Episode description

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 ‘assassins of the sea’: cone snails. Mande Holford explains how these extraordinary creatures can both kill and cure us.

And finally, we hear how a lioness chose to share her most intimate moments of life and death with African wildlife expert, Gareth Patterson.

Thank you for listening to another series of the BBC Earth podcast.

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