the scenery and what kind animals live Grand Canyon and

Another way humans are clashing with native wildlife is by seeing the Grand Canyon in a newly popular way: flying through the gully in a small airplane. Since the 1920s, tourists have marveled at the size of the canyon from a bird’s-eye view, but today more than 100,000 commercial flights per year echo engine sounds off the mile-high walls. While the 30 air tour operators provide a unique view for visitors, the noise pollution they create destroys the natural silence for those on the ground — including the wildlife. In his 1996 Earth Day speech, President Clinton stated that “the intrusion of such aircraft can interfere with wildlife (including threatened and endangered species), cultural resources and ceremonies, and visitors’ enjoyment of the parks, including the ability to experience natural sounds without interruption from mechanical noise.” Ironically, his voice was temporarily drowned out by a plane as he spoke to the crowd. In 1987, Congress passed the National Parks Overflights Act to control the noise pollution situation. Years later,

A downy woodpecker.

Congress continues to deliberate over the strictness of this law, and whether or not to make some national parks flight-free.