Restoring Balance: Removing the Black Rat from Anacapa Island

Narrated by John Cleese, this film chronicles the efforts of state and federal resource managers to remove non-native rats from Anacapa Island, one of the Channel Islands off the coast of Southern California. Faced with evidence of widespread predation on endangered seabird eggs and chicks, including the rare Xantus’ Murrelet, the land managers and scientists must decide how to balance the needs of endemic species in their efforts to remove the rats and restore balance to an important island ecosystem. Part of the How On Earth Video Series.

• International Wildlife Film Festival, Finalist
• Wild & Scenic Film Festival
• Hazel Wolf Film Festival
• SF Ocean Film Festival
• EarthVision Film Festival
• American Conservation Film Festival
• Society for Ecological Restoration Special Presentation
• Broadcast on select PBS stations
• Telly Award, Aurora Award & CINE Golden Eagle Award

Produced, written, and directed by Kevin White
Narrator: John Cleese
Editors: Theron Yeager & Dawn Glenn
Camera: Don Starnes & Kevin White

Topic areas: Resource Management, Environmental Ethics, Environmental Studies, Marine Biology, Wildlife Biology, Ornithology

28 minutes, stereo, closed captioned

©2003 Filmmakers Collaborative, SF