Bellingham ecologist brings the sound and wonder of nature to life with these podcasts
Chris Morgan was at the Bellingham Farmers Market one day, asking about tomatoes when someone asked him, “Are you Chris from ‘THE WILD?’ ”
People who love nature films likely recognize Morgan’s face from his hosting duties on documentaries and TV series for PBS Nature, National Geographic Television, Discovery Channel and the BBC.
Now they’re starting to recognize the 51-year-old Bellingham ecologist and filmmaker solely by his voice after Morgan’s first season as host of KUOW’s podcast, “THE WILD With Chris Morgan.” The second season, with 12 new episodes, will debut in February.
Launched in April, the first season was a success with over 1 million downloads, putting it in the top 1% of all podcasts, according to Morgan.
For listeners, part of the appeal may be Morgan’s easy-on-the-ears British accent, his love of a good story, and his enthusiasm as a storyteller of the wild, its struggle and its resilience. Morgan grew up in Southbourne, Dorset, on Britain’s south coast, before moving to Gig Harbor in Washington state in 1997 and then Bellingham about two years later.
“I always feel like I’m compelled to share stories because people enjoy them. It helps them understand wildlife,” Morgan said to The Bellingham Herald. “I feel better sharing them than keeping them to myself.”
The other part of the podcast’s appeal may be that the episodes are highly produced.
“Somebody described them as the ‘Planet Earth’ of podcasts. It feels like a documentary that you listen to,” Morgan said.
He described the podcast’s focus as “stories of wonder from the wild that connect us.”
To put together the episodes, Morgan and producer Matt Martin go out into the field to collect sounds from nature and to interview people working to protect wild places.
The 32-year-old Martin is the person listeners hear getting stung by hornets during a search for cougar kittens in a den in the pilot episode.
They found the den during an outing with Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife scientist Brian Kertson. Martin said that Morgan’s 20-plus years in conservation — “he knows everyone” — provides greater access, such as the invite to go search for the cougar den in the Colville National Forest.
The kittens’ high-pitched growls, and purring, can be heard on the podcast while Morgan describes the scene, which has the effect of inviting listeners into the experience with him.
Martin, a Seattle resident, said the podcast works hard to bring listeners on an adventure with Morgan.
“I feel like audio is very intimate,” Martin said. “We want to teach you something about ecology but also to have fun.”
‘Nature brings us all together’
Episodes in the first season of “THE WILD” are 10 minutes to 35 minutes long.
They explore cougars in Snoqualmie, beavers in Magnuson Park in Seattle and how they can help with climate change, and a surprisingly emotional search for silence in the Hoh Rainforest on the Olympic Peninsula.
Morgan takes listeners to Italy for an episode about brown bears — 50 wild bears two hours from Rome — and to Germany for one about wolves returning to that country, where the number of wolves grew from zero to 1,000 in 20 years.
The first season also delves into contentious issues, such as the proposal to restore grizzly bears to North Cascades National Park. Morgan, a bear biologist, supports the idea but stays away from politics on this and other issues in the podcast, choosing instead to tell stories, as he puts it, that anyone can enjoy.
“It’s not about politics, for sure. It’s about wonder and seeing the many sides of wildlife stories,” Morgan said. “Nature brings us all together because we’re all connected to it.”
Next up
What stories are up for the second season of the podcast?
Episodes will include:
▪ Morgan’s journey to Svalbard, Norway, to delve into a massive bird colony, polar bears and the importance of ice to the bears and the ecosystem.
▪ An interview with a wolf ranger in northern Stevens County who’s “like a modern-day cowboy that protects both wolves and cattle,” Morgan said.
▪ A look at ravens. People who know them think, “Oh my god, they’re the most amazing creature in the world,” Morgan said.
Those who don’t think, “Oh, it’s just a crow,” he said, laughing and adding the birds are about as smart as chimpanzees.
▪ Information on poop and what it can reveal about wildlife movements, health and DNA. “Poop is an unexpected treasure trove of information,” Morgan said. The segment will include a dog that can detect orca poop from the bow of a boat.
▪ A fun episode on twitchers, obsessive bird watchers who will spend their last dollar to travel to the other end of the world to see a bird on their life list, according to Morgan.
▪ The rewilding of Scotland, where a friend of Morgan’s planted over 1 million trees on 25,000 acres and, ultimately, how bears and wolves might come back to that country in the decades to come.
In the end, Morgan hopes listeners leave the podcast wanting to know more and, perhaps, to be part of a bigger picture — one with hope.
“If we just give nature half a chance she’ll do the rest,” Morgan said. “It’s not what we’ve lost. It’s what we stand to gain.”
Learn more
▪ Listen to the first season of “THE WILD With Chris Morgan” podcast at kuow.org/thewild. Bonus episodes are being added to the first season, including full interviews, in the lead-up to the debut of the second season in February.
The podcast is also available on different platforms, essentially wherever you get your podcasts.
▪ “THE WILD” is on Instagram @thewildpod.
