dylan: hi, i'm dylan dreyer and we're about to embark on another earth odyssey. coming up, our odyssey takes us to the jungles of malaysia where this proboscis monkey might not be the most graceful, but she sure knows how to get around. plus, this pitcher plant's big mouth can get it into trouble, but it can also store a lot of food. and later, a family of orangutans makes a home in the trees, but not all their neighbors are the friendly kind. [music]

dylan: hi there, i'm dylan dreyer, and this is "earth odyssey".y's show, we uncover the wildlife that lives in the unbelievably diverse island of japan. and we explore the country to find the most fascinating animals and the most heroic insects. from steller's eagles to honeybees, you never know who reigns supreme in the wildlife of japan. [music]

. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with peter alexander, kristen welker and dylan dreyer. >>> welcome to "today." we thank you for joining us on this saturday morning. >> it is a big saturday morning because we could not be happier to welcome back our friend dylan from maternity leave. welcome back and just in time for mother's day. >> just in time for mother's day. just in time for cold weather. i didn't think the whole world was going to change while i was gone. i just want to reach out and hug you guys. i miss you in person. >> we want to give big hugs to calvin and ollie too. we hope they make it through the broadcast. if they show up, we won't complain. >> hugs all around. >> we'll see how it works. >> we want to put you right to work. the headline, more than 125 million people under these cold weather alerts this morning. what's it looking like for mother's day weekend in terms of weather? >> well, for the eastern half of the country, guys, it is going to be cold and snowy to start off this weekend. we already have the snow falling across upstate new york, through ce

before we go, quick reminder coming up on the today show, dylan dreyer is back she is returning from we will see you right ckba >>> on this first monday of may, more than 146 million americans will see an easing of coronavirus restrictions and over two dozen states. this as some places continue to see a rise in cases. >>> we have new developments this morning involving joe biden. his accuser says what was reported when she says the incident occurred. >>> take a look at this. that's a giant carnivorous murder hornet. these critters are now a threat to american alture the rush t

dylan dreyer is standing by. some areas it certainly feels like it certainly out west where temperatures likely break records in the coming days highs well up into the 80s and 90s down towards the country down across texas where we could see severe weather and flooding possible down through florida where the ground is wet and more rain is likely as we get into the middle of the week, that rain tries to shift to the east but very, very slowly we're still looking at wet weather back to the west, florida and southeast, warms up in the northeast i gets exceptionally hot in the southwest where we will see 25 cities breaking record-high temperatures. that rain is going shift to the east friday and rain up and down the east coast with thundershoweshowers and >> good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we're looking at really hot weather today. in fact, heat advisories will be in effect for the inland valleys as we reach into the upper 90s. and we get even hotter as we go into the middle of the week with our temperatur

that's because our friend dylan dreyer.nly ones excited for that return, by the way. check out this special my "today" plaza shout out she got. >> today i'm celebrating my sixth birthday with "today." welcome back, dylan, mwah. >> sweet. >> we've been waiting for dylan to come back and today is the big day. right, al? >> absolutely, we're really excited. so let's check your weather and see what we've got going on as well for today around the country. as we look ahead for the week ahead, for today cooler, plenty of sunshine out west, record heat through texas midweek, cooler in the northeast, atlantic, new england. record heat in the west, showers in the western plains. as we get toward the end of the week, it still stays chilly from the great lakes all the way to the northeast. thunderstorms firing up through the gulf the record heat continues in the southwest into california. beautiful blue skies into the pacific northwest. may the fourth be with you unfortunately it looks like a cool one in the northeast. >> good morning.

dylan: hi, i'm dylan dreyer and we're about to embark on another "earth odyssey."d the majestic region called patagonia. along the way, we'll meet some spectacular animals, like these high fiving penguin pals. plus, who are the busiest beavers in the world? we might've found them where you'd least expect. and later, the puffy guanaco has to be on high alert at all times because you never know what you'll find in the unpredictable and wild region of patagonia.

dylan: hi, i'm dylan dreyer, and we're about to embark on another "earth odyssey".we head to south america and visit one of the largest waterways in the world, the orinoco river. we'll get a closer look at this unusual fish and see why it's wise to have all these eyes. then, find out how it felt to be the first explorers to discover the wildest animals from this foreign land. [music]

dylan: hi, i'm dylan dreyer and we're about to embark on another "earth odyssey." one of india's wildest regions: the thar desert. home to all types of exotic animals. some found nowhere else on earth. we'll meet some city slicking macaques and find out what happens when they go back to the wild. and later, traveling's never a pain when you're a crane, even if the journey is steeper than it looks. [music]

you can use the #my today plaza and help celebrate our friend dylan dreyer returning to the team thisin with her. it will be fun to see how she's dog. ollie, calvin and brian. can't wait. >> want to get to the headlines. today's news and the overnight headlines on coronavirus. nbc news learned that they have more than a dozen candidates as part of what they're calling operation warp speed. it comes as president trump says the experimental drug remdesivir can be used to treat the sickest patients. >> dozens of malls reopening this weekend in various states across the country. they'll have new guideline as of this morning, there are more than 1.1 million cases in the u.s. with nearly 65,000 deaths. >> we have it all covered for you this morning starting with blayne alexander who is outside a mall in atlanta getting ready to reopen. blayne, good morning. >> reporter: well, peter, good morning to you. this really is a weekend of firsts for so many states that are lifting the restrictions. here in the state of georgia, the shelter in place order has officially expired so this mall is going

. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with peter alexander, kristen welker and dylan dreyer. >>> welcome to "today" and thank you so much for joining us on this saturday morning. it is a difficult start to the weekend. of course, we're waking up after those protests overnight in cities all across the country. demonstrators out in the wake of the death of george floyd and, of course, peter, you were at the white house as some of the tensions were escalating here in d.c. >> yeah. that violence, that chaos reverberating across the country. i was in the white house, the secret service locking down the building, the campus for more than 90 minutes. we were inside. but outside you could hear the echoes of the protesters clashing with police and secret service officers. we'll have more on that this morning as well. >> we certainly will. that's the top story. the growing unrest in dozens of cities around the country as protesters took to the streets enraged by the death of george floyd in minneapolis. >> it happened in new york, atlanta, los angeles, as well as many smaller ones like

. >>> from nbc news this is "today" with peter alexander, kristen welker and dylan dreyer. >> welcomeo "today". thank you for joining us on this saturday morning. it is the weekend, whatever that means anymore. we are glad to have our friend dylan back of course as well. >> the days are all blending together these days. this is only your second weekend back but we are putting you to work. last weekend you were tracking the cold weather. this weekend it is a tropical system off the coast of florida. what can you tell us about it? >> i know. the hurricane season doesn't start until june 1st and here we are talking about what could be the first named storm. it would become arthur, which is possible in the next possibly 24 to 48 hours, 80% chance of that happening. we will break down the details and what it means for the southeastern parts of the u.s. in a bit. >> we look forward to that. good to see you again. first though let's get to all of the breaking news we have overnight on the coronavirus. >>> by the end of this weekend 48 states will have partially reopened in some form. mass ch

. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with peter alexander, kristen welker and dylan dreyer. >>> welcome to "today." we thank you for joining us on this saturday morning. as long as we're speaking about elvis, i think the alexander family weekend will feel like jailhouse rock where everybody stays home and maybe we try to entertain one another. >> that's one way to put it. my husband said let's barbecue. that's what we've been doing for the past four saturdays. good times. dylan, do you have any big plans? >> our new thing is just finding a patch of grass and having a picnic. i think we'll be doing that again too. not much else to do. >> a good option for a lot of folks this weekend. we'll have the memorial day forecast for you in a moment. first, we want to get to the latest on the coronavirus. yet another sign of these times. hertz filed for bankruptcy protection overnight. the rental car giant saying this pandemic dealt it a rapid, sudden and dramatic blow. >> the justice department is warning the mayor of los angeles and the governor of illinois about their extended stay-