TO SHARE THIS PLANET!

HERE IN AMERICA.

AT A SUBDIVISION.

OF OTHER WILDLIFE SPECIES.

♪ ♪ >> SPECIES SURVIVAL IS A CONCERN ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY.

AND THE GREAT PLAINS IS HOME TO THE MOST ENDANGERED SPECIES IN NORTH AMERICA.

♪ ♪ >> BLACK FOOTED FERRETS RELY ON PRAIRIE DOGS FOR SURVIVAL.

NOT ONLY DO THEY USE PRAIRIE DOGS AS THEIR MAIN FOOD SOURCE BUT ALSO, THEIR BURROWS FOR SHELTER AND FOR RAISING YOUNG.

>> AND WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, WELL, FERRETS AND PRAIRIE DOGS WE HAD TO HABITAT OBVIOUSLY FOR FERRETS BECAUSE WE HAD THE PRAIRIE DOGS AND IT WAS VERY FAR.

SO WE WERE ONE OF THE FIRST TRIBES TO KIND OF SIGN, NOT THE FIRST ONE, BUT ONE OF THE FIRST TO DO THESE RELATIONSHIP REINTRODUCTION, AND WE WERE VERY SUCCESSFUL IN THE BEGINNING.

WE HAD IMPACT, YOU KNOW, LARGE AREAS OF PRAIRIE DOG COMPLEXES THAT WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE THAT HABITAT FOR THEM.

UNFORTUNATELY, THE LOCATION THAT THEY WERE IN, THE PRAIRIE DOGS WAS ALSO A BIG AGRICULTURAL AREA.

AND SO AGAIN IT PUT THAT YOU KNOW, HUMAN-WILD LIFE CONFLICT IN THE PICTURE.

AND SO THAT'S REALLY WHAT I'M DOING RIGHT NOW IS THESE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENTS AND THESE COMMUNITY PIECES, BECAUSE I WANT TO ENSURE THAT OUR GOALS FOR CONSERVATION ARE WHAT OUR PEOPLE WANT.

>> THE RECOVERY OF BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS HAS REALLY GONE FROM TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE SPECIES IS, HOW TO SAVE IT BY BRINGING SOME INTO CAPTIVITY... [CHIRPING] AND THEN ALSO SOME AMAZING EFFORTS TO REINTRODUCE THE SPECIES INTO THE WILD.

BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS ARE THE MOST ENDANGERED MAMMAL IN NORTH AMERICA.

THERE ARE FEWER THAN 300 IN THE WILD TODAY.

TO MEET RECOVERY OBJECTIVES, WE NEED 3000 ANIMALS IN THE WILD, SO WE HAVE A LONG ROAD TO GO.

IN THE BIG SCHEME OF THINGS IN ORDER TO RECOVER BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS, WE NEED ANYWHERE FROM ABOUT 500,000 TO A MILLION ACRES OF PRAIRIE DOGS THROUGHOUT THE GREAT PLAINS FROM CANADA TO MEXICO.

BIOLOGISTS NEED TO UNDERSTAND HOW MANY FERRETS ARE IN THE WILD TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE RECOVERY OBJECTIVE OF 3000 BREEDING ADULTS THROUGHOUT THEIR RANGE.

IN ORDER TO DO THAT, WE SURVEY POPULATIONS USING SPOTLIGHTS TO FIND HOW MANY THERE ARE IN ONE POPULATION.

AND WE ALSO NEED TO VACCINATE ALL WILD BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS BORN ONTO THAT SITE AGAINST CANINE DISTEMPER AND SYLVATIC PLAGUE WHICH IS A NON-NATIVE DISEASE SPREAD BY FLEAS INFECTED WITH A PLAGUE BACTERIUM AND THAT KILLS BOTH BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS AND THEIR PRAIRIE DOG PREY.

>> REALLY THAT'S ONE OF THE MAIN THREATS THAT WE REALLY NEED TO GET A HANDLE ON.

IT CAN WIPE OUT A PRAIRIE DOG POPULATION IN A WEEK, INCLUDING THE BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS.

>> SO NOT ONLY DO WE NEED TO PROTECT BLACK FOOTED FERRETS FROM THE PLAGUE, AND CANINE DISTEMPER, WE ALSO NEED TO PROTECT THEIR PRAIRIE DOG PREY.

AND WE HAVE SEVERAL TOOLS IN HOW WE DO THAT.

THE FIRST IS A DUST INSECTICIDE WHICH REDUCES FLEA POPULATIONS INSIDE PRAIRIE DOG BURROWS.

THERE ALSO WAS RECENTLY DEVELOPED A SYLVATIC PLAGUE VACCINE THAT WAS PUT INTO TINY BAITS THAT ARE FLAVORED WITH PEANUT BUTTER THAT WE DEVELOPED A TRIPLE SHOOTING SYSTEM WHICH DELIVERS BAITS BY DRONE OR ALL TERRAIN VEHICLE TO PRAIRIE DOGS.

BUT HE SECOND MAIN THREAT IS LACK OF SUFFICIENT HABITAT IN WHICH TO RECOVER THE SPECIES.

FERRETS ARE TERRITORIAL AND ONE FERRET FAMILY, MEANING A MOTHER AND HER KITS, OFTEN NEED ANYWHERE FROM 200 TO 500 ACRES OF PRAIRIE DOGS FOR SURVIVAL.

BLACK-TAILED PRAIRIE DOGS ARE A KEYSTONE SPECIES OF THE GREAT PLAINS.

THEY HAVE A HIGHLY EVOLVED SOCIAL STRUCTURE IN WHICH ONE TO TWO BREEDING MALES LIVE WITH TWO TO THREE BREEDING FEMALES AND THEIR YOUNG OF THE YEAR.

AND THEY LIVE IN THESE FAMILY GROUPS WHEREBY THEIR COMMUNICATION CAN ALERT NOT ONLY INDIVIDUALS IN THEIR FAMILY GROUPS, BUT OTHER FAMILY GROUPS NEARBY OF ONCOMING PREDATORS.

FOR EXAMPLE, THEY HAVE A CALL FOR A SNAKE COMING BY, FOR A RAPTOR FLYING OVER, FOR A BLACK-FOOTED FERRET THAT MIGHT BE WAKING THEM UP AT NIGHT AND ALSO FOR HUMANS.

AND NOT JUST HUMAN, BUT HUMANS WEARING A HAT VERSUS HUMANS WEARING A BLACK SHIRT.

SO THEY ARE VERY HIGHLY EVOLVED SOCIAL CREATURES AND THEY LIVE A LOT LIKE HUMANS DO IN NEIGHBORHOODS WHERE WE COOPERATIVELY HELP EACH OTHER AND LOOK OUT FOR EACH OTHER.

AND WE DO THINK OF PRAIRIE DOGS AS THE CHICKEN MCNUGGETS OF THE PRAIRIE BECAUSE SO MANY SPECIES DEPEND ON THEIR PRESENCE.

>> WITH PRAIRIE DOGS, THERE ARE SO MANY SPECIES THAT BENEFIT FROM THEIR PRESENCE ON THE LAND.

AND THAT INCLUDES EVERYTHING FROM THE VERY ENDANGERED BLACK-FOOTED FERRET TO OVER A HUNDRED OTHER SPECIES HAVE BEEN DOCUMENTED, BEING ASSOCIATED WITH THE PRESENCE OF PRAIRIE DOGS.

SO IF YOU CAN HELP UMBRELLA EFFECT OF PROTECTING A VAST VARIETY OF OTHER WILDLIFE SPECIES TOO.

SO THERE'S THOSE THAT RELY ENTIRELY ON THEM LIKE THE BLACK-FOOTED FERRET AND THEN OTHERS THAT JUST BENEFIT TOO FROM THEIR EXISTENCE.

AND THAT'S BOTH AS A FOOD SOURCE AS WELL AS THE HABITAT MICRO-SITES THAT THEY MAKE THAT REALLY HELPED BENEFIT SOME SPECIES.

♪ ♪ >> A LARGE CHALLENGE IN THE RECOVERY OF BLACK-FOOTED FERRET IS INCREASING SOCIAL TOLERANCE FOR THEIR PRAIRIE DOG PREY.

PRAIRIE DOGS EAT THE SAME GRASS THAT MANY RANCHERS USED TO GRAZE CATTLE ON AND SO AS A FERRET RECOVERY TEAM, WE WORK HARD TO FIND PLACES WHERE LANDOWNERS ARE WILLING TO HOST PRAIRIE DOG POPULATIONS.

SO MANY GROUPS ARE LOOKING AT INNOVATIVE WAYS TO SHARE THE SAME PLOT OF LAND SO THAT BOTH PRAIRIE DOGS AND CATTLE CAN CO-EXIST.

>> BUT JUST TO KNOW THAT WE WERE SO PART OF THAT LAST LITTLE POCKET WAS VERY IMPORTANT, NOT ONLY FROM A LAKOTA PERSPECTIVE, BUT FROM THE ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE, THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO KNOW THAT WE STILL HAVE THE NATIVE HABITAT WORK THAT WE WEREN'T SEEING ANYWHERE ELSE GLOBALLY.

>> MY MOTTO THIS YEAR HAS BEEN "TEAMWORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK" AND THAT'S SO TRUE IN THE CASE OF BLACK-FOOTED FERRET RECOVERY TEAM IN THAT EVERYONE FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES TO STATE AGENCIES, TO TRIBES, TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, TO UNIVERSITIES, TO PRIVATE LAND OWNERS, TO ZOOS, WE'VE ALL PARTNERED TOGETHER TO MAKE FERRET RECOVERY HAPPEN.

>> YEAH, WAY TO GO GUYS.

>> BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS ARE A FLAGSHIP SPECIES OF THE NORTH AMERICAN GREAT PLAINS SO BY SAVING THE BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS, WE'RE ALSO SAVING A PIECE OF THE GREAT PLAINS THAT'S PART OF OUR AMERICAN HERITAGE.

>> WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE NAME "DISNEY," YOU USUALLY THINK ABOUT THEME PARKS, BUT YOU MIGHT ALSO WANT TO THINK ABOUT CONSERVATION.

♪ ♪ >> RIGHT NOW, WE'RE AT THE NATURE CONSERVANCY'S DISNEY WILDERNESS PRESERVE.

AND WE ARE JUST ABOUT 15 MILES, IF YOU GO DIRECTLY FROM HERE TO THE DISNEY CENTER COMPLEX, WHERE EPCOT AND MAGIC KINGDOM AND ALL THE THEME PARKS PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT ARE.

SO THE PRESERVE ITSELF IS 11,500 ACRES ALTOGETHER.

AND THE PRESERVE WAS PROTECTED BACK IN 1992 WHEN IT WAS HANDED OVER TO THE NATURE CONSERVANCY, BUT THE STORY ACTUALLY STARTED BACK IN THE LATE 1980S WHEN THE DISNEY CORPORATION WAS LOOKING TO BUILD OUT ON THEIR LAND.

WE'RE CONNECTED TO THAT PIECE OF PROPERTY BECAUSE WE'RE IN THE SAME WATERSHED.

AND THE PRESERVE HERE WAS A WORKING CATTLE RANCH.

IT WAS SLATED TO BE ACTUALLY DEVELOPED INTO ABOUT 10,000 HOMES, SIX GOLF COURSES, AND IT WAS GETTING READY UP FOR SALE.

IT WAS AN IMPORTANT PIECE OF CONSERVATION LAND FOR A COUPLE OF REASONS.

ONE, WE'RE AT THE HEADWATERS OF THE EVERGLADES.

REEDY CREEK AND THEN SHINGLE CREEK START THE EVERGLADES WATERSHED ALL THE WAY UP HERE IN ORLANDO.

EVENTUALLY IT WILL FLOW ALL THE WAY DOWN TO SOUTH FLORIDA.

AND TWO, WE'RE AT THE VERY SOUTHERN EDGE OF THE LONGLEAF PINE FLATWOODS ECOSYSTEM.

AND THAT SYSTEM USED TO RUN FROM VIRGINIA TO JUST ABOUT SOUTH WHERE WE ARE AND ALL THE WAY OVER TO TEXAS.

THERE'S ONLY ABOUT 5% OF THAT TYPE OF SYSTEM LEFT.

AND WE ALSO KNEW THERE WAS A LOT OF SPECIES PRESENT THERE POTENTIALLY COULD BE SOME PANTHERS HERE.

THEY'RE JUST VERY ELUSIVE AND NOT AS MANY LEFT.

BUT THE HABITAT'S HEALTHY, THE ECOSYSTEM IS FUNCTIONING CORRECTLY.

SO IF THOSE PANTHERS ARE LOOKING TO EXPAND THEIR RANGE NORTH, THEY COULD POTENTIALLY MAKE THEIR WAY UP ONTO THE NATURE CONSERVANCY'S DISNEY WILDERNESS PRESERVE.

WHEN YOU DEVELOP HERE, ESPECIALLY IN FLORIDA, YOU'RE GOING TO IMPACT A WETLAND SO DISNEY WAS GOING TO IMPACT ABOUT 500 ACRES OF WETLANDS AND THEY SAID, "ISN'T THERE A BETTER WAY TO DO THIS?"

>> DISNEY AND THEIR PARTNERS CHOSE TO MITIGATE THE LOSS OF WILD LANDS TO DEVELOPMENT BY FINDING OTHER NEARBY LAND TO PROTECT.

>> SO THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY FUNDED 20 YEARS WORTH OF RESTORATION PROJECTS ON THIS HABITAT, AND THEY'VE HELPED PROTECT ANOTHER 3000 ACRES RIGHT NEXT TO US.

SO IF WE WEREN'T PROTECTED HERE AND YOU WEREN'T LOOKING AT BEAUTIFUL PINE TREES, YOU'D BE LOOKING AT A SUBDIVISION.

IT WAS ALREADY SLATED AND APPROVED TO BE BUILT UPON.

SO WE MIGHT BE TEEING OFF ON THE FIRST HOLE RIGHT NOW, INSTEAD OF LOOKING AT BEAUTIFUL TREES.

ALTOGETHER, IF YOU COUNT OUR PASTURES, WE HAVE ABOUT 18 DIFFERENT HABITATS ON PROPERTY.

AND THAT'S NOT UNIQUE.

FLORIDA IS JUST A MOSAIC OF HABITATS.

YOU GO UP A COUPLE OF FEET OR DOWN A COUPLE OF FEET, YOU HAVE A TOTALLY DIFFERENT TYPE OF ECOSYSTEM OR HABITAT.

AND HERE, PRIMARILY WE'RE DOMINATED BY SWAMPS AND THEN LONGLEAF PINE FLATWOODS.

WE HAVE DOCUMENTED OVER 56 DIFFERENT SPECIES OF BUTTERFLIES ON THE PRESERVE AND OVER 200 SPECIES OF BIRDS.

THE FLORIDA SCRUB JAYS ARE THREATENED.

THEY'VE BEEN THREATENED SINCE I BELIEVE BEFORE THE 1990S, AND THE JAYS THEMSELVES ARE VULNERABLE BECAUSE THEY DEVELOPED AS AN ISLAND SPECIES.

SO THEY DEVELOPED ON THESE HIGH RIDGES OF SCRUB HABITAT, AND THOSE HIGH RIDGES ARE NICE AND DRY HERE IN FLORIDA, AND WE LIKE TO BUILD IN NICE AND DRY AREAS.

SO A LOT OF THE HABITAT LOSS HAS MADE THOSE SCRUB AREAS DISAPPEAR AND PUT PRESSURES ON THE JAYS.

SO THE FLORIDA SCRUB JAYS ARE ENDEMIC TO FLORIDA.

MEANING THEY'RE FOUND NOWHERE ELSE.

THEY'RE NOT GOING TO FLY EXTREMELY FAR.

AND THEY LIKE TO KEEP WITHIN SMALL FAMILY STRUCTURES OR GROUPS.

SO THEY'RE REALLY IMPORTANT TO THE HABITAT, BUT TO ALSO EACH OTHER, AS THEIR FAMILY UNIT.

WE'RE ON ONE OF OUR HIGHER RIDGES ON THE PRESERVE.

IT'S A SCRUBBY FLATWOODS HABITAT.

WE DO HAVE ONE OF OUR FAMILIES OF FLORIDA SCRUB JAYS HERE.

YOU CAN HEAR THEM IN THE BACKGROUND MAYBE, A LITTLE BIT.

THE JAYS ARE DOING WELL IN THE HABITAT, ON THIS PRESERVE, MOSTLY BECAUSE WHAT YOU SEE BEHIND US IS A GOOD, WELL-MAINTAINED SCRUB.

AND THE WAY WE MAINTAIN IT IS WITH FIRE.

>> PEOPLE ASK WHY ARE WE LIGHTING THE WOODS ON FIRE?

AND SO IN FLORIDA, AS IT'S VERY SIMILAR TO PRETTY MUCH, MOST OF THE WORLD, WE'VE HAD LIGHTNING FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS, WE'VE HAD INDIGENOUS CULTURES LIGHTING THEIR AREAS WHERE THEY LIVE ON FIRE FOR TENS OF THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

IF YOU'RE A PLANT OR AN ANIMAL THAT HAS EVOLVED IN A LANDSCAPE THAT'S BEEN EXPOSED TO FREQUENT FIRE, YOU WILL EVOLVE MODIFICATIONS TO ADAPT TO IT, EVEN DEPEND ON IT.

AND SO, IN FLORIDA, WHERE WE CALL IT, THE SUNSHINE STATE, IT REALLY SHOULD BE CALLED THE FIRE STATE BECAUSE OUT OF OUR 70 DIFFERENT HABITATS, 40 TO 50 DEPEND UPON SOME FORM OF FIRE.

SO, DO WE LET LIGHTNING JUST RUN RAMPANT?

NOPE, WE DO WHAT'S CALLED A CONTROLLED BURNING OR PRESCRIBED FIRE USING A WIDE VARIETY OF TOOLS.

FIRE IS AN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT PROCESS OF THIS WHOLE ECOSYSTEM AND HABITAT.

FIRE MOVES THROUGH AT REGULAR INTERVALS AND ACTUALLY FERTILIZES THIS POOR SOIL WITH THE PLANTS THEMSELVES.

BURNING UP THE PLANTS CONVERTS THEM BACK INTO THE GROUND, WHICH THEN MEANS THAT THE PLANTS CAN REGROW FROM WHAT WAS BURNED.

BASICALLY, AS FIRE MANAGERS, WHAT WE'RE DOING IS WE'RE IMPLEMENTING A VERY SAFE METHOD TO REINTRODUCE A NATURAL PROCESS ONTO THE LANDSCAPE.

SAFE, WE DO IT IN A VERY PROFESSIONAL MANNER, BUT IT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT WE'VE LEARNED A LOT OF THE ART OF FIRE FROM PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN DOING THIS FOR MANY, MANY GENERATIONS.

>> THIS WAS BURNED ABOUT FIVE MONTHS AGO.

THE PALMETTOS, THE GROUND COVER, THE FLOWERS COME BACK REALLY QUICKLY BUT THE SCRUB TREES ARE GOING TO TAKE A LITTLE BIT LONGER TO COME BACK AND THAT'S FINE.

WE MAKE SURE WHEN WE BURN OUR SCRUB JAY TERRITORIES HERE AT THE PRESERVE, THAT WE NEVER BURN MORE THAN HALF OF THEM AT A TIME, TO MAKE SURE THE JAYS ALWAYS HAVE A PLACE TO FORAGE AND NEST.

>> ANOTHER SPECIES THAT BENEFITS FROM THIS CONSERVED LAND IS THE EASTERN INDIGO SNAKE.

>> THE EASTERN INDIGO SNAKE IS A BEAUTIFUL ANIMAL.

IT IS THIS BLUISH BLACK SCALES, IT CAN GET UP TO EIGHT FEET LONG.

IT'S AN INCREDIBLY IMPRESSIVE ANIMAL.

IF YOU'VE NEVER SEEN ONE BEFORE AND YOUR IDEA OF A SNAKE IS A SMALL GARTER SNAKE OR A SMALL RAT SNAKE, TO SEE ONE IN PERSON IT'S JUST AN INCREDIBLY IMPRESSIVE ANIMAL.

THEY FAVOR HABITATS THAT ARE REGULARLY BURNED, LONG LEAF PINE FLAT WOODS, HABITAT CALLED SANDHILL.

THEY WILL GO INTO WETTER HABITATS FROM TIME TO TIME, BUT THEY DEPEND UPON GOPHER TORTOISE BURROWS TO ACTUALLY RESIDE IN.

THE EASTERN INDIGO SNAKE'S ORIGINAL RANGE IS THE SOUTHEAST UNITED STATES.

THE DECLINE IN THE EASTERN INDIGO SNAKE POPULATION IS REALLY TIED TO THE DECLINE OF GOPHER TORTOISES AND ALSO FIRE EXCLUSION FROM HABITATS.

GOPHER TORTOISES IN THE SOUTHEAST WERE HUNTED, WERE REMOVED, FOR LOTS OF DIFFERENT REASONS AND SO IF YOU HAVE LESS GOPHER TORTOISES AND YOU REMOVE FIRE FROM THE LANDSCAPE, YOU ALSO IMPACT, NEGATIVELY, THE EASTERN INDIGO SNAKE.

THEY ARE WHAT'S KNOWN AS AN APEX PREDATOR, PRETTY MUCH AT THE TOP OF EATING OTHER THINGS' LISTS.

THEIR DIET WILL CONSIST OF VENOMOUS SNAKES, LIKE RATTLESNAKES, BUT ALSO NONVENOMOUS SNAKES, LIKE CORN SNAKES, RAT SNAKES, WHATEVER'S AROUND THEM.

WHAT'S IMPORTANT ABOUT THAT IS REMOVING THE EASTERN INDIGO SORT OF RELEASES SOME PRESSURE ON OTHER SPECIES THAT MIGHT EXPAND BEYOND WHAT THAT HABITAT CAN PROVIDE, THEY MAY PRAY MORE ON SAY SONGBIRDS.

THERE'S A TRICKLE DOWN EFFECT ONCE YOU START REMOVING COMPONENTS.

THE NATURE CONSERVANCY IS PART OF A COALITION OF FEDERAL, STATE, PRIVATE CONSERVATION ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE COORDINATING THE BREEDING, THE RELEASE, AND THE MONITORING OF EASTERN INDIGO SNAKES TO THAT REGION.

THE GOAL FOR ALL OF THOSE PARTNERS IS TO RELEASE 300 SNAKES WITHIN 10 YEARS.

SO THE SNAKES THEMSELVES ARE BEING RAISED AND BRED IN A FACILITY WITHIN THE CENTRAL FLORIDA ZOO.

ONCE THE SNAKES GET LARGE ENOUGH TO LIVE ON THEIR OWN, THEN THEY'RE TAKEN UP TO THE APALACHICOLA BLUFFS AND RAVINES PRESERVE AND RELEASED DIRECTLY INTO THE GOPHER TORTOISE BURROWS.

♪ ♪ >> EVERY TIME YOU HEAD OUT TO DO WORK ON THE PRESERVE, IT'S A UNIQUE MOMENT.

YOU MIGHT COME ACROSS A GOPHER TORTOISE OR A MEADOWLARK OR A DEER.

SO YOU JUST NEVER KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO SEE.

AND THEN SINCE WE MANAGE THE PROPERTY WITH PRESCRIBED BURNING, YOU GET TO WATCH HOW AN AREA THAT WAS BURNED, REGROW, FLOWER, AND THEN GO THROUGH THE CYCLE OF THE NEXT TWO YEARS, AND SEEING THE DIFFERENT FLOWERS AND THE DIFFERENT PLANTS THAT ARE OUT THERE.

AND THEN YOU GET TO SEE IT RESET AGAIN.

SO IT'S ALWAYS A SPECIAL MOMENT TO BE ON THE PRESERVE AND SEE WHAT'S OUT HERE.

>> WE OFTEN WORRY ABOUT THE SPECIES IN THE WILD, BUT THE WILD MAY BE CLOSER THAN YOU THINK.

♪ ♪ >> THE AWARE WILDLIFE CENTER IS A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION WHERE WE TAKE IN INJURED AND ORPHANED WILDLIFE AND WE REHAB AND RELEASE THEM BACK INTO THE WILD.

I THINK A LOT OF TIMES AS HUMANS, WE FORGET THAT THE ANIMALS WERE KINDA HERE FIRST PROBABLY, OR AT LEAST THEY'RE HERE TOO.

AND WE'VE KIND OF TAKEN OVER THEIR ENVIRONMENT AND THEIR HABITATS.

>> THERE'S FEWER AND FEWER ACRES OF UNIMPACTED FOREST, UNIMPACTED LAND.

AND THERE'S MORE AND MORE ACRES WHERE ANIMALS ARE PUSHED INTO MAKING OUT AN EXISTENCE SORT OF WITH US, WITH PEOPLE.

>> OWLS, ESPECIALLY BARRED OWLS, THESE GUYS LIKE TO LIVE IN A LOT OF OLD TREES AND HOLLOWED OUT TREES, THINGS LIKE THAT.

AND WHEN WE TAKE AWAY TREES, EVEN IF WE PLANT NEW TREES, WE LOSE LOTS AND LOTS OF ANIMALS, BECAUSE THEY HAVE A SPECIFIC TYPE OF HABITAT THAT WE CAN'T REPLACE.

AND SO IT'S KIND OF IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THOSE THINGS.

IF WE REMOVE ALL THOSE HOLLOW TREES, THESE GUYS DON'T HAVE ANYWHERE TO BREED, AND THEY MAY LIVE OUT THEIR LIFE, BUT THEY'RE NOT GOING TO BREED AND MAKE MORE.

>> WE TAKE ALL SPECIES OF INJURED AND ORPHANED, NATIVE GEORGIA WILDLIFE, SO EVERYTHING FROM HAWKS AND OWLS TO SONGBIRDS, TO RACCOONS AND POSSUMS, SNAKES, TURTLES, YOU NAME IT.

WE WILL TAKE THEM IN, REHABILITATE THEM, GIVE THEM MEDICINE, GIVE THEM CARE AND TRY TO GET THEM BACK INTO THE WILD.

>> WE PROBABLY TAKE IN ABOUT 1500 OR SO ANIMALS EVERY YEAR.

WE RELEASE ABOUT HALF OF THEM AND WE HAVE AROUND 25 PERMANENT RESIDENT AMBASSADORS HERE THAT LIVE HERE PERMANENTLY TO COME OUT AND DO EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS TO TEACH THE PUBLIC ABOUT THEM.

SO JEFFREY IS A BLACK RAT SNAKE.

YOU CAN TELL BECAUSE HE'S ALL BLACK, AND HE'S GOT HIS WHITE THROAT, SO HE'S PROBABLY SIX FEET LONG.

AND THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST COMMON SNAKE THAT YOU ENCOUNTER, AT LEAST HERE IN THE SOUTHEAST, WHERE PEOPLE WILL SEE THEM AND IT CAN BE REALLY SCARY, BECAUSE ALL OF A SUDDEN YOU SEE THIS REALLY, REALLY, REALLY BIG SNAKE, AND IT'S SURPRISING, BUT THEY'RE ACTUALLY PRETTY HARMLESS AND DOCILE.

SNAKES LIKE THIS USUALLY EAT MICE AND RATS,.

SO THEY'RE ACTUALLY REALLY GREAT TO HAVE AROUND, BECAUSE IF YOU SEE THEM IN YOUR YARD OR IN YOUR PORCH OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, THAT USUALLY MEANS YOU HAVE A PEST PROBLEM THAT YOU'RE NOT AWARE OF.

FOR SNAKES, OFTEN YOU HEAR THAT IF THEIR HEAD IS TRIANGULAR SHAPED, THAT MEANS THEY'RE VENOMOUS.

THAT'S NOT ACTUALLY TRUE.

IT CAN BE TRUE.

IT IS TRUE THAT YOUR VIPERS, BECAUSE THEY HAVE VENOM SACS ON THE SIDE OF THEIR FACE, JEFFREY DOES NOT, BUT RIGHT HERE, THEY'RE KIND OF SWOLLEN.

THEY OFTEN HAVE A TRIANGULAR SHAPED HEAD.

BUT MANY NON VENOMOUS SNAKES WILL DO THINGS LIKE FLATTEN THEIR HEAD ON THE GROUND SO THAT IT APPEARS TO LOOK LIKE A VENOMOUS SNAKE.

THE BEST WAY TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN VENOMOUS AND NONVENOMOUS SNAKES IS TO LEARN YOUR SNAKES.

THERE'S NOT A WHOLE LOT OF VENOMOUS SNAKES IN MOST STATES IN AMERICA.

SO USUALLY YOU ONLY HAVE TO LEARN FIVE OR SIX.

IF YOU DON'T TRY TO CATCH A SNAKE AND YOU WATCH WHERE YOU PUT YOUR HANDS AND YOUR FEET, YOU ARE VERY, VERY UNLIKELY TO EVER GET BIT.

YOU'RE ACTUALLY MORE LIKELY TO DIE BY A CHAMPAGNE CORK THAN BE KILLED BY A VENOMOUS SNAKE HERE IN AMERICA.

YOU'RE MORE AT RISK AT A WEDDING THAN WHEN YOU'RE IN YOUR YARD.

>> THE BIGGEST THREAT, THE BIGGEST IMPACT TO THE PATIENTS THAT WE SEE IS THAT THEY GET HIT BY CARS.

AND WE HAVE SUCH SPRAWL, SUCH TRAFFIC IN ATLANTA THAT THERE'S MORE CARS ON THE ROAD EVERY DAY.

AND EVERY TIME YOU DRIVE YOUR CAR, THERE'S A CHANCE YOU'RE GOING TO HIT AN ANIMAL.

SO THE NUMBER ONE PIECE OF ADVICE WE GIVE PEOPLE, THE EASIEST AND MOST IMPACTFUL THING YOU CAN DO TO HELP SAVE WILDLIFE FROM GETTING INJURED IS DON'T THROW FOOD WASTE OUT THE WINDOW OF YOUR CAR.

PEOPLE THINK MAYBE IF IT'S BIODEGRADABLE IT'S OKAY.

IT'S GOING TO STAY OUT OF THE LANDFILL.

BUT WHAT HAPPENS IS AN APPLE CORE OR A BANANA PEEL WILL SIT THERE AT THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND LITTLE ANIMALS, MICE OR RATS, OR EVEN INSECTS WILL COME TO EAT IT AND THEN BIGGER ANIMALS WILL COME TO EAT THEM.

AND ALL OF THEM ARE IN DANGER OF GETTING HIT BY A CAR.

PROBABLY 10% OF THE CALLS WE GET ARE AN ACTUAL INJURED OR ORPHANED ANIMAL THAT NEEDS OUR MEDICAL HELP.

THE OTHER 90% ARE JUST SITUATIONS WHERE NO INTERVENTION IS WARRANTED, EITHER THEY JUST NEED TO DETER THE COYOTE, OR THEY NEED TO PUT THE BABY SQUIRREL BACK IN THE NEST, OR WHAT HAVE YOU.

BUT IT'S NOT AN INJURED OR ORPHANED ANIMAL THAT NEEDS OUR HELP.

>> WHENEVER YOU ENCOUNTER AN ANIMAL IN THE WILD AND YOU DON'T MAYBE LIKE WHAT YOU SEE OR WHAT IT'S DOING, CALL YOUR LOCAL WILDLIFE CENTER AND SEE WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY.

IS GOING TO MAYBE ATTACK THEIR CAT OR DOG OR CHILD.

AND, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THOSE THINGS ARE THEORETICALLY POSSIBLE, BUT ALMOST ALWAYS, IT'S POSSIBLE TO JUST CO-EXIST WITH THE ANIMAL BY DETERRING IT, YOU KNOW, MAKING LOUD NOISE, SCARE IT AWAY, REMOVE FOOD SOURCES SO YOU'RE NOT ATTRACTING THE ANIMAL TO YOUR HOUSE.

>> SO THIS IS SIDNEY.

SHE'S ONE OF OUR VIRGINIA OPOSSUMS.

AND SHE LIVES HERE PERMANENTLY WITH US.

SHE ACTUALLY CAME IN VERY, VERY, VERY SMALL, INSIDE OF HER MOTHER'S POUCH.

AND POSSUMS ARE MARSUPIALS, SO THEY HAVE A POUCH THAT THEY USE TO CARRY THEIR BABIES AROUND.

AND HER MOTHER WAS HIT BY A CAR, AND SIDNEY ACTUALLY WOUND UP LOSING HER LITTLE BACK LEG IN THE ACCIDENT.

AND SO SHE CAN'T CLIMB WELL ENOUGH TO ESCAPE PREDATORS.

THEY'RE PROBABLY NORTH AMERICA'S MOST NON-AGGRESSIVE MAMMAL.

AND MOST OF THE TIME I THINK PEOPLE DON'T LIKE THEM BECAUSE THEY'RE KIND OF UGLY, EVEN THOUGH I THINK THEY'RE CUTE, BUT THEY'RE KIND OF UGLY.

AND THESE ARE ONE OF THE BEST ANIMALS TO HAVE IN YOUR YARD IF YOU ARE TRYING, IF YOU HAVE A LOT OF PEST SPECIES.

SO FOR EXAMPLE, THEY EAT TICKS, THEY EAT ROACHES, THEY EAT RATS AND MICE.

THEY EAT DEAD STUFF, SO THEY KIND OF CLEAN THE EARTH TO MAKE ROOM FOR NEW LIFE, AND THEY CAN EVEN KILL AND EAT VENOMOUS SNAKES.

AND IF THE VENOMOUS SNAKE BITES THEM, AS LONG AS IT'S FROM THEIR AREA NOTHING HAPPENS TO THEM.

THEY'RE IMMUNE TO THE VENOM.

SO THESE GUYS, A LOT OF TIMES WHEN PEOPLE CALL AND THEY SAY, "THERE'S A POSSUM IN MY YARD, I'M SO UPSET."

I'M LIKE, "THAT'S GREAT NEWS" YOU KNOW, "ALL THE OTHER THINGS THAT YOU DON'T LIKE WILL GET TAKEN CARE OF BY THIS POSSUM."

SO THEY ARE VERY, VERY, VERY IMPORTANT TO THE ECOSYSTEM.

>> WE GET LOTS OF CALLS, ESPECIALLY IN THE SPRING OR ESPECIALLY AFTER A STORM FROM PEOPLE WHO FIND A BABY ANIMAL ON THE GROUND.

AND, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE ARE SCARED THAT IF THEY RETURN THE ANIMAL TO THE NEST, THEY PICK IT UP AND PUT IT BACK IN THE NEST, THAT MOM IS SOMEHOW GOING TO SMELL THEIR FINGERS ON THE ANIMAL AND ABANDON THEIR BABY.

AND THAT'S JUST A MYTH.

THAT IS NOT A DANGER.

YOU KNOW, THOSE MOTHERS WILL OFTEN, DEPENDING ON THE SPECIES, STICK AROUND FOR DAYS TRYING TO FIND THEIR BABY AND GET THEM BACK.

AND SO IF THEY CAN BE RETURNED TO THE NEST, VERY OFTEN, THAT IS THE BEST THING TO DO TO SAVE THAT BABY.

>> SO THIS IS MARY SHELLEY FRANKENSTEIN.

SHE'S ONE OF OUR AMBASSADOR BOX TURTLES.

SHELLEY CAME TO US BECAUSE SHE WAS HIT BY A CAR.

SHE HAD A DEPRESSION FRACTURE TO HER SHELL THAT WE CAME IN AND WE BUILT THIS EPOXY AND FIBERGLASS PATCH TO KIND OF COVER IT UP AND KEEP IT SAFE.

AND THEN WE WENT IN AND PAINTED IT, SO THAT HER FRIENDS WOULDN'T MAKE FUN OF HER.

WE WANT TO MAKE SURE SHE LOOKED LIKE OTHER TURTLES..

IT LASTS FOR ABOUT FIVE TO 10 YEARS.

THE SHELL WILL REGROW ITSELF.

SO OVER TIME, THIS PATCH WILL KIND OF PEEL OFF AND FALL OFF, AND UNDERNEATH YOU'LL HAVE REPAIRED SHELL.

ONE OF THE NUMBER ONE REASONS WE SEE TURTLES COME INTO THE CENTER IS THAT THEY'RE CROSSING THE ROADS.

SO TURTLES ACTUALLY HAVE A VERY, VERY INTENSE HOMING INSTINCT.. AND WHAT THAT MEANS IS THEY HAVE METALLITES IN THEIR BRAIN THAT THEY USE TO TRACK THE IRON IN THE EARTH.

AND IF YOU TAKE THEM AWAY FROM WHERE THEY ARE AT, THEY'LL SPEND THE REST OF THEIR LIFE TRYING TO GET BACK WHERE THEY CAME FROM.

SO WHEN YOU FIND A TURTLE AND IT'S CROSSING THE ROAD, IF YOU CAN DO SO SAFELY, THE BEST THING YOU CAN DO IS HELP HIM CROSS THE ROAD IN THE DIRECTION HE WAS GOING.

EVEN IF THE DIRECTION HE WAS GOING IS TOTALLY DEVELOPED, LOTS AND LOTS OF BUILDING, CONCRETE JUNGLE, THAT'S OKAY.

THAT'S WHERE HE'S GOING.

IF YOU TAKE HIM BACK TO THE SIDE THAT HE CAME FROM, SHE'S JUST GOING TO TURN AROUND AND SHE'S GOING TO GO RIGHT BACK WHERE SHE WAS GOING.

AND IF YOU TAKE HER TO A WONDERFUL NATURE PRESERVE FIVE, 10, 15 MILES AWAY, SHE'S GOING TO TRY TO COME BACK WHERE SHE CAME FROM.

AND SHE'S VERY, VERY LIKELY GOING TO GET HIT BY A CAR OR ENCOUNTER SOME OTHER DANGERS.

>> YOU KNOW, I GREW UP IN THE SUBURBS, LIVE IN THE CITY AND I LOVE IT THERE.

I WOULDN'T LIVE ANYWHERE ELSE, BUT IT'S REALLY MEANINGFUL TO BE ABLE TO RECONNECT AND GET BACK TO HAVING A RELATIONSHIP WITH NATURE.

WHEN YOU LOOK INTO THE EYES OF AN INJURED OWL THAT YOU'RE HELPING BRING BACK TO NATURE AND BACK TO WILDLIFE, THERE'S REALLY NOTHING LIKE IT.

>> WE'RE DEFINITELY AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE ECOSYSTEM, BUT WE'RE NOT THE ONLY PART AND WE FORGET THAT SOMETIMES.

AND WE FORGET THAT WITHOUT THE OTHER PARTS OF THE ECOSYSTEM, WE PROBABLY CAN'T SURVIVE OURSELVES.

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