NOVA: Wild Predator Invasion

“Calusa,” a Florida panther, at Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo

Credit: Courtesy of Dave Long/Long Memories Photography

Follow scientists who are returning apex predators to their natural environments — and learn why.

A growing number of scientists are discovering that removing top predators from the wild has thrown ecosystems off-kilter, triggering domino effects that scientists are just beginning to understand. NOVA follows scientists who are trying out a simple but controversial solution: returning apex predators — like coyotes, bears and panthers — to their natural environments. Can these newly introduced predators restore the natural balance of their ecosystems without threatening the humans who live among them? NOVA: Wild Predator Invasion airs Wedndesday, April 2, 2014 at 9 p.m. on WXXI-TV.