Wild ChroniclesSeason 3, Episode 39 of 42
News from Nature - A group of protected giant pandas housed at China's Wolong Panda Reserve are in danger after a major earthquake destroyed part of their habitat and cut off their food supply. Working without electricity and despite the quake's trauma to their own lives, the reserve's keepers remain committed to saving China's iconic bear. Wild Chronicles joins conservationists as they discuss moving the pandas to a safer, more natural breeding center in the mountains with an abundant supply of bamboo and water and more space to mate and raise their cubs. Adventure and Exploration - After construction work turns up an ancient knife, National Geographic grantee Jim Dunbar and his research team excavate Florida's Wakulla Springs in search of additional evidence of early human settlement. Dunbar hopes his archaeological dig proves that humans lived in Florida almost two thousand years before they were originally thought to have inhabited the area. GeoCast - At the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, a team of dedicated conservationists not only works to save the endangered orangutans and their shrinking habitat, but also to recreate new rain forests where the apes can live safely. Through the foundation's efforts, hundreds of plant and tree species have been reintroduced into formerly parched grasslands, creating a safe haven for orangutans and incentive for the Indonesian people to support the orangutan habitat. Shark Bay, Australia, boasts the world's largest bed of sea grass where each day twelve-thousand dugongs graze on an aquatic salad bar. But dugong population growth and overgrazing threaten these crucial undersea pastures. Crittercam(r) reveals tiger sharks keep the dugong population in check, imposing balance and diversity in the bay as they hunt their next meal. Each year in Kenya flocks of flamingos descend upon Lake Nakuru, but beginning in 1993 these magnificent birds began to die en masse. One World Wildlife Fund worker researches the cause of the deaths and enlists the support of locals in the conservation effort. National Geographic filmmaker Neil Rettig leads Wild Chronicles north of the Arctic Circle to capture unforgettable wildlife images. However, getting the perfect shot is time-consuming, difficult, and dangerous - and means braving more than just the elements as fracturing ice threatens to strand the team on a slab drifting out to sea.











