers in both their winter and summer home ranges. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 701
Forgotton Pollinators
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Pollinators that help produce the food we eat are disappearing - especially bees, hummingbirds, bats, moths and butterflies. About every third bite off your plate is the result of wild pollinators. Commercial agriculture operations (including tomato and apple growers) depend on help from these creatures in their fields and orchards. But wild pollinators are in decline due to habitat destruction, pesticides and shrinking migratory corridors. This program helps explain the interdependence between species. Also, learn how to attract wild pollinators to your own backyard. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 502
The Mayo Tribe
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Learn about the ways in which the Mayo Indians of southern Sonora, Mexico turn to plants for a variety of uses - from medicines to making furniture. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 501
Bats
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Bats -- the night-time counterpart to birds -- are the only mammals that truly take wing. These furry flyers take care of business at night, eating insects, pollinating flowers, and generally playing a vital role in the desert ecosystem. This program highlights the natural history of these mammals, offering recent research which puts bats in a better light than belfries and bad Bela Lugosi movies. Take a look at mommy bats and their cuddly offspring, and learn how bats adapt to different environments, and find their way around in the dark. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 412
Tohono O'Odham
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Examine The Nature Conservancy: Arizona Chapter's Tribal Relations Project, which focuses on the Tohono O'odham managing and protecting endangered native plants, and go along on a native harvest of saguaro cactus fruit. (Download the guide)
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Episode: 410
Birds in the Sonoran Desert
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This program checks on a research project at Ramsey Canyon for banding hummingbirds, examines the effect of the different desert seasons on birds, offers tips on what to look for when trying to identify different species of birds, and offers techniques for observing behavior and attracting birds to your backyard. Find out how migratory and resident species use riparian areas. (Download the guide)
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