Do you have cabin fever? Join us for the Winter Film Festival Tuesday nights in February! Movies will start promptly at 6:30 p.m. The films will be shown in the Visitor Center Auditorium at Seney National Wildlife Refuge. The shows are open to the public and are free of charge. Hot chocolate, coffee, tea, popcorn and cookies will be provided by the Seney Natural History Association. Please bring a mug.
February 5th
The Botany of Desire: 120 Minutes – Featuring Michael Pollan and based on his best-selling book, this special takes viewers on an eye-opening exploration of the human relationship with the plant world — seen from the plants’ point of view. Narrated by Frances McDormand, the program shows how four familiar species — the apple, the tulip, marijuana and the potato — evolved to satisfy our yearnings for sweetness, beauty, intoxication and control. (Watch Preview)
February 12th
The Teakettle Experiment: Fire and Forest Health: 27 Minutes – A film that documents the Teakettle Experiment – a ten-year collaboration of forest managers and scientists from diverse disciplines that investigated the effects of prescribed fire and forest thinning on restoring forest health. (Watch Preview)
The Beauty of Ugly: 55 Minutes – We may think we know what is beautiful and what isn’t, but in the natural world, beauty can be many things, including what we might find completely repulsive. Not only can the bizarre be attractive, it can also provide just the edge a creature needs to succeed in a difficult environment. From frogfish and hagfish to the ugliest bug in Oklahoma, we learn how and why ugly can be beautiful, even when it isn’t pretty. (Watch Preview)
February 19th
Magic of the Snowy Owl: 60 Minutes – A team of intrepid filmmakers provides an intimate look at the snowy owl, a bird made popular by Harry Potter’s faithful companion Hedwig. Though “snowies” naturally stand out for their beauty, intelligence & charm, in their eerie, bleak Arctic home it is their determination and survival skills that are truly magical. (Watch Preview)
Mother: Caring for 7 Billion: 60 Minutes – Mother, the film, breaks a 40-year taboo by bringing to light an issue that silently fuels our largest environmental, humanitarian and social crises – population growth. Since the 1960s the world population has nearly doubled, adding more than 3 billion people. The film illustrates both the over consumption and the inequity side of the population issue by following Beth, a mother, a child-rights activist & the last sibling of a large American family of twelve, as she discovers the thorny complexities of the population dilemma and highlights a different path to solve it. (Watch Preview)
February 26th
A Murder of Crows: 60 Minutes – New research has shown that crows are among the most intelligent animals in the world, able to use tools as only elephants and chimpanzees do, able to recognize each other’s voices and 250 distinct calls. Crow experts from around the world sing their praises, and present us with captivating new footage of crows as we have never seen them before. (Watch Preview)
Can the Gulf Survive?: 50 Minutes – With exclusive access to BP’s clean-up operations, National Geographic investigates what happened to the 4.9 million barrels of oil that poured from the sea floor in one of the worst environmental disasters of all time. From the front lines of the cleanup efforts, National Geographic follows the first two months after the spill, tracking cleanup efforts as experts seek to learn the ongoing effects and BP battles the spill and the public outcry. (No Preview Available)
The descriptions of these films are borrowed from the producer’s websites.
The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with others to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. We are both a leader and trusted partner in fish and wildlife conservation, known for our scientific excellence, stewardship of lands and natural resources, dedicated professionals and commitment to public service. For more information on our work and the people who make it happen, visit www.fws.gov.
