In 1893, a bounty hunter named Ernest Thompson Seton journeyed to the untamed canyons of New Mexico on a mission to kill a dangerous outlaw. Feared by ranchers throughout the region, the outlaw wasn’t a pistol-packing cowboy or train-robbing bandit. The outlaw was a wolf.
Lobo, as locals simply called him, was the legendary leader of a band of cattle-killing wolves that had been terrorizing cattle ranchers and their livestock. Known as the “King of the Currumpaw,” Lobo seemingly had a mythical ability to cheat death, eluding the traps that ranchers had set for him throughout the countryside.
It was up to Seton, a naturalist as well as a professional animal trapper, to exterminate this “super-wolf.” The ensuing battle of wits between wolf and man would spark a real-life wilderness drama, the outcome of which would leave a lasting effect on a new and growing movement in America: wilderness preservation.
The Wolf That Changed America premieres Sunday, November 23 at 8pm on PBS (check local listings).
To order a copy of The Wolf That Changed America, please visit the NATURE Shop.
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Looks very intersting…
I am anticipating a fascinating look back at a true wolf of legend – Lobo.
Also strikes a chord with me because I have assisted a wolf research project
in northern Minnesota. The wolf embodies the spirit of American wilderness!
I watched this in Scotland in July this year, it’s a beautiful story but with a sad yet inspirational ending.
More importantly, it’s a true story and even more importantly….it’s a love story, the pathos will hurt. Keep the tissues handy.
HUGE Seton Fan and a Cubmaster for 3 years. I loved the Disney movie about Lobo as a kid… and can’t wait to see this beloved story in a docu-drama form.
Wonderful show.
Can you please tell us, what is the song in the background occasionally, sung by a woman? It is beautiful.
To continue the legacy of Lobo, Blanca, Setton and Teddy Roosevelt, we must, all, become involved in the ongoing challenge to protect wolves against those who continue to misunderstand and kill them. The state governments of Alaska, Idaho and Minnesota still have bounties on the heads of the glorious wolf and allow aerial gunning of these creatures. We must change the laws, at the state levels and lobby for federal legislation that will prevent the horrific killing of these animals. There are many ways to become involved. If we don’t, who will?
sounds very interesting i like it.the picture grabs your attention.
I can’t stop crying. My heart is broken.This should give us a glimpse that animals love just as much as we do. Maybe even more. God bless those who use their life to protect these precious animals and to educate those of us who unaware of so many cruelties. I hope some day we wake up.
Great program. RIP Lobo and Blanca!
Thanks for portraying the story on PBS. Years, ago, this story was in our 7th grade reader Adventures in Reading and I taught it with students. I enjoyed it then.
I find it interesting that Aldo Leopold had a similar moment of “Why?”, face to face with a wolf, that caused him to rethink the idea of eradication of wolves for purportedly economic reasons. This launched Leopold’s re-evaluation of major ideas in wildlife management and brought us a new thinker, ready to re-look at what we were doing.
Beautifully done. Thanks for airing…
The story makes me sad yet proud. Being of Native decent the wolf is very dear to my hart.Hopefully this story will help open some eyes to look at nature and wildlife a little diferently.
Great in so many level, thank you!
Great program, seen it, it is very interesting how intelligent wolves are, and how they tend to stay with their mate at all times ,even in times of danger . If we take a good long look at what humans have done to animals in general, we will see that the animals are doing what comes naturally, where as we the people are the monsters doing what ever we feel like with no remorse regrets on how we destroy life and nature in general…in a sense the wolf lobo is more human than most people are today.
I have watched and enjoyed the PBS Nature series. KUDOS!
When I saw the reenactment of Seton photographing the trapped wolf, Lobo, I was stunned. I burst into tears as the actual photograph of the animal filled the television screen. I continue to tear up as I write this message. “Long live Lobo and Blanca. May God bless the beasts and children in our world”.
True Heroes, Lobo and Seton.
One of the best I have evever watched.
I am truly touched.
Easily one of the most touching and inspirational stories I’ve seen in years. A must-watch for anyone who cares deeply about wildlife and mankind’s relationship to the wild world.
Stunning…in every sense of the word. I’m ordering two copies as Christmas gifts for my children in college.
This is the most amazing story ever!!!
stunningly beautiful and heartbreaking. i’m wondering about the background music – there’s a point where a woman is singing and in the next scenes a man is – who are they and where can i get their music?
I think Aldo Leopold would have liked your program. He had a similar experience which he related in A Sand County Almanac. After shooting into a wolf pack of an adult female and half grown pups, he wrote, “We reached the old wolf in time to watch a fierce green fire dying in her eyes. I realized then, and have known ever since, that there was something new to me in those eyes–something known only to her and to the mountain. I was young then, and full of trigger-itch; I thought that because fewer wolves meant more deer, that no wolves would mean hunters’paradise. But after seeing the green fire die, I sensed that neither the wolf nor the mountain agreed with such a view.”
Thank you for a very good program.
The show was wonderful. I hope many saw it and realized what a part of our history and ecology the wolf is/Unfortunately the governor of ALaska supports shooting these part of the environmenal chain from helicopters. Thanks to Nature and PBS for the great show.
i had a similar experience as a young trapper years ago,the courage and beauty of the wild animals of america,changed me.just as lobo touched seton,a raccoon named big joe opened my eyes,i no longer trap or hunt,and try very hard to preserve&protect the wild animals around me,thank you pbs
first of all traps of inhumane to say the least. they don’t just go after wolves.
secondly, the land that cattle ranchers are living on is usually government property and belongs to you and me. what do they have to complain about?
thirdly, all creatures are intelligent, it is the human being that is in denial due to the selfish motives behind claiming ownership and dominance of animals. making money is priority.
A wonderful true story that touched by heart. I plan on finding Seton’s book (if available) and reading it to my students. I loved when Seton stopped to ask the question WHY?
What a touching program–my parents and I watched it this evening over dinner. Lobo was such a noble animal, and I am happy to learn that his death was not without positive legacy. During the show, my mother kept asking “Why do we humans kill other animals so indiscriminately?” Good question–to which I asked her why she and dad put out rat poison the day before to “take care” of our nightly bird seed “thief” in the backyard. Were they not protecting their property against “pests” in the same way that the early New Mexicans were eliminating their own “vermin” problem? I admit that a rat is not as noble as a wolf, but before we criticize hunters like Seton, we ought to examine our own contemporary actions as well. I don’t think my parents got the point, but I’m glad to see that (almost) everyone has changed their attitudes towards wolves over the past century.
I just got done watching this and it opened my eyes on the wolf, I cries when Lobo mate got kill and then when he dies of heartbreak, but I’m glad that this help with the movement on saving the forest and the animals in it and help start the ideas for the boy scouts of which I was a member when I was a child.
I wish more Alaskans had such a humane philosophy toward wolves (and bears … polar, brown, and black)); we just voted to bane air hunting of these animals. It was defeated. Air hunting was/is supported by our governor, Sarah Palin. This was our 2nd attempt to defeat this inhumane and unsportman-like practice. Maybe next time we’ll be successful but I think we’re going to have to change governors first!
Me too Derlene,me too.
I just watched this show tonight.it was probably more thumbs up than anything ever.lobo – a wolf died for his love,and she died for him.great love story without meaning to be.
I feed two beaufiful shelter dogs & three beautiful shelter cats & trillions of backyard birds.
Now I will add the Beautiful Wolf to my available charity – what is the BEST way to support its survival? So many organizations ask for donations, but do they put the money where it counts?
Please replay the story of Lobo again & again, so more people will understand the life & nobeleness of such a magnificent animal – he lives in my heart!
This was a great story about courage and love. I cried at the end and many other times. It was great to see him running wild and free. A great American story that is true. Wish we could all be so wild and free. Love is the greatest. What a great true story.
Thanks for filming Seth McFarland at the Philmont Scout Ranch and Darren Brown on location on the Dry Cimarron in Northeastern New Mexico, rather than in some distant studio. Come visit.
Sounds like another show to continne brain wash people
into Putting animals before People and Worshiping animals instead of GOD.
That was a wonderful program! I was so surprised to learn this amazing and beautiful and tragic story, and I’m passing word of it along to all that I can. Thank you and please keep up the GREAT work!!
Interesting story. Wolves are the most misunderstood animals and this man eventually came to better understand their true nature. He later did some useful things in the natural world.
I’m confident that PBS obtained the dead wolf bodies for the program in an ethical and humane way, but I’d like to know specifically where those bodies came from.
Isn’t it a shame that man sees the error of his ways after the fact.
I’m sure Lobo and Blanca are together running free and without fear.
Thank you PBS!
I missed that episoide do you think they will be airing again any time soon?
I thought it was a powerful presentation but I am writing in the hope that you will read this comment. I would suggest very strongly that if you show it again it should have a parental advisory. I allowed my 8 1/2 year old to watch it and I am very sorry that I did. It was almost as if something in her died when Lobo died. She woke up the next morning in tears and said that she was trying to pretend that it wasn’t a real story and that Lobo was really alive. I think the cruelty of what that man did to that animal really stunned her. Or perhaps it was just too graphic a presentation of the destructiveness of humans in general for her to take. We have never had a problem like this with any nature program before. It was an excellent and powerful presentation but not good for children, at least not this one.
I missed it! When will it air again?
Save the wolfs !! and kill the flys
i watched this last night by accident and i ended up rekindling my fascination with wolves and their history. image of lobo is sad and amazing at the same time. picture of a survivor
Hey, Joe! (#33) Now, who was it that created the animals? By the way, having respect for God’s creatures need not place them above Man. Wouldn’t it be nice to show our grandchildren nature as God intended, rather than only in zoos? If we don’t act now, that will be the only way many species, if not most, will be seen in the future. What a shame.
Thank you for showing this episode. I couldn’t help but think of Palin’s loathesome lead in the continued onslaught agains the wolf in the still perceived frontier of Alaska and the recent de-listing of the wolf as an endangered species here in Rockies. Hopefully, we can gain some wisdom and insight from your program. Seton’s story ought to let us know the error of our collective ways when it comes to “taming the wilderness.”
I remember as a child reading the book the legend of Lobo, also seeing the movie. This episode really touched me deeply, I cried. It also has rekindled my interest in the wolf. I pray that this will make a big change in our world on how we can preserve Wildlife.
I seen the story of lobo. The great america wolf.
If baden powell founder of the boy scout’s was still alive. He would have love it. Just like I loved it. Great story of the wolf that showed man that wolf’s are just like us great survier’s. We should preserve wildlife for the future if not all of it well soon be gone thank.
I watched the program last night and was totally moved by first his determination to kill these beautiful animals. Then by his complete change of heart and dedication to preserving what he had helped to destroy for the remainder of his life. This is a very moving piece and I thank PBS for bringing this to our lives. Maybe this will help to preserve the beauty and lives of these wild creatures.
Does anyone know if this program is available in DVD?
what a heart breaking and yet a warm story of learning to respect what mother nature has given us,to love and to cherish her beauty. I loved the program.
I watched this the other night and i definately had a crying session. It was heart warming and beautiful.
Can you tell me where Currmpaw Valley is located in New Mexico please.
PS. Great show.
This was a great and moving program… I live in Idaho and there is a strong debate about wolves since the reintoduction. I was dishearted today when I saw a bumper sticker which read “kill wolves, smoke a pack a day” its so sad that some still feel that way.
Although this episode of Nature is much more compelling emotionally as evidenced by its viewer posts, catch Nature’s “Dogs that changed the World” http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/dogs-that-changed-the-world/what-caused-the-domestication-of-wolves/1276/ to see that a little bit of Lobo lives on in your and all the other homes that keep dogs as pets. If only 19th Century America had known what an important role Canis lupus has played in forming our modern world maybe they could have better tempered their fear and resentment towards the American Wolf that they so fervently sought to destroy. At least some of us in the 21st Century are trying to make amends in places like Yellowstone and who knows, maybe the wolf can even make a comeback in the mighty Land of Enchantment.
Does anyone know where to find the Disney version of this story. I, like Steve (#3), saw this picture with my parents and was profoundly affected by it. This movie as well as Born Free, molded my attitude towards wilderness. This attitude remains in me and is in the process of being passed on to my son. I have searched for the Disney version of this story for many years with our success. Any help? Thanks
PLEASE TELL US MORE about the name and location of the actual ranch where ET Seton was staying during his association with Lobo. Thanks.
Check out the Seton Legacy Project for a LOT of great info about Seton and what is being done with all of his legacy: http://www.aloveoflearning.org
A very good show but why in the world did they show Seton shooting Blanca when in the original story he strangles her with ropes? Too brutal? Not a sympathy-builder for his legacy? Seton described the killing of Blanca thusly: “We each threw a lasso over
the neck of the doomed wolf, and strained our
horses in
opposite directions until the blood
burst from her mouth, her eyes glazed, her
limbs stiffened and then fell limp.” So what’s the deal?
The music is on William Goodchild’s website … http://www.williamgoodchild.com/
Blanca’s death was just too horrible to show. I read the story when I was a little kid & it horrified me & made me cry at the brutality of it. Then came Lobo’s reaction,sorrowful howling, & eventual capture. I finished the story in tears & was profoundly moved.I never looked at a wolf the same way again.I’d always been an animal lover with many pets,but this story really got to me & still does.I never forgot it. I hadn’t read the story in many years but when I saw the title of this show & Seton’s name, I knew it was about Lobo. What a noble & intelligent animal he was. And some folks say animals have no souls.Long live Lobo & Blanca
If you are interested in more information on Seton, visit The Ernest Thompson Seton Pages at http://www.etsetoninstitute.org. You will find many photos and historical information. Many of Seton’s books that are in the public domain, including Wild Animals I Have Known, which includes the story, Lobo, King of Currumpaw, are available for free download in digitized format. You can even listen to Seton telling stories. More audio of Seton will be added in the near future.
There is also a section of links to guide you to more information about Seton on the web and elsewhere.
I loved the story and feel real sad over the whole story and would love to buy the video and book on this story for my grandaughters. A great yet sad story with a happier ending for the wolves of America.
what breed of wolf was lobo and blanca? great story saw it twice today on PBS, very inspiring and sad, just goes to show how smart a wolf can be “or is”
the story about lobo was and is one of the stories the marked my life.When i watch the story about lobo and blanca made me cry alot.I really think this story rocks.=]
A wonderful show, I read Thompson Seton’s book when I was a boy, about 70 years ago. Where is the currumpaw valley? I can’t find it on my maps, and even the internet is somewhat vague about it. – I hope this inspires enough influential people to actively support
the wolf re-indruduction in Yellowstone Park.
I loved the Disney movie about Lobo when I was a kid, it made me cried hard and I love the animal. Hunting for food is just their nature and they deserve their own territory.
Please inform me when this documentary will be on again
This show is a treasure. Thank you for the beautiful production and message well sent.
I’m an Alaskan in Idaho who supports a healthy re-establishment of this native species throughout its historic range. Yes, there are some of my mindset even here!
Another PBS show to watch for contemporary flavor is “Wolves in Paradise” which I think was produced by the Greater Montana Coalition. It is a documentary on real life encounters resulting from the expansion of reintroduced Yellowstone wolves and the people who want to make a difference. It’s a good reality check and demonstrates the rough road ahead.
Ernest Thompson Seton and the creation of the wildlife conservation movement will be the subject of a major exhibition (with catalog) at the New Mexico History Museum in Santa Fe beginning May 2010. The lives and deaths of the great-heart wolves Lobo and Blanca will be fully covered. The web sites mentioned above in #56 and #60 will have more information about the show.
I thought it was a beautiful and toughing story. It was sad at the end. I couldn’t believe what the bounty hunter did to lobo’s mate.
Required reading for any wolf fans is a book of Aldo Leopold’s short writings, beginning soon after he arrived in NM. The book is published under the name “Aldo Leopold’s Southwest” and shows the evolution of the writer’s philosophy. One classic statement goes something like, “As the deer fears the wolf, the mountain fears the deer.”
Kelly Says: “…Air hunting was/is supported by our governor, Sarah Palin…”
Humankind’s war on the environment is part and parcel of fundamentalist Christianity. Not only will extremists like Sarah Palin and George W. Bush never change. Their war on the environment will cut all of our collective noses off to spite our faces.
I had the misfortune of tuneing in on “The Wolf That Ch. Am.” after it had been in progress for a while. I would love to see it in it’s entirety. I among others, and I would like to know, when, and if, it will be aired again.
Clarence Gangwer
PLEASE – run this program again. I missed it. Give it plenty of publicity so we will be ready to see it.
This time I only saw a few bits and pieces of it. I read Ernest Seton Thompson’s books in high school and loved every story.
to #71 What ROCK did you climb from under? Your anti-Christianity stance is understood, as there apparently are many like you. You have taken a wonderful, heart warming story and made it POLITICAL…not smart, but typical.
[...] as far as research and prep go so far, i have been watching lots of pbs specials (the wolf that changed america), movies (the corporation; lorax), and short enviro films. my favorite so far has been Your [...]
how come there is no essay-like article about the entire journey of Ernest Thompson Seton? Also, why isnt there any fact about lobo’s entire life? i think pbs would be a lot more popular if they had aticles that states all the facts that are in the movies. i say this because i need to have an article on lobo and how he became famous. i was actually hoping that pbs would have it. i fell very disappointed.
this is very intresting, but i don’t understand how a wolf changed america it only changed Seton.
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I loved this episode! I just finished watching it and it made me cry when Lobo and Blanca died! This video totally changed my viev about wolves and nature in general!
It is nice to see a program showing the intense intelligence of other species, such as the wolf.
As a youth in the sixth grade, Lobo was one of the short stories in our literature books. I read and reread this story, and was very moved by it. It gave me a lifelong desire to see animals treated fairly. I have gone to Yellowstone several times, and have some wonderful pictures of Wolves enjoying themselves in the wild. Mankind needs to be aware that other species have the right to be here also. The slaughter of wolves especially by plane in Alaska is another indication of the callous behavior exhibited by the so called Human race.
Although I am a fan of individual observation and thought, Mr. Seton could have served himself wisely if he had just asked a nearby American Indian about this sacred animal. The relationship of Indians and wolves go back much further than a few years. I wish PBS would have mentioned the tragedy of this missing point of view in addition to as Lobo’s!
I was just messing around looking for the local legend of a wolf named Lobo from Minnesota. I came upon this and now im looking forward to seeing the movie on this Lobo. The story about the northern Lobo was that he was a lone wolf that hunted alone killing for sport not for food. It would kill many animals at once not eating any of them. From what I understand that went on for years until he was trapped. Lobo the minnesota wolf is now on display at the trading post in Bemidji Minnesota with its full story.
This was an incredibly touching story – I’ve never seen anything quite like it! I’m a third generation Afro-Native American and consider myself more of a “city-girl” than “nature lover” but this story reaches beyond nature and touches humanity in a deeply moving way that shows our common oneness. Thumbs up for PBS–although, I’d have to agree with some of the previous comments regarding American Natives. It’s unfortunate that from this we can infer Mr. Seton sought only a relationship with the landscape rather than a relationship with those who best nurtured the land and its inhabitants.
Absolutely amazing film, Nature/PBS! I’m so pleased you made this available to watch on your full episode collection – teaching more about the history of wolves. They’re such beautiful and intelligent creatures. More wolves please!
The story, it changed the way that I researched wolves. Every day I go into Jack’s enclosure and I think and conmunicate with him. An actuall wolf, yes. And when I saw the film about El Lobo, I was sick for a week and heartbroken. I never imagined that a wolf (or any animal) would have to die such a greiving death. Now I think of Jack and his pack as an equal, because they are truly smart and intelligent animals.
I enjoyed the video and bought the DVD last night. What a tragic epic, showing humans for what they are- cold blooded killers whose greed and lust for profit knows no end.
There is one correction to the video that should be known, Bianca was not shot as implied by the gunshot sound- according to Seton’s own book two [cowidiots] threw lassos over her head and headed in different directions with their horses, basically they tortured and tore her in half.
With Lobo they jammed a stick in his mouth and tied his muzzle shut and took him to the barn, and tied him up. He died there a day or two later in the night.
Anything goes when it comes to protecting the corrupt CATTLE industry who wants the public to foot the bills for their livestock’s care. Boycott meat and send a message to them!
The sentiment of the novel, the implicitness of the concept of wholesome love as most sublime feeling, touched my soul, my inner self.It is healing and triggers inner dialog with my “self”, to contemplate readdress many concepts of love and humanity. More often we should be reminded on our human nature by the intelligence and human habitus of the animals.
WHY?
later while reaching for some sand seton is caught by the hand,while stretched out trying to reach the trap key with a foot hes grabbed by another trap,only the arrival of his dog the next day saves him by fetching the trap key and so he gave up trapping after experiencing first hand the ordeal,he was the greatest naturalist,his autobiography”trail of an artist naturalist” sheds a little light on how thoroughly,painstakingly he studied,truly the greatest of the great!!!
Awesome! I remember reading (and re-reading) this story when I was a kid. Had a real impact on me. I`m looking forward to watching this…and re-reading the story yet again. Thanks PBS!!!