Plot Synopsis

Hosted by Juju Chang, AMERICAN SPRING LIVE is a three-night NATURE series that presents the change from winter to spring in real time from iconic locations across America. Using a mix of live and pre-taped footage that highlights the most pivotal events in nature's calendar, this multi-platform event features on-camera experts, including biologist Thor Hanson and entomologist Phil Torres, showing springtime phenomena in ecosystems ranging from the Sierra Nevada Mountains to the Everglades and from inner-city parks to remote wilderness preserves. Each one-hour episode is built around a central theme chosen to reveal how the new season triggers extraordinary biological change. Live locations include California's Sequoia National Park and Point Reyes National Seashore; Gainesville, Florida, and the Everglades; the Eastern shore of Virginia; a sheep farm in Maine; a black bear den in rural Western Maryland; Mt. Lemmon, Arizona; and Texas' Bracken Cave and Gulf Coast. Episodes include:

"Birth and Rebirth" (Premieres Monday, April 29 at 8pm): Tracing the green wave that sweeps across the continent in spring, see how the rising temperatures and longer days spur plants to awaken and flower, and animals to seek out newly abundant resources for their new families. See bears emerge from hibernation in Maryland and witness the connection that nesting birds have with alligators in the Everglades. Go nest hunting in Arizona and learn how the California wildlands are being reborn after a year of devastating wildfires. Discover how animals have incorporated seasonal change into their life cycles and successful reproductive strategies -- all demonstrated by the birth of a lamb in Maine.

"Migration" (Premieres Tuesday, April 30 at 8pm): Breeding and the greening of the landscape are tied to another major spectacle of spring: the mass movements of animals as they take advantage of spring's bounty. Meet the scientists who track the journeys of animals such as butterflies, birds, bison and bats over vast distances, from winter refuge to spring nesting grounds. As they attempt to uncover the precise triggers and timing of migration and its impact on other animal species, the scientists grapple with how these patterns and behaviors may shift due to climate change.

"Connections" (Premieres Wednesday, May 1 at 8pm): Nature's perfect partnerships, precisely synchronized, have evolved over thousands of years. Learn how plants and animals depend on each other to survive. See first-hand how climate change can break those connections, altering the timing of weather and plant growth, and disrupting the delicate relationships between plants and pollinators such as moths, bees and butterflies. Watch a family of wolf cubs explore their den in Minnesota's Voyageurs National Park and learn about their vital connection with the park's ecosystem. Plus, see how bobcats at Point Reyes National Seashore hunt for mice and other small prey.

In addition, a diverse group of researchers and citizen scientists investigate how a wide range of organisms respond to the change of seasons. They share their insights into the natural world, reveal new technologies that make their discoveries possible and encourage audiences to join the adventure of science. Contributors include:

Nanne Kennedy (sheep farmer, Meadowcroft Farm; location: Washington, Maine): Nanne showcases the birth of one of her lambs during Episode 1 "Birth and Rebirth" (April 29). Kennedy raises more than 200 sheep for their wool and many are expecting babies this spring.

Imogene Cancellare (biologist; location: Sierra Nevadas): Imogene's background is in landscape and conservation genetics, population ecology and wildlife management. She will be biking down the Sierra Mountains from altitude to baseline to show the emergence of spring, from snow-peaked mountaintops to newly blooming meadows, creeks and lowlands.

Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant (large carnivore biologist; location: Western Maryland): Dr. Wynn-Grant shows how bears in the Allegheny Mountains of Western Maryland emerge from hibernation. She specializes in the ecological and social drivers of human-carnivore conflict, and the influence of human activity on suitable carnivore habitats.

Dr. Harold Greeney (biologist; location: Mt. Lemmon, Arizona): Dr. Greeney is a researcher in Arizona who will journey to find some of the tiniest and best-hidden nests on the planet. Greeney has researched and observed hundreds of hummingbird nests across the country.

Mark Emery (wildlife cinematographer; location: Florida Everglades): Mark is an award-winning filmmaker and photographer. He demonstrates how he documents the connection between nesting birds and alligators in the Everglades.

Dr. Winifred Frick (biologist, UC Santa Cruz; location: Bracken Cave, Texas): As the Chief Scientist at Bat Conservation International, Dr. Frick uses her bat biology expertise to explain the migration patterns of bats in Texas. Pregnant free-tailed bats return to Bracken Cave to raise their young; the abundance of insects in the Texas skies are a plentiful food source.

Michael Male (Emmy Award-winning wildlife cinematographer; location: Locustville, Virginia): In Episode 2 "Migration" (April 30), Michael demonstrates how to use a floating blind camera to capture incredible and intimate shots of birds on the water.

Emily Mistick (biologist, University of British Columbia; location: Sierra Nevadas): Emily's research focuses on the relationship between sound production and flight performance in hummingbirds. She takes a paragliding trip over the Sierras to simulate what migrating birds experience up in the atmosphere.

Dr. Pete Marra (Director, Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center; location: Mad Island Marsh Preserve, Texas): Dr. Marra's research in avian conservation science encompasses the ecology of migratory birds, urban ecosystem ecology and disease ecology. He will be catching, tagging, and releasing songbirds to show their migratory patterns from the Caribbean to Texas.

Dr. Andrew Farnsworth (migratory bird researcher, Cornell Lab of Ornithology; location: Roma, Texas): Dr. Farnsworth is a Research Associate in the Information Science Program at Cornell Lab of Ornithology. He demonstrates his major discoveries on nighttime bird migration and birdsongs that have been found through weather radar and microphones.

Thomas Gable (biologist, Voyageurs Wolf Project; location: Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota): A Ph.D. student at the University of Minnesota, Thomas Gable's work on the Voyageurs Wolf Project focuses on wolf-moose-deer-beaver interactions in Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota. During the third episode he tries to track down a wolf pack and their pups that have taken residence in Voyageurs National Park.

Dr. Akito Kawahara (entomologist, Florida Museum of Natural History and University of Florida; location: Gainesville, Florida): Dr. Kawahara's research investigates the evolution and diversity of invertebrates, particularly butterflies and moths. During Episode 3 "Connections," journey into the Ordway-Swisher Reserve in Gainesville, Florida as he documents moth diversity and tests the acoustic abilities of bats. Moth sounds are used to combat bats, their biggest predators.

Marc Johnson (beekeeper; location: San Francisco, California): As a member of the San Francisco Beekeepers Association, Marc has witnessed firsthand the growing trend of urban beekeeping across the nation to help mitigate colony collapse disorder. He demonstrates how to tackle and capture an urban swarm -- a natural event bees go through when a colony needs to downsize.

Filipe DeAndrade (wildlife photographer; location: Coastal Marin County, California): Filipe's love for wildlife has taken him all across the world to capture incredible animal behavior. During Episode 3 "Connections," he shows how bobcats in California hunt for mice and other small prey.

To encourage citizen science participation during the live event and beyond, AMERICAN SPRING LIVE has partnered with the Bird Cams Lab and Celebrate Urban Birds projects (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), The Great Sunflower Project (San Francisco State University), The Monarch Larva Monitoring Project (University of Minnesota Monarch Lab), Track-a-Lilac with Nature's Notebook (USA National Phenology Network), SciStarter (Arizona State University), Next Avenue (Twin Cities PBS), and the National Park Service.