Assignment Earth Video

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A colorful amphibian is a celebrated symbol of a campaign to save green space in Homewood, Alabama.

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After an absence of nearly 200 years, North America's largest rodent has returned to New York City.

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Deep in an Arkansas swamp three years ago, David Luneau says he filmed a few fleeting seconds of a bird believed extinct, and he's still searching.

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A major stopover site for migrating cranes in Tennessee is threatened by high-density development plans for surrounding land.

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Last year's election results in Wyoming show many sportsmen will ignore party affilations on issues affecting conservation of public lands.

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In India, a rare crocodilian clings to survival in a river sanctuary threatened by aggressive human encroachment.

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In a river in Tennessee, field researchers brave freezing water to find and study a little-known endangered species.

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In northwestern Canada, conservationists and native tribes question energy companies' plans to build an 800-mile gas pipeline to fuel extraction of oil from tar sands in Alberta.

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Three years after an apparent sighting in an Arkansas swamp of a bird believed extinct for decades, hopeful scientists and volunteers are still searching for it.

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Indian tribes in the western United States are investing in the future of renewable wind energy on their reservations.

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Oyster beds in Louisiana have been hit hard by devastating hurricanes as well as by state-sponsored diversion projects that upset the delicate balance between fresh and salt water.

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With its coastal lowlands sinking, Louisiana pushes expensive plans to re-make the Mississippi River and allow the restoration of a self-sustaining delta.

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In Florida, a rescue center rehabilitates bald eagles and other raptors that are frequently injured by motor vehicles and power lines in fast-developing suburbs.

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A new flock of Whooping Cranes is migrating between Wisconsin and Florida, with the help of surrogate parents.

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Developers along Colorado's Front Range wait for the outcome of a scientific debate on whether a small jumping mouse is a threatened species deserving federal protection.

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Conservationists, ranchers and Native Americans develop a visionary plan to bring back vast herds of wild bison to North America's Great Plains.

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As thousands of exotic plant species spread across the North American landscape, government authorities and vigilantes fight the invaders with machines, chemicals and slashing blades.

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After an elephant kills its keeper in a Tennessee Sanctuary, questions remain about the morality of punishing an abused animal that may suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.

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Counties in Utah claim title to roads crossing federally managed public lands, including parks and monuments; but critics say many claims are little more than trails or cowpaths.

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On a North Carolina beach, researchers fix satellite tracking devices on 300-pound loggerhead turtles that come ashore to lay eggs. Learning more about their migrations could help to protect them.

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Sportsmen, native communities and conservationists unite in opposing a Canadian company's plan for a huge gold and copper mine in a watershed critical for spawning salmon.

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In Colorado's San Luis Valley, local residents eagerly supported creating Great Sand Dunes National Park to prevent developers from tapping into the underground aquifer that waters their farms and ranches.

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Conservationists say the common types of these rodents, essential to healthy grasslands, are threatened by widespread poisoning by ranchers and farmers. U.S. wildlife authorities refuse to give them protection under the Endangered Species Act.

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Undisturbed areas of Canada's "Great North Woods" -- more than 12 times the size of California -- are threatened by increasing industrial activity. Activists blame demand for paper by catalog publishers.

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Investigators claim smugglers have shipped endangered chimpanzees and gorillas from Africa to buyers in the Middle East. They blame governments, airlines and international law enforcement for failing to protect Africa's Great Apes.

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With timber companies starting to sell their vast forestlands, conservationists score a big success in the Southeast with a $300m deal to buy 340 sq. miles of critical forest habitat from International Paper Company.

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An unusual coalition of sportsmen and environmentalists rallies to oppose natural gas drilling in New Mexico's wildlife-rich Valle Vidal. They want the U.S. Congress to enact legislation to protect the area.

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In Utah, a national monument proclaimed by President Clinton 10 years ago still rankles some locals, while others accept it and look for ways to profit.

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Airborne pollution in this national park has been among the nation's worst -- a threat to human health, plants and wildlife. Now, enforcement of the Clean Air Act is showing positive results.

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Against wide opposition, the Skull Valley Goshutes now have a federal license to store spent nuclear fuel from the nation's power plants.

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One of the planet's most endangered species, probably fewer than 100 panthers still survive in a shrinking habitat. But their population has tripled in 10 years.

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Authorities say grizzly bears in the Yellowstone ecosystem are no longer threatened, and should be de-listed from the Endangered Species Act. Many wildlife experts disagree, others support the proposal as a tribute to the bear's successful recovery.

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Hundreds of buffalo just outside the park have been captured and sent for slaughter. Officials say it's necessary to prevent spread of disease, but critics call it appalling abuse of the last wild buffalo.

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Assignment Earth's video coverage starts this week with the first of three reports on the status and future of iconic wildlife in the American West. A decade after re-introduction, more than 1,000 wolves now roam the northern Rockies.