In the early 20th century, a blight fungus wiped out most of the 4 billion American chestnut trees on the eastern seaboard. The loss was ecologically devastating. Short Wave host Emily Kwong dives deep into how scientists are trying to resurrect the American chestnut tree — and recent controversy over a plan to plant genetically modified chestnuts in the wild.

Want to hear about more efforts to recover endangered or lost species? Let us know by emailing shortwave@npr.org!

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy