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 their comeback and what the future looks like for this iconic species.

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 International program, about what makes pangolins so unique and how their fate became so entangled with wildlife trade around the world, including in the United States.

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 into places where they shouldn’t, and how hooves can change an ecosystem.

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 between people and birds. This episode features bird song recordings by the National Park Service, Sue Riffe and

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, litigation director of our Oceans program, about threats to whales and what it’ll take to secure them a future that’s truly safe.

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 the protection they need, and what can be done.

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, conservation director of Rewilding Argentina, about the return of jaguars in his country and what it would take to bring them back in the U.S. This episode features the song La Danza de los Jaguares from the band XIXA.

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 director, about the magic of red wolves, their future in North Carolina and the legacy of individual wolves like Airplane Ears and Blaze.

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 endangered species and the Indigenous peoples who have lived on these islands for eons.

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 wildlife declines affect us in ways we don’t notice and what can be done.