Product Details

• Actors: James Woods
• Directors: Robert Kenner
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: National Geographic Home Video
• VHS Release Date: June 9, 1998
• Run Time: 60 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 079229551X
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #15,162 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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  #16 in	Video > Television > National Geographic > Wildlife
  #76 in	Video > Documentary > Nature & Wildlife > Animals

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
The folks at National Geographic, with the help of narrator James Woods, take us on a zigzag road trip across the U.S. in this 1997 documentary. We follow photographers Susan Middleton and David Liitschwager, who gave up their earlier pursuits (museum and fashion photography, respectively) to capture on film the rarest fauna and flora of the North American continent. A selection of these pictures was published in their book, Witness: Endangered Species of North America.

This hour-long film takes us from a black-footed ferret breeding farm in Wyoming to Florida manatee pools to the Presidio in San Francisco where we see a plant that is so rare, only one exists and its exact location is a government secret. The portraiture is vibrant and truly stunning and the film is interspersed with interview clips of scientific luminaries such as Harvard's Edward O. Wilson. Despite a subject matter that is necessarily depressing, America's Endangered Species: Don't Say Good-Bye outlines a few recovery success stories and highlights the efforts of individuals throughout the U.S. who are determined to make sure that these species are around for future generations of National Geographic fans. --Douglas Dalrymple

Product Description
Photographer Susan Middleton and David Liittschwager are in a race against the clock to capture powerful portraits of America's most threatened creatures. Join them on their unforgettable adventure that takes them from the California Sierra to the deep South, from the woods of North Carolina to the Pacific's shores. Along the way, they encounter a camera-shy Black-Footed ferret, capture the beauty of the golden trout, help release a pair of red wolves back to the wild, and watch from a front-row seat as a bald eagle chick is returned its cliffside nest. Their every picture tells a story...and makes a plea: DON'T SAY GOOD-BYE to America's natural treasures.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Endangered Species of America Revealed!, March 15, 2000

By	Julie Gates (Wyoming, Delaware) - See all my reviews

This video chronicles a day in the life of just a few of America's most endangered species. As an educator, I found the video very moving, and would recommend showing it to any class. It sheds new light on the disastrous situation that is occurring in OUR backyards, giving an interesting and informative autobiography of some of our nation's top endangered species and the folks who are trying to do something about their plight. A great variety of species are included, from the Palisades blue butterfly to the manatee. A must see!

5.0 out of 5 stars "We Are in the Midst of a Biological Catastrophe", August 26, 2005

By	J. S. Kaminski "j_s_k" (Aberdeen, NJ United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

So says a noted professor in the beginning of this film, and the stories that follow bear witness to that fact. Several endangered species are documented here. There is the Black-footed Ferret, the Manatee, the Golden Trout, the Red Wolf of the Southeast, and several more.

This video begins with the story of two photographers, Susan Middleton and David Liittschwager, and their idea to photograph the endangered species of America. The plan was to have documentation if and when the species went extinct, and it became a vehicle for helping to save them. By putting a "face" on the species in question, people are better able to understand what is at stake, and what they risk losing.

In just a few hundred years the landscape of America has been changed from one of wilderness to a vast "concrete jungle." Sure, there are numerous vast territories still protected, but many others continue to fall victim to development and over-development. And in many of these places, hundreds of endangered species are making their last stands. This video explores the plight of just a few.

Interestingly, one of the species mentioned here is the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, and at the time the video was produced (1997-8), it was thought to have gone extinct. However, in 2004, it was miraculously found again in the wild. Exactly how many are left is not known, but the fact that it was able to survive in some secluded swampland gives us hope that perhaps more species can be saved with just a little effort from us. It's a lesson we shouldn't forget.

Five stars. Excellent and inspirational.