You can find all the new developments at thirtywildpod.com, as well as the episode notes for all the Season 1 episodes.

Thanks for listening!

Take a trip into the past of your own neighborhood, and see the hidden world of your town, viewed as a fox or a bear.

A special how-to episode translating the insights of “Scary Animals in the Backyard” into pro tips and practical steps for your own local space. From real live landscape architect - creator and host Susan Dieterlen.

Listen to “How to (Re)Build Your World for Wildlife,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• Five ways to provide for wildlife in our space
• Four changes to make right now
• How saving wildlife saves us
• Changing what you can, and why it’s worth it
• Avoiding conflict with your local wildlife…and your neighbors
• Revisiting The Doom, and how to make a refuge from it
• Peace on demand is a potent tool for resilience to pretty much anything
• Help your neighbors love your backyard habitat – and want one of their own
• Fighting The Doom with small changes

We also take a nighttime stroll through a legendary woods where everything depends on the eye of the beholder.

With snippets from here and there, including the guests on our previous episodes, about being “unsettled” by the impossible, out there.

Listen to “Impossible Scary Animals: Seeing What’s Not There,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• False wildlife reports, and what’s behind them
• Perception vs reality
• Imagination and seeing what you want to see
• The need for awe
• Hoaxes through the ages
• What your brain wants you to see
• A real true ghost story
• Cryptid or creature?
• What unsettles experts out in the woods
• Includes the original story, “Beasties”

We also watch a race on those city streets, myth vs myth, to see who spreads fastest or maybe who cheats best.

Peggy Anesi, Educator on Natural Resources, Environment, and Energy with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Extension, makes a special return guest appearance to make the case for coyotes, talk about her decades-long love for them, and share a few really disturbing facts about owls.

Listen to “Never Bet Against Coyotes,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• What coyotes do for us
• How humans “make” wildlife
• Are coyotes dangerous, to us or our pets?
• Coyote packs, or not
• Coyote howls, sings, and calls
• “Babysitter” coyotes
• Coyotes vs foxes vs wolves vs dogs
• Wrestling with Smiley the friendly coyote
• What to do when you see a coyote, and why they follow people
• Why cities have more, not fewer, coyotes, and why we’re seeing them more
• Know your enemy - learn all you can about wildlife you hate or fear
• Chicago coyotes and the Urban Coyote Project
• Wildlife values, and how you get yours
• Includes the original story, “Home Field Advantage”

We also watch a race on those city streets, myth vs myth, to see who spreads fastest or maybe who cheats best.

Peggy Anesi, Educator on Natural Resources, Environment, and Energy with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Extension, makes a special return guest appearance to make the case for coyotes, talk about her decades-long love for them, and share a few really disturbing facts about owls.

Listen to “Never Bet Against Coyotes,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• What coyotes do for us
• How humans “make” wildlife
• Are coyotes dangerous, to us or our pets?
• Coyote packs, or not
• Coyote howls, sings, and calls
• “Babysitter” coyotes
• Coyotes vs foxes vs wolves vs dogs
• Wrestling with Smiley the friendly coyote
• What to do when you see a coyote, and why they follow people
• Why cities have more, not fewer, coyotes, and why we’re seeing them more
• Know your enemy - learn all you can about wildlife you hate or fear
• Chicago coyotes and the Urban Coyote Project
• Wildlife values, and how you get yours
• Includes the original story, “Home Field Advantage”

We also spy on a woodland meeting between five very different bears, all headed for YOUR house.

Dr. Tracy Rittenhouse, Associate Professor with the Department of Natural Resources & the Environment at the University of Connecticut, joins us to discuss wildlife in the exurbs, who’s thriving in our backyards and who’s not, while revealing the tiny menace that scares even people who work with bears.

Listen to “Bear-anoia,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• The most dangerous bears in North America, and how close they are to you.
• Why bears are moving into new areas
• Bears near people, in our yards, shopping centers, and even inside houses!
• Our common frenemy, Nature
• Storybook bears vs real life bears
• How common are bear attacks, and how to stay safe
• Will warmer winters stop bears from hibernating?
• A scary snake encounter
• How to stay safe from ticks in the woods, and why you want to
• Includes the original story, “The Five Bears.”

We also spy on a woodland meeting between five very different bears, all headed for YOUR house.

Dr. Tracy Rittenhouse, Associate Professor with the Department of Natural Resources & the Environment at the University of Connecticut, joins us to discuss wildlife in the exurbs, who’s thriving in our backyards and who’s not, while revealing the tiny menace that scares even people who work with bears.

Listen to “Bear-anoia,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• The most dangerous bears in North America, and how close they are to you.
• Why bears are moving into new areas
• Bears near people, in our yards, shopping centers, and even inside houses!
• Our common frenemy, Nature
• Storybook bears vs real life bears
• How common are bear attacks, and how to stay safe
• Will warmer winters stop bears from hibernating?
• A scary snake encounter
• How to stay safe from ticks in the woods, and why you want to
• Includes the original story, “The Five Bears.”

We also look through the eyes of a very special escapee from a very particular ship, centuries ago.

Peggy Anesi, Educator on Natural Resources, Environment, and Energy with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Extension, joins us and reveals the shocking way feral swine get to Illinois and why she never eats wild pork, plus a tale of mysterious pawprints in the snow.

Listen to “Apocalypse Pork: Feral Pigs,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• How feral pigs arrived and spread
• Are feral swine in your backyard?
• Rototillers and the rise of the machines
• The search for the perfect book cover pig
• The pros and cons of eating invasive species
• Why pig diseases matter to you
• Always carry a pocketknife in cougar country
• Kids in the woods
• Free range pigs vs feral pigs
• Dangers of feral pigs and how to stay safe
• Conquistadors and pigs
• Bears vs mountain lions vs wolves
• Includes the original story, “First Step”

While you ponder, come with us on a visit to a barnyard where the full moon remembers the prairie’s past a little *too* well.

Trevor Edmonson, Stewardship Lead with The Nature Conservancy in northern Indiana, gives us an inside look at bison and their impact on the restored prairie complex of the Kankakee Sands preserve, and talks vanished lakes, “land snorkeling,” and how the prairie built the Midwest.

Listen to “Eat Burgers, Save the World: Bison,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• How we nearly lost bison forever, and how they came back
• Native American plains tribes and the bison, in good times and bad, and today
• Mammoths and the ancient origins of your daily highway commute
• The Plains today are all about the bison of the past
• The eco-miracle that bison bring to grasslands
• What prairies do for you
• Reading bison body language
• 20,000 acres of wild Indiana, cattle barons, and The Grand Kankakee Marsh
• How you can help preserve and restore prairie, at home, in your community, and on the road
• How eating bison meat affects conservation of the species - and your health
• Why are bison the most dangerous animals at the national parks?
• The value of not being the top of the food chain outdoors
• Is that Mountain lion inside your head or on the trail cam?
• Alligators as the scariest animal, the wetland nightmare
• Are you a land snorkeler?
• The rewards of being a very slow hiker in the quiet landscapes of the Midwest
• Includes the original story, “Midsummer Prairie Moon.”

While you ponder, come with us on a visit to a barnyard where the full moon remembers the prairie’s past a little *too* well.

Trevor Edmonson, Stewardship Lead with The Nature Conservancy in northern Indiana, gives us an inside look at bison and their impact on the restored prairie complex of the Kankakee Sands preserve, and talks vanished lakes, “land snorkeling,” and how the prairie built the Midwest.

Listen to “Eat Burgers, Save the World: Bison,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• How we nearly lost bison forever, and how they came back
• Native American plains tribes and the bison, in good times and bad, and today
• Mammoths and the ancient origins of your daily highway commute
• The Plains today are all about the bison of the past
• The eco-miracle that bison bring to grasslands
• What prairies do for you
• Reading bison body language
• 20,000 acres of wild Indiana, cattle barons, and The Grand Kankakee Marsh
• How you can help preserve and restore prairie, at home, in your community, and on the road
• How eating bison meat affects conservation of the species - and your health
• Why are bison the most dangerous animals at the national parks?
• The value of not being the top of the food chain outdoors
• Is that Mountain lion inside your head or on the trail cam?
• Alligators as the scariest animal, the wetland nightmare
• Are you a land snorkeler?
• The rewards of being a very slow hiker in the quiet landscapes of the Midwest
• Includes the original story, “Midsummer Prairie Moon.”

Listen in on eyewitness accounts of a legendary creature stalking the streets and backyards of America, described as a "killer that knows little fear."

Dr. Laken Ganoe, a postdoctoral wildlife ecologist with the Quest Lab at the University of Rhode Island, reveals the real animal behind the legend and shares her thoughts about why fishers inspire such fear and loathing.

Listen to “Legend of the Fisher (Cat),” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

•  Essential fisher facts for those who've never heard of them
• Are wolverines as scary as people say?
• What "everybody knows" about fishers - but isn't true
• How to eat a porcupine
• How to tell if a fisher lives in your neighborhood (Hint: you won't see or hear it)
• What a mysterious chuckle in the woods means
• Community science, aka citizen science, and learning from roadkill
• Why hunters need to stay alert in fisher country
• Includes the original story, “Tonight on Creature Adventure!”

We also get just freaked out enough on the trail of a long-ago crime, deep in the Connecticut woods.

With stories from this season’s wildlife experts about what to worry about when you’re alone in the woods, and what they’ve seen and heard out there.

Listen to “Fear in the Woods,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• The deep dark woods as iconic creepy place
• Halloween decorations and cliched spooky places – why are *these* the places we fear?
• Mysterious crashes in the woods at night
• Mistaking bears for Bigfoot
• Anecdotes ain’t science
• Working in the woods alone after watching scary movies
• Trusting your gut vs dismissing your anxieties
• How to handle your fears in the woods
• Taking care of scary places by avoiding them
• Snakes and cheeseburgers
• How to stay safe from scary animals in the woods
• How to keep your dog safe in the woods
• Includes the original *true* story, “Coincidence?”

Plus pro tips about how to start with a tiny rewilded patch, right in your own backyard, porch, or patio, and remaking the world, one tiny action at a time.

We also join a lonely coyote on a hair-raising night full of urban myths - and invasive species.

Listen to “Back from the Dead, aka Rewilding,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• The basics on rewilding, in campfire story/urban myth style
• Accidental rewilding through neglect, and the sometimes-creepy places it creates
• Invasives vs native species
• Nature keeps us healthy
• What good is a tiny rewilded patch?
• Doing what you can with what you’ve got
• Choosing a good rewilding site
• Making a small-site rewilding plan
• Pro tips about plants, tools, and materials
• Includes the original story, “Hitchhikers.”

We also talk about black panther sightings, and learn why you shouldn’t choose the legendary Native American Underwater Panther as a kayaking buddy.

Brian Roell, Wildlife Biologist and Large Carnivore Specialist with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, tells us about the real animal behind the stories, evaluates your chances of seeing a black panther in the wild, and shares a hair-raising bear encounter from the north woods of the Upper Peninsula.

Listen to “Mountain Lions in the East, Part 1” and “Mountain Lions in the East, Part 2,” and subscribe to “30% Wild,” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• Are mountain lions dangerous to you?
• Will mountain lions return to the eastern US? Could they already be here?
• How to handle mountain lion encounters and stay safe
• Where cougars live, past and present, and where they could turn up next
• Why black panther sightings are dismissed by experts
• House cat or cougar? Cases of mistaken identity
• How cougars are weathering climate change
• Cougars and deer
• Includes the original story, “Copper Mine.”

We also talk about black panther sightings, and learn why you shouldn’t choose the legendary Native American Underwater Panther as a kayaking buddy.

Brian Roell, Wildlife Biologist and Large Carnivore Specialist with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, tells us about the real animal behind the stories, evaluates your chances of seeing a black panther in the wild, and shares a hair-raising bear encounter from the north woods of the Upper Peninsula.

Listen to “Mountain Lions in the East, Part 1” and “Mountain Lions in the East, Part 2,” and subscribe to “30% Wild,” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• Are mountain lions dangerous to you?
• Will mountain lions return to the eastern US? Could they already be here?
• How to handle mountain lion encounters and stay safe
• Where cougars live, past and present, and where they could turn up next
• Why black panther sightings are dismissed by experts
• House cat or cougar? Cases of mistaken identity
• How cougars are weathering climate change
• Cougars and deer
• Includes the original story, “Copper Mine.”

Rochelle Sturtevant, PhD, the program manager for NOAA’s Great Lakes Aquatic Nonindigenous Species Information System (GLANSIS), tells us about the scariest invasive fishes in your backyard, why you can relax about sharks but not alligators - and why the scariest creatures are probably already inside your house. We also hear about the regular reports she gets about space aliens in local waterways.

Listen to “Snakeheads and Sharks, Part 1” and “Snakeheads and Sharks, Part 2,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• Where you should be afraid of sharks, and where you shouldn’t
• Shark hoaxes and mistaken sightings
• The sharky lake sturgeon
• The most dangerous state for shark attacks
• Invasive species vs native species vs naturalized ones
• Three terrifying mystery invasives in your local lake
• Can we eat our way out of invasive fish troubles?
• Invasive species vs zombies
• Other scary threats to your waterways: combined sewers and urban flooding
• How to get your free copy of “Invisible Infrastructure” from the book Design by Deficit: Neglect and the Accidental City
• Sharks, alligators, and space aliens in the Great Lakes
• The secret sinister life of goldfish
• Includes the original sea shanty, “Lost Bull Shark, with special guest performances by Larry Womac (Part 1) and Ryan Gill (Part 2)

Rochelle Sturtevant, PhD, the program manager for NOAA’s Great Lakes Aquatic Nonindigenous Species Information System (GLANSIS), tells us about the scariest invasive fishes in your backyard, why you can relax about sharks but not alligators - and why the scariest creatures are probably already inside your house. We also hear about the regular reports she gets about space aliens in local waterways.

Listen to “Snakeheads and Sharks, Part 1” and “Snakeheads and Sharks, Part 2,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• Where you should be afraid of sharks, and where you shouldn’t
• Shark hoaxes and mistaken sightings
• The sharky lake sturgeon
• The most dangerous state for shark attacks
• Invasive species vs native species vs naturalized ones
• Three terrifying mystery invasives in your local lake
• Can we eat our way out of invasive fish troubles?
• Invasive species vs zombies
• Other scary threats to your waterways: combined sewers and urban flooding
• How to get your free copy of “Invisible Infrastructure” from the book Design by Deficit: Neglect and the Accidental City
• Sharks, alligators, and space aliens in the Great Lakes
• The secret sinister life of goldfish
• Includes the original sea shanty, “Lost Bull Shark, with special guest performances by Larry Womac (Part 1) and Ryan Gill (Part 2)

We also watch as the semi-supernatural thunderbirds of legend soar across the continent and beyond.

Ryan MacLean, the Senior Education & Public Programs Coordinator for the Greenwich Audubon Center, tells us about the triumph of raptors and ravens over the pesticide DDT, and fills us in on current perils facing our birds, as well as what you can do right now at home to save your feathered friends.

Listen to “Raptors and Ravens,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• The near-death experience of bald eagles due to the pesticide DDT, and their resurgence after the DDT ban
• The resurrection of ospreys, aka fish hawks, due to banning DDT.
• The spread of Common Ravens into the rewilding East
• The shifted baseline of growing up with or without the thunderbirds
• The success of 1970s’ conservation measures are inspiration for fighting climate change and habitat loss today
• Biggest threats to birds today, including songbirds
• How climate change is threatening birds
• What you can do personally to protect birds
• Includes the original story, “Shadows over America.”

We also eavesdrop on an interview at the coffeehouse between a certain young professional dressed in red and her problematic furry companion.

Dani Freund, a graduate student researcher at the Voyageurs Wolf Project in northern Minnesota, gives us a firsthand account of life and work in wolf country, and reveals why you shouldn’t watch too many scary movies before venturing into the woods alone.

Listen to “Big Bad (Imaginary?) Wolves,” and subscribe to “30% Wild” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• Wolves in metaphor and story
• How to tell if wolves have moved into your neighborhood - or can you?
• How wolves improve the health of entire ecosystems
• Wolf country, pre-settlement, today, and tomorrow
• Where’s the one place in the Lower 48 that wolves never left?
• Will wolves move back into the eastern US? Are they already here?
• Wolves and rewilding, here and in Europe
• Includes the original story, “Big Bad Coffee.”

• How this show is for you if climate doom is getting you down.
• What’s “rewilding,” and what does it have to do with your neighborhood? 
• What does rewilding have to do with climate change?
• How big predators and other scary animals live in our imaginations, as well as nearby wild places.
• What’s the most dangerous animal in *your* backyard? 
• What does it mean to face your fears, of scary animal encounters but also of life in a climate-changed world? 
• How is nature creeping in around the edges of life in your neighborhood, and in the tales you tell yourself about where you live? 
• “Night of the INSERT CREATURE HERE,” an original satirical story about a campfire gathering gone wrong and a mysterious uninvited guest with a terrifying growl. 
• How to get your own fill-in-the-blank printable mad lib of “Night of the INSERT CREATURE HERE”

Full notes on today’s show, including articles on these topics, links to any resources mentioned, and the free printable fill-in-the-blank mad lib version of today’s story, “Night of the INSERT CREATURE HERE.” You can also share your thoughts on the show or just say hello! 
https://deftspacelab.com/climate-doom-rewilding-madlibstory/

Howls and cries echoing through the night.

Half-seen shadows flitting through the trees.

30% Wild delves into these encounters – and the science behind them.

Learn how to stay safe out there, feel at home in the outdoors, and hear stories that revolutionize how you see your surroundings. Feed your thirst for the wild world outside your door, and join the community of others building a life closer to nature. The wild is closer than you think, and getting there is easier than you might imagine.

Season One confronts the outdoors’ fear that haunts us the most: dangerous animals. Mountain lions in the East, wolves anywhere, bears everywhere. We’ll track these stories in the scariest place of all: close to home, maybe even in your backyard. What’s lurking out there, where will wildlife show up next, and what do we do when we see that mountain lion?

If you want to know more about what’s outside your door, if you’re new to outdoor pursuits, or if you love outdoors stories with a bite, come along as we uncover what’s going on behind the world we see outside.