Sounds Wild

Every year the United States imports about 90 million live animals to sell as pets, everything from frogs and fish to spiders, birds, and lizards. And of those, about some 30% are taken directly out of the wild and shipped to the United States for sale. It goes the other way too: The United States is a major exporter of wildlife for the pet trade, especially wild turtles. In this episode cohost Mi...

Southern Arizona's San Rafael Valley is one of the last remaining places where jaguars from northern Mexico can travel into their native range in United States. But that pathway is closing. The Trump administration is blasting through mountains and across grasslands to build a new border wall through this remote and wild landscape. In the newest episode of the Center for Biological Diversity's Sou...

Florida manatees have had a rough go of it these past few years. Leaking septic systems, fertilizer runoff, and other pollution have choked off seagrass supplies, leaving manatees with less food to eat. In some cases they’re starving to death. Meanwhile, boat strikes and a burgeoning tourism industry are pushing them closer to the brink. In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, cohost Mik...

Joshua trees have stood watch over the Mojave Desert for millions of years. But now they face existential threats as climate change, wildfires, and development propel them toward an uncertain future. In this episode Vanessa Barchfield and Conservation Director Brendan Cummings head to Joshua Tree National Park to explore what's happening on ground and why some populations may not survive — at leas...

Florida panthers, once widespread throughout the Southeast, are now one of America’s most endangered big cats. Federal officials released a recovery plan nearly 20 years ago but panthers have since lost more than 30,000 acres of habitat, mostly due to development. Meanwhile vehicle collisions remain a leading cause of death. In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, cohost Mike Stark trave...

A century ago, gray wolves roamed much of California, Oregon and Washington, playing a vital role in these wild landscapes. Urbanization, ranching and government extermination programs wiped them out. But wolves have been making an epic return on the West Coast. In the last 2025 episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Vanessa Barchfield talks with the Center’s Amaroq Weiss about how wolves made t...

When it comes to wildlife trade, pangolins hold a dubious distinction: They’re the most trafficked mammal in the world, often sold for their meat or for medicinal purposes. But for these exceedingly cute animals — the only mammals with scales — the tide may finally be turning. In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Mike Stark talks with Sarah Uhlemann, director of the Center’s Inte...

Cows don’t belong in rivers and streams, especially in the Southwest’s riparian areas that are home to endangered species like the Southwestern willow flycatcher and the northern Mexico garter snake. In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Vanessa Barchfield goes into the field with Chris Bugbee, one of the Center’s conservation advocates, to explore what happens when cows wander in...

There are 3 billion fewer birds in North American than there were in 1970 – and now a new report says one in three bird species needs our help. In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Mike Stark talks with Jeff Walters of the American Ornithological Society about why things have gotten more difficult for our feathered friends, how we can help, and the deep, long-running connection b...

Whales may be the biggest animals on the planet but they’re also some of the most vulnerable. Although whaling is no longer the threat it once was, these giants of the sea are forced to contend with offshore drilling, industrial noise and fast-moving ships traveling through their home waters. In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Vanessa Barchfield talks with Kristen Monsell, liti...

The Endangered Species Act is one of the most powerful laws on Earth when it comes to saving species from extinction. But what happens when animals and plants who need help don’t get it in time? In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Mike Stark talks with Noah Greenwald, co-director of our Endangered Species program, about how the Act works, why it’s so hard for some species to get...

Jaguars once roamed the Americas from Argentina to Arizona. Hunting, government killing programs and conflicts with the livestock industry forced them out of much of their home territory a century ago. But in northern Argentina, they’re back — and the same could happen in the southwestern U.S. In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Vanessa Barchfield talks with Sebastián Di Martino...

Red wolves are the rarest canids on the planet – and at one point it looked like they might disappear forever. But their story is still being written and they’re now clawing their way back from the brink thanks to a renewed effort from conservationists, local tribes and government officials. In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Mike Stark talks with Will Harlan, our Southeast dir...

Few places on Earth tell the story of the extinction crisis like Hawaii. Dozens of birds, plants, insects and mollusks are already gone, and every day is a battle to save species that are barely holding on. On this episode of Sounds Wild, we talk with Maxx Phillips, the Center’s Hawaii director, about what’s been lost, the daring work to protect what remains and the deep cultural ties between enda...

No one knows exactly how many plants and animals are vanishing from the world around us, but a rough estimate is that we lose one species every hour. Humans have never witnessed an extinction event like the one we’re living through right now – one that's wiping out wildlife all around us, from birds to bears, plants and insects. Tierra Curry lays out the extinction crisis, what’s been lost, how wi...