American shad were once so abundant in the Potomac River, people said the river would "run silver" each spring when they returned to spawn. By the 1970s, overfishing, pollution, and dam construction threatened American shad populations all over the east coast. This film chronicles the demise and triumphant return of this native fish, highlighting the citizens who refused to let them fade away. Repeats April 23, 9pm

This film explores the nation's history through an aerial trip along the striking curves of the Potomac River, accompanied by an uplifting musical soundtrack and pleasing narration that describes natural historical and cultural points of interest along the way. Beginning in West Virginia, the fly over pledge event captures the flow of the Potomac River as it rapidly descends through the Appalachian Mountains into the Piedmont region of Maryland, then proceeds south past the Great Falls into the nation's capital,…

This film examines how water arrived on Earth and how it came to underpin every aspect of existence from dragonflies to deserts in bloom to human life Dive in!

Uncover geologic fingerprints of colossal floods that violently reshaped the ancient world. Follow geologists around the globe as they reconstruct catastrophic Ice Age floods more powerful than all the world's top ten rivers combined.

A look at one family's multi-generational efforts to protect a Chesapeake Bay stream and The Nature Conservancy's work to assure that it continues to flourish as an 11,000-acre preserve.

Every year, when cold weather starts to hit the East Coast, hundreds of endangered, cold-stunned sea turtles wash ashore in Cape Cod Bay. The National Aquarium in Baltimore works with their conservation partners on a lengthy, challenging, and rewarding journey to rescue, treat, rehabilitate and ultimately return home these stranded turtles.

17th century Irish essayist Jonathan Swift dared say what so many before him believed: "He was a bold man that first ate an oyster." The lowly oyster is a delicacy the world over, yet many people say enjoying one is an acquired taste. In the Chesapeake Bay region, the Chesapeake Oyster is King. Whether it's slurped down raw on the half shell or fried, baked, braised or roasted, it's a favorite. Eatin' Oysters: Chesapeake Style! takes viewers around the Chesapeake…

Three short films about oysters: Lifeline: A Chesapeake Oyster Documentary - the decay of the oyster and its impact on the society that thrived on it; The Incredible Oyster Reef - explores oysters as a keystone species with an indispensable ability to heal the Bay's waters; The Local Oyster Stout - An oyster farmer, a shucker, and a brewery collaborate on Maryland's first farm-to-table Oyster Stout beer.

Journey back in time and across the world to learn the history of energy and water. Today, water and energy are interconnected, for better or worse, but how can we make energy less "thirsty" and water less energy intensive? This will be broadcast on MPT2.

An aerial survey of Chesapeake Bay lighthouses, beacons awash with maritime history, legend and lore. Repeats April 25 10 pm.

This film captures the unparalleled wild beauty, rich history and natural serenity of the bay from 2,000 feet. The program marries gentle verse, prose and music with dramatic images captured by high-definition cameras, which bring the region into razor-sharp perspective. The meandering aerial journey transports viewers to many of the Chesapeake Bay's stunning locations - from dawn over the Susquehanna River and the mysterious carved marsh of Blackwater Wildlife Refuge to the tranquil fishing village of Smith Island and the…

From the stillness of the mass underwater graves of ancient ships to the eye-popping, eardrum-busting fighter jets of Pax River, they claim the title of the Chesapeake's best-kept secrets. From buried treasure to haunted lighthouses, crazy legends and myths, eccentric sporting -- even characters wacky and a little bizarre -- to provincial cuisine and natural wonders, the Bay and surrounding locales are alive with obscure-but-fascinating destinations. For the armchair adventurer among us who craves the uncanny -- for those who…

High Tide in Dorchester aims to create a conversation about climate change, along with related impacts of sea level rise and erosion, and leverage that conversation into action. Locations around the country already have growing concerns for the future that increasingly faces coastal areas worldwide, including Dorchester County, MD. This low-lying county on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay is the fourth largest of Maryland's 23 counties by land area, but it is destined to drop to the 14th…

Ask just about anyone what comes to mind when you mention Maryland, and they'll probably say "you know, crabs." What they really mean is the iconic, hardy, blue-green Chesapeake crustacean known to scientists as Callinectus Sapidus -- and to the rest of us by a bunch of other names: blue crabs, jimmies, sooks, sallies, peelers, v-bottoms and sponge crabs. No matter what they're called, if they're fished out of Chesapeake waters, they're most likely destined for a dinner plate as…

Eatin' Crabs: Chesapeake Style is Maryland Public Television's video foray into the world of the blue crab from dockside to table, capturing the uniquely Maryland slice of life that is the custom of enjoying a mound of hot steamed crabs. From Baltimore's busiest harborside districts, filled with some of the region's most famed crab shacks, to beloved and isolated locales filled with crab-hungry locals from Ocean City to Oakland, Eatin' Crabs: Chesapeake Style catches the world of crab-loving and cracks…

Cream of Blue Crab soup, butter-broiled Bluefish, St. Leonard's Stuffed Ham with collards, Wicomico Barbequed Chicken, baked n' buttered yeast rolls, Crab Loaf, scalloped corn pudding, summer stewed tomatoes, fried clam fritters, sherry-dressed Crab Imperial, Smith Island Cake, Dog Days Succotash, Highlandtown Sauerbrauten and spatzle, Mock Turtle Soup, Duck in Aspic, Raised Pie, Fried Oysters, Baked Crab-Stuffed Rockfish, Sauteed Softshell Crab, icebox Crab Salad with Cantaloupe, farm-Beaten Biscuits and Lady Baltimore Cake. It reads like a banquet menu, but it's…