The show takes a spooky turn as we go on a ghost hunt through the natural world. Sebastian shares his adventures finding fossils – the traces of animals that once lived, and Rutendo talks about her experiences in The Cradle of Humankind, the South African UNESCO World Heritage site containing early human fossils. Deep in the Peruvian Amazon there is a species of wild dog so rarely sighted it has become known as the ‘ghost dog’. We hear from Renata Leite Pitman, one of the few scientists to succe...
Dec 20, 2022•39 min•Ep 12•Transcript available on Metacast The difference between order and chaos can depend on your perspective. The systems and processes that drive the natural world might seem random in close-up, whether it’s an ant wandering around near its nest, or a wildebeest charging through the water. But if you zoom out, you can see how these small activities combine to form part of a bigger picture. The Darwin Tree Of Life project is an attempt to bring order to nature by sequencing the DNA of every living thing in the UK, a staggering 70,000...
Dec 13, 2022•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Sebastian is not afraid to admit that he lacks natural rhythm. But Rutendo thinks he’s too hard on himself – perhaps the world is just out of sync with him. Besides, every living thing is built upon natural rhythms, from our response to night and day, to the beating of our hearts. Kristina Bolinder leads us on an exploration of a plant with a very unusual habit: it only flowers under the light of the full moon. The reason why connects a century of lunar records with the latest in botanical resea...
Dec 06, 2022•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast In an age of individualism, sometimes we are more connected than we think. And the same is true for everything on the planet. Rutendo and Sebastian explore the question of how and why we define an individual, a colony, or a group, across the animal kingdom. Lisa Kirkendale was astounded when she came across the longest organism ever discovered, a siphonophore off the coast of Australia. Composed of several semi-independent but constantly connected parts known as zooids, could it be seen as a col...
Nov 29, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s a scary world out there, as we explore how everything on the planet – from humankind to glaciers – must be able to respond to threat in order to survive. Sebastian surprises Rutendo with a story of the time he lived in Japan and took up fencing, occasionally finding himself at the wrong end of a sword. WWE wrestler and commentator Stu Bennett, better known as Bad News Barrett, is used to feeling the pressure in the ring. But away from that controlled environment, he has faced less expected ...
Nov 22, 2022•36 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast Light and reflection are crucial across the animal kingdom, and sometimes they interact in strange and surprising ways. Rutendo tells Sebastian about the time she carried out a classic experiment, the mirror test, with lions, during her PhD. Some lions made friends with the mirrors, while others pursued less wholesome activities... The hatchet fish has evolved a fascinating means of hiding itself from predators, especially those searching out their prey with giant bioluminescent headlights. Biol...
Nov 15, 2022•28 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast Sebastian and Rutendo celebrate nature’s defenders in all their forms. They argue that vultures should get more credit for their vital role as scavengers. Their super-acidic stomachs kill off deadly bacteria, like anthrax, that accumulates onrotting carcasses. This prevents the spread of disease and recycles nutrients back into the environment. Molecular biologist Mike Kolomiets tells us that the fragrance of newly mown grass isactually a scream for help and a warning to nearby plants that a her...
Nov 08, 2022•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rutendo and Sebastian are looking at stories and whether it matters who is telling them. Paula Kahumbu is a renowned conservationist and film-maker in Kenya who wants to see more African stories told by Africans for Africans. “It's really important that Iam empowered to tell my own story. Not just that it's authentic, which therefore will resonate with the audiences ...but also it boosts my ability to have more impact out there.” Through her programme: ‘Wildlife Warriors’, Paula is training, cha...
Nov 01, 2022•33 min•Transcript available on Metacast We explore the invisible pulling powers of nature through the forces of smell, sound and gravity. In Greece, desert ants start their lives underground in total darkness. Void of landmarks and sun they initially learn to orient themselves using the Earth’s magnetic field. German scientist Dr Pauline Fleischman reveals how her team discovered the ant’s internal GPS. A healthy coral reef is a very noisy place, full of the snapping, rasping, scraping and croaking of various vocal species. But a dyin...
Oct 24, 2022•40 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast Rutendo and Sebastian explore death and its role in the natural world. For Sebastian, death is a permanent state, a complete end to a life. But for Rutendo and her family, death is just a temporary parting. Around the world burial customs differ, but throughout nature, death and decay provide sustenance to other life-forms. Sebastian explores the extraordinary diversity within the ground, with soil ecologist Frank Ashwood, who explains that a single teaspoon of healthy soil contains more ...
Oct 17, 2022•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rutendo and Sebastian get to indulge their passions for nature AND superheroes, as they look at real-life superpowers in nature. Rutendo explores how these superpowers inspire fictional worlds and heroes with Mike McHargue, a science advisor/world builder for film and television. Mike helps writers and film-makers integrate accurate and consistent science into their stories, and together he and Rutendo invent a brand new superhero. Rats seem unlikely superheroes but in Tanzania they’re being tra...
Oct 10, 2022•31 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast You don’t need to be on an African Savanna to enjoy a safari. Rutendo and Sebastian explore how to have a nature adventure wherever you are. On the isle of Bute in Scotland, Nature Instagrammer Lucy Lapwing takes us on an immersive walk through her local woodland. It’s a wonderfully damp, fresh day, and the forest is dripping with lichen and bright lime green moss as Lucy points out local birds and wildlife. Rutendo and Sebastian go in search of spiders in Bristol, and with the...
Oct 03, 2022•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast Each week the BBC Earth podcast brings you entertainment, humour, an abundance of amazing animal stories and unbelievable unheard sounds. Explore the world of animals with superpowers, deep dive into death, hear from heroes passionately protecting the planet and get expert insights into corners of the natural world you’ve never explored before. Hosted by zoologists Rutendo Shackleton and Sebastian Echeverri, each episode features special guests including the world’s most respected scientists and...
Sep 26, 2022•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast In the final episode of series 4, we’re digging into some of the more elusive corners of our planet. To begin, we’re on a bear hunt deep in the Bornean rainforest. Guiding us is Siew Te Wong, who is the world’s foremost authority on a bear we know very little about. The sun bear is the smallest bear in the world and, as Wong has discovered for himself, tracking them can draw up some unexpected discoveries. Next we’re turning our attention upwards, to the sky at night. Or, to be more precise, to ...
Apr 13, 2021•33 min•Ep 12•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, we’re delving into the topic of extinction. We'll be finding out about some of the animals who are critically endangered, meeting the people trying to rescue them, and exploring species who may be able to make miraculous comebacks. Perhaps one of the most endangered species is the vaquita, a small sea mammal with a population of less than 20. We hear from some extraordinary people weathering threats and tragedies in an attempt to bring these ‘pandas of the ocean’ back from the b...
Apr 06, 2021•32 min•Ep 11•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, we’re displaying the most impressive artists of the animal kingdom. From tiny visual masterpieces, to animals that can dance to a beat, we’re shining a spotlight on the art that can be found in nature. Deep in the Amazon rainforest, there’s a tiny structure that (if you’re able to spot it) catches your eye. The intricate silk henge is a mini masterpiece, and for some time nobody could say exactly what it was or why it existed. Phil Torres takes us on his journey of discovery and...
Mar 30, 2021•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast While nature is full of beauty and wonder, it also has a deadly side. In this episode, we're getting a brush with death and exploring how nature can be both a source of comfort and a source of danger. Prosanta Chakrabarty spends his time studying different species of fish in some of the world's most hostile spots. He leads us into a deep, dark cave in Madagascar where he and his team didn't just discover a new species, but also discovered a new illness. We’ll be introduced to the unlikely ‘assas...
Mar 23, 2021•32 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast We’re exploring the parts of our world that require us to look a little deeper. From the depths of our oceans to the canopies that grace our skylines, we’ll be venturing into unfamiliar pockets of nature with the people who have carved a life out of choosing to study the things that many of us can’t see. First up, we meet Matthew Doogue who finds solace in capturing small things. He tells us how photographing the tiniest creatures has helped him find a greater sense of happiness. We also travel ...
Mar 16, 2021•26 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast We’re exploring the boundary between our world and the world of myth, mysticism, and magic. We’ll discover how some of the customs and practices from our ancient ancestors continue to influence our relationship with the natural world today. To begin, we’re opening our ears to some of the sounds of the natural world and the inanimate objects that produce them. On a trip to Serengeti, Jahawi stumbled across rocks which, when hit by another type of rock, produced different sounds. He leads us into ...
Mar 14, 2021•27 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast There are few places on our planet that have not in some way been shaped by humans. We’re looking at how, for better or worse, we’ve made a mark on our world, and whether it’s possible to escape the influence of us. To begin, we travel to Aldabra - an idyllic coral atoll in the Indian ocean. It’s one of the most remote places in the world, home to giant tortoises and very little human intrusion. Yet even in this largely uninhabited spot, traces of humanity can be found. Next we’ll be exploring a...
Feb 09, 2021•28 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast We’re exploring the theme of recovery, delving into times when we’ve stepped in to help save our natural world, and looking at the moments when it’s come to our rescue too. We’ll be starting off in the sea off the West Coast of Africa where a crew member from the latest David Attenborough series, A Perfect Planet, will take us behind the scenes on an eye-opening rescue mission. We’ll then meet the Bloom family, whose lives were turned around following a life-changing accident. The ...
Feb 02, 2021•33 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s episode of the BBC Earth podcast we’ll be looking to solve some of the natural world’s mysteries. Starting off in North West Honduras, we’ll hear from ethnobiologist and sound artist Ben Mirin who set out to discover the voice of a previously voiceless animal. The exquisite spike-thumb frog is a critically endangered species. Recording its voice could help save this frog. The only problem is, nobody actually knows what it sounds like. We’ll also be taken on a personal journey of d...
Jan 26, 2021•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast We're exploring what the natural world can teach us about teamwork. We'll learn how in some of the most remote locations and harshest conditions, strength can come in numbers. In the Amazon rainforests in Northern Peru, tiny creatures have found an ingenious way to tackle the annual floods. With the help of a crew member from the landmark series, A Perfect Planet, we'll be floating alongside fire ants forming a living raft. Tens of thousands of penguins make the journey from the sea to a spot in...
Jan 19, 2021•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast We're journeying into hidden worlds, exploring nature that offers much more than what initially meets the eye. We travel to locations that continue to thrive against the odds. When Long Litt Woon's life drastically changed, she turned to the secretive world of mushrooms to manage her grief. She tells us how these visible fungi are just one tiny part of a vast and complex organism that lives beneath our feet. We'll hear how a crew member filming the latest David Attenborough series, A Perfect Pla...
Jan 12, 2021•27 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast We’re back with new discoveries and awe-inspiring moments, taking you to a world far beyond your own four walls. The wildlife photographer and adventurer Tui De Roy explores one of the most hostile spots on Earth: the mouth of a volcano on Fernandina Island. The inside of the volcano is a barren place, but surprising life exists - in the form of tiny iguanas. Jason Ward’s encounter with a Peregrine falcon from the window of his homeless shelter in the Bronx led towards a lasting love affai...
Jan 05, 2021•30 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast We've reached the end of Series 3! It's been a series of new discoveries, awe-inspiring moments, tear-jerkers and revelations. In the final episode of the series, we are telling stories about the senses. We begin by meeting Sy Montgomery, who built a bond with an eight limbed friend through touch. Octopi have the unique ability to taste what they are touching using the suction cups on their tentacles; some are more sensitive than others and it became clear to Sy that a friendship had been born. ...
Dec 19, 2019•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of the BBC Earth Podcast, we’re getting glimpses into brave new worlds, advancing into unfamiliar territories and breaking new ground. We’re pushing at the frontiers between us and the natural world. In New Zealand there is a river so integral to the history of the Maori people, it has just been granted "personhood". It has been a fight fought for 140 years but finally, this giver of life and symbol of rich history has the same legal rights as the human beings that love it so muc...
Dec 12, 2019•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast For the seventh episode of the BBC Earth Podcast, we’re bringing your stories about adaptation. Did you know, during its 8 month hibernation, the Arctic ground squirrel can survive with a core temperature of 3 degrees below freezing? Scientists have been studying this astounding little rodent’s long, cold sleep to understand whether its hibernation can help revolutionise understanding of our own brains. We also meet the ‘Lightning Bug Lady’ Lynn Faust ...
Dec 05, 2019•29 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast Welcome to another episode of the BBC Earth Podcast; the podcast that delves deep into nature’s great mysteries and surfaces the unknown. This week we’re telling stories of the unexpected, stories which seem too astounding to be true. Journey with us to the Sahara where the sand is known to sing; deep, bassy sounds that reverberate as the millions upon millions of grains fall down the dunes. From the unknown cause of these sounds to the unknown status of a species, let us take you back to the 19...
Nov 28, 2019•28 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast This week we are telling stories from the wilderness. Stories of scale, vast expanses, extreme conditions, little known corners of the planet and the sparsest environments. We begin in Alaska, with the tale of an unbreakable bond between a dogsled racer and her pack, who travel huge distances across rugged terrain. Diving deep to the ocean floor, we join Deep Sea Biologist, Diva Amon, to discover new species and understand the threats that lie beneath. Meet the camera operators who filmed flight...
Nov 21, 2019•30 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast 
