NAT GEO WILD CELEBRATES EARTH DAY WITH WORLD PREMIERE SPECIAL "AFRICA'S WILD COAST"

Hippos, Sharks and Whales Need Our Voice! Join Us on the Quest to Save the Rich Coastal Waters of Gabon, Africa

Africa's Wild Coast Premieres on Earth Day, Tuesday, April 22, 2014, at 8 PM ET/PT on Nat Geo WILD

(Washington D.C. - April 10, 2014) National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence Mike Fay and Enric Sala are on a mission to explore the rich coastal waters of Gabon. Full of hippos, sharks and humpback whales, these waters are likely some of the last healthy oceans in West Africa. But illegal trawling, particularly industrial fishing, threatens the livelihood of these habitats. Now, Nat Geo WILD captures unparalleled footage as we follow Mike and Enric on their expedition to Gabon while they explore the uncharted seamounts and oil platforms before time runs out. Africa's Wild Coast premieres on Earth Day, Tuesday, April 22, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Nat Geo WILD. (For more information, visit www.natgeowild.com and follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/NGC_PR.)

Get in the Earth Day spirit by joining Mike and Enric as they embark on a Pristine Seas expedition to help document the health of Gabon's waters. Their goal: to inspire Gabon's leaders to foster protection and allow these underwater Edens to be rich with life for generations to come. With the support of Gabon's government, the waters of Gabon will receive the protection they need to keep marine life flourishing. Hop on board with Mike and Enric as they work to turn the tides and help save the unique life off Gabon's coast. Its seas are virtually uncharted so the two explorers must be prepared for just about anything.

The undersea safari captures stunning scenery and astonishing discoveries: humpback whales, barracudas hovering over schools of tuna and even hippos enjoying the surf. But the scenes are not all sparkling under these waters. Trawling has contributed to a loss of reproductive capacity of all kinds of sea life and we see firsthand what damage has been done.

Danger lurks around every wave and even the dive team faces hazardous conditions, with dozens of oil platforms embedded in the shores of Gabon forming an undersea obstacle course. But to the team's surprise, the industrial-looking platforms hold a great discovery underneath - huge quantities of coral and fish. They collect groundbreaking footage of fish and bright, glowing corals you must see to believe.

Africa's Wild Coast's extraordinary imagery and unparalleled underwater access allow for an intellectual and energetic view into what it takes to save endangered wildlife from a grim future of extinction. With the incessant threat of trawling looming over the waters of Gabon, measures must be taken immediately. Will the men help save this underwater Eden? Where will they explore next?

About National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence Mike Fay and Enric Sala

Currently, Mike and Enric are on a Pristine Seas expedition in Mozambique to continue the fight to protect underwater wildlife. Enric is a marine ecologist actively engaged in exploration, research and communications to advance ocean policy and conservation. He conducts expeditions to some of the most remote places in the ocean, to carry out the first comprehensive scientific surveys of these pristine areas to obtain a baseline of what the ocean used to be like. Working together with conservation organizations, Enric was key to inspiring the creation of large marine protected areas around the world. Mike is a naturalist and conservationist who walked more than 3,000 miles of intact forest corridor in Congo and Gabon surveying trees, wildlife and human activity during his 2000 Megatransect. Now, Mike is committed to creating a marine park system in Gabon and fighting illegal fishing.

Africa's Wild Coast is produced by National Geographic Mission Programs for Nat Geo WILD. For National Geographic Mission Programs, executive producer is Mark Bauman and senior producer is Arthur F. Binkowski. For Nat Geo WILD, executive producer is Ashley Hoppin, senior vice president of development and production is Janet Han Vissering, and executive vice president and general manager is Geoff Daniels.

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About Nat Geo WILD

For more than 30 years, National Geographic has been the leader in wildlife programming. The networks Nat Geo WILD and Nat Geo WILD HD, launched in 2010, offer intimate encounters with nature's ferocious fighters and gentle creatures of land, sea and air that draw upon the cutting-edge work of the many explorers, filmmakers and scientists of the National Geographic Society. Part of the National Geographic Channels US, based in Washington, D.C., the networks are a joint venture between National Geographic and Fox Cable Networks. In 2001, National Geographic Channel (NGC) debuted, and 10 years later, Spanish-language network Nat Geo Mundo was unveiled. The Channels have carriage with all of the nation's major cable, telco and satellite television providers, with Nat Geo WILD currently available in 56 million U.S. homes. Globally, Nat Geo WILD is available in more than 100 million homes in 90 countries and 28 languages. For more information, visit www.natgeowild.com.