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 successfully track down and study the elusive creature as it moves quietly through the forest. Gravedigger turned ecologist Dan Flew leads Rutendo and Sebastian through Bristol’s Arnos Vale Cemetery in the dead of night, for a close and thrilling encounter with some of the UK’s rarest bats. We venture to the world’s most northerly permanently inhabited place, Svalbard, in the Arctic Circle, where TikToker Cecilia Blomdahl reveals the magical secrets of this isolated yet beautiful landscape, on a trip out on her boat with her dog Grim. And we hear rare recordings of the Northern White Rhino, sadly now extinct in the wild, a recently departed ghost of a more biodiverse world. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researcher was Seb Masters. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Renata Leite Pitman for the feature on the ghost dogs. Dan Flew for leading the bat walk in Bristol. Cecilia Blomdahl for her report from Svalbard. Martyn Stewart for providing the sounds of the Northern White Rhino. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 species. The research team explains how they’ll keep on target by doing a little light sequencing before their morning coffee. We fly high with one of nature’s most stunning visual displays of order, murmuration, learning from Professor Mario Pesendorfer how this magical movement comes together, and how birds move in perfect sync with no leader. And wildlife sound recordist Chris Watson – who has helped to create some of the BBC’s best-loved nature documentaries – takes us on a trip to Maasai Mara, where the annual rains bring a natural order to the migration patterns of wildebeest. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researcher was Seb Masters. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Caroline Howard, Liam Crowley and Mark Blaxter for the feature on the Darwin Tree of Life Project. Mario Pesendorfer for sharing his insights into murmurations. Chris Watson for providing the wildebeest soundscape. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 research. Deep in the Budongo Forest in Uganda, a team of researchers has been following a group of chimps for several years, and learning that they each have their own signature rhythm, expressed through drumming on the base of trees. What’s more, they can choose when to reveal their identities through their drumming, and when to keep them hidden. Frozen Planet II Producer Rachel Scott tells us about the rhythm of life in the Arctic, from the devastating effects of climate change, to a beautiful and unexpected sequence featuring polar bears dancing on ice. We close with the friendly tap-tapping sounds of the Great Spotted Woodpecker – who reveals much within its rhythm. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researcher was Seb Masters. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Kristina Bolinder for sharing her discovery that connected plants to the lunar cycle. Vesta Eluteri, Viola Komedova, Catherine Hobaiter and Mugisha Stephen for the feature on chimpanzee drumming. Rachel Scott from the BBC Natural History Unit. Chris Hails of wildechoes.org for providing the woodpecker soundscape. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 colony of many creatures, or just one? Richard Youell, a beekeeper and sound recordist, uses innovative techniques to record directly inside a beehive, an almost impossible task because of bees’ natural inclination to protect themselves from a microphone, by covering it in wax. After a lot of time and patience, he has managed to record the unique captivating sounds of the battle between potential queens, a behaviour known as piping, where there can be only one victor. And we hear from Australian rockers King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard, about their efforts to reduce the impact of their packed touring schedule on an increasingly fragile ecosystem. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researcher was Seb Masters. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Richard Youell for sharing his insight and sound recordings from within a beehive. Interviewee Lisa Kirkendale from the Western Australian Museum. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 threats, including an underwater close encounter with an enormous moray eel. He also shares his concerns – and hopes – for the future of a planet under its own kind of threat. In Nepal, poaching of rare animals is a growing problem, threatening the ecosystem itself. Kumar Paudel is tackling this issue head-on, using folk music and videos to educate rural communities on the consequences of poaching, and meeting face-to-face with convicted animal smugglers, to try to make lasting change against the odds. Lianna Zanette tells us about her work studying predator-induced fear, and how animals respond differently to threats depending on how they perceive their environment. And Oskar Glowacki introduces heartrending sounds recorded inside glaciers which are dying as a result of climate change. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researcher was Seb Masters. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Liana Zanette from The University of Western Ontario for sharing her research into the ecology of fear. Interviewee Stu Bennett aka Bad News Barrett. Kumar Paudel from Greenhood Nepal. Oskar Glowacki from the Polish Academy of Science for talking us through and letting us hear his glacier recordings. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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. Biologist Alison Sweeney explains how the fish is able to disappear almost completely, using a combination of mirror-like scales and cells that act like fibre-optic cables on its belly. Yossi Yovel invites us into his “bat lab for neuro-ecology” in Tel Aviv, where he carries out (harmless) experiments with helium to see how a changed atmosphere can dramatically impact a bat’s ability to navigate using echolocation. And we find ourselves immersed in the bizarre sound-world of the lyrebird, which can perfectly mimic everything from car alarms to the calls of up to 25 other species of bird. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researcher was Seb Masters. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Alison Sweeney from Yale University for sharing her research on hatchetfish. Yossi Yovel from Tel Aviv University for his interview about bat senses. Marc Anderson for supplying the lyrebird soundscape. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 herbivore is around. Grass can defend itself by releasing toxic metabolites and summoning the assistance of parasitic wasps that attack plant-eating caterpillars. We hear from prominent Brazilian climate activists Sônia Guajajara and Celia Xakriabá, both of whom believe that inidigenous women have a vital role to play in the fight to preserve Brazil’s vast biodiversity. Biologist and comedian Simon Watt argues that to protect the biodiversity of our planet we need to be less fixated on cute creatures which are “lucky enough to have a face”, and take more interest in Earth’s ugly animals. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researchers were Seb Masters and Dawood Quereshi. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Mike Kolomiets from Texas A&M University for sharing his research into grass. Simon Watt from the Ugly Animal Preservation Society. Alice Aedy for the report from Brazil and her interviewees Sônia Guajajara, Célia Xakriabá. Interviewee Carl Gerhardt from University of Missouri and Lang Elliot for the amphibious soundscape. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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, championing and inspiring future generations of Africans to pursue careers in nature. Storytelling might feel uniquely human, but it plays an important role in the animal world too, with animals learning certain behaviours by copying family members. Just as human language is passed down through generations, animals learn vocalisations by listening to individuals around them. So what happens when that species is dying out? Daniel Appleby, of the Difficult Bird Research Group atCanberra University, describes how the scarcity of the Regent Honeyeater means the bird is forgetting its own song. And when an artist uses mushrooms to generate music through a synthesiser, who is the composer – the musician or the fungi? Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researchers were Seb Masters and Dawood Quereshi. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Daniel Appleby from the Difficult Bird Research Centre at the Australian National University in Canberra. Paula Kahumbu from WildlifeDirect. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 dying reef is tragically quiet, devoid of the life which can no longer survive on it. However, conservationists have discovered a way to pull species back to these habitats with the ingenious use of underwater speakers. This sort of catfishing is used by a number of animals, including arachnids. Sebastian and Rutendo discuss one of nature’s more perilous powers of attraction with Kenyan entomologist, Dr Dino Martins. He describes the dramatic mating behaviour of the camel spider, an alluring species with incredible hunting skills. Humans might find the British dawn chorus a more soothing courtship ritual. But for the birds, it’s an intense competition. Sound recordist Gary Moore tells us why he thinks it’s one of the world’s greatest wildlife events. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researchers were Seb Masters and Dawood Quereshi. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer, the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton, and the Project Co-ordinator was Linda Barber. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to... Dino J. Martins from the Mpala Research Centre. Pauline Fleischmann from the University of Würzburg for her insights on ant behaviour. Gary Moore who recorded and spoke about the dawn chorus soundscape. Tim Lamont, Tammy Silva, Emma Weschke, Tim Gordon and Eric Parmentier who provided underwater audio recordings for the interview with Steve Simpson from the University of Bristol. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 than a billion organisms. Among them, the nematode worm – the most abundant organism on the planet. Wildlife pathologist Simon Spiro performs a post-mortem on an elderly cheetah from Whipsnade zoo, and takes us through ZSL’s archive of specimens from nearly 120 years of animal post-mortems. Samples such as worms from the gut of a European bison, or stones from the stomach of a llama, are used to help scientists learn more about the basic biology of each species. Rutendo and Sebastian are joined by TikTok star Mamadou whose animal fact videos have brought him more than 15 million followers. Rutendo and Mamadou bond over their shared belief that jaguars are disrespectful, and he leaves Sebastian with a disturbing story about Pelicans. Credits The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. The producers were Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researcher was Seb Masters The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to Simon Spiro from the Zoological Society of London. Soil ecologist Frank Ashwood. Jennifer Jerret from The Acoustic Atlas at Montana State University for providing the soundscape from Yellowstone National Park. Mamadou Ndiaye who can be found on TikTok under @mndiaye_97 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 trained to save lives. Their acute sense of smell means they can detect landmines, and sniff out illegal wildlife being trafficked in shipping containers. We drop in on their training at non-profit organisation, APOPO. Sebastian’s favourite superhero is Spiderman, whose spider-sense gives him advance warning of impending danger. This superpower is used every day by real spiders whose special leg hairs can sense vibrations. Web-building spiders use this superpower to build a mental map of the world around them by detecting and decoding the tiny vibrations created by anything that touches their web. Through a special program designed by experts at MIT, we hear a digital version of this experience, turning the web into a musical instrument with thousands of unique notes. Credits: The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh. The researcher was Seb Masters. The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer and the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton. Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews. The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon. Special thanks to: Isabelle Szott, Lily Shallom & Said Mshana from APOPO and producer Charles Kombe for the recordings. Science consultant Mike McHargue from Quantum Spin Studios. Markus Buehler from MIT for providing the spider web soundscape. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 ingenious use of an electric toothbrush, tempt a rather large specimen out of a city wall.   Their special guest is Eric Stonestreet, the Emmy award-winning actor best known for playing Cameron Tucker in the ABC mockumentary sitcom Modern Family. A huge nature-fan, Eric describes some of his favourite animal encounters. And finally, we hear how patience and stillness are key to noticing the amazing nature all around us, as sound recordist Melissa Pons shares some of her haunting recordings of wolves in Portugal. Credits The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton .  This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh.  The researchers were Seb Masters and Dawood Quereshi.  The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer, the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton, and the Project Co-ordinator was Linda Barber.  Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews.  The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon.  Special thanks to…  Interviewee Eric Stonestreet. Lucy Lapwing for her report from the Isle of Bute.   Field recordist Melissa Pons for the wolf soundscape. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 naturalists, stars of film and television, nature Instagrammers and more. Listen, laugh and learn – whether you’re a nature lover, nature curious or haven’t yet realised nature is for you, there’ll be a story here to captivate your ears. Credits The BBC Earth podcast is presented by Sebastian Echeverri and Rutendo Shackleton. This episode was produced by Rachel Byrne and Geoff Marsh.  The researchers were Seb Masters and Dawood Quereshi.  The Production Manager was Catherine Stringer, the Production Co-ordinator was Gemma Wootton, and the Project Co-ordinator was Linda Barber.  Podcast Theme Music was composed by Axel Kacoutié, with mixing and additional sound design by Peregrine Andrews.  The Associate Producer is Cristen Caine and the Executive Producer is Deborah Dudgeon.  Special thanks to... Simon Watt Mamadou Ndiaye Paula Kahumbu Tarun Nayar Lucy Lapwing Steve Simpson  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 the sounds that come from it. Magnus Robb explores what birdsong can tell us about the extraordinary migration routes of these animals. To end, we sit still to see the visible changes over time to our glaciers. Using past and present technology, Kieran Baxter brings to life some of the unprecedented declines in our natural world. Thank you for listening to another series of the BBC Earth podcast. As ever, we love hearing from you on social media, so do share with us your favourite episode so far or a story that amazed, surprised or moved you… Website: www.bbcearth.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/bbcearth/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/bbcearth/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbcearth  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 brink.  According to US Department of Agriculture researcher, Dr Samuel Ramsey, every discovery is built upon a discovery that came before it. Yet some of those discoveries can be found in the most unexpected of places. For Samuel, understanding his father’s health issues provided the key to discovering why honeybee populations are on the decrease. And to finish, we’re asking one of the biggest questions in paleontology: how did birds evolve from dinosaurs? To help us explore this topic, we’ve got the help of Jingmai O’Connor whose work in China has helped shed light on the distant link between the extinct dinosaur and ballooning bird populations. Thank you for listening to another series of the BBC Earth podcast. As ever, we love hearing from you on social media, so do share with us your favourite episode so far or a story that amazed, surprised or moved you… Website: www.bbcearth.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/bbcearth/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/bbcearth/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbcearth  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 demystification. Next we’re exploring whether animals can dance to a beat and, if so, why? To help us try and answer that, we hear from Henkjan Honing, professor of Music Cognition at the University of Amsterdam.  Finally, we turn our attention to Northern Australia’s great bowerbird. What can the males' elaborate constructions teach us about perspective? Thank you for listening to another series of the BBC Earth podcast. As ever, we love hearing from you on social media, so do share with us your favourite episode so far or a story that amazed, surprised or moved you… Website: www.bbcearth.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/bbcearth/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/bbcearth/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbcearth  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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. As ever, we love hearing from you on social media, so do share with us your favourite episode so far or a story that amazed, surprised or moved you… Website: www.bbcearth.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/bbcearth/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/bbcearth/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbcearth  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 to the bottom of the ocean, and discover how even in the most extreme environments fragments of life persist. What can this alien environment teach us about life’s limits and extraordinary capabilities? And finally we head upwards into the canopies of trees with ecologist Nalini Nadkarni. She invites us to to experience canopy life, and reflects upon what it can teach us about relationships and recovery. Thank you for listening to another series of the BBC Earth podcast. As ever, we love hearing from you on social media, so do share with us your favourite episode so far or a story that amazed, surprised or moved you… Website: www.bbcearth.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/bbcearth/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/bbcearth/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbcearth  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 the world of the rocks that ‘sing’. The Baka are one of the oldest hunter gatherer societies in the world. They’re physically and spiritually connected to the forests they inhabit. This connection runs so deep that they believe their top hunters have the ability to experience the world from another animal’s point of view. And in South Africa she’s known as the ‘frog lady’, but Dr Jeanne Tarrant didn’t always love them. Like many others, she grew up scared of frogs. Now, however, she works tirelessly to protect them, which includes dispelling some surprising myths that continue to put the lives of these amphibians at risk. Thank you for listening to another series of the BBC Earth podcast. As ever, we love hearing from you on social media, so do share with us your favourite episode so far or a story that amazed, surprised or moved you… Website: www.bbcearth.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/bbcearth/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/bbcearth/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbcearth  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 an island far away from anywhere else, right in the middle of the Atlantic. Ascension Island is an arid landscape. But it’s also home to a lush man-made tropical forest. What lessons can we learn from one of humanity’s largest ever landscaping projects? To finish, we’ll hear from journalist Judith D. Schwartz. She explains how human influence - even that thousands of years in the making - has and can be reversed.  Thank you for listening to another series of the BBC Earth podcast. As ever, we love hearing from you on social media, so do share with us your favourite episode so far or a story that amazed, surprised or moved you… To find out more about David Attenborough’s stunning natural world series, A Perfect Planet, visit the BBC Earth website: bbcearth.com Website: www.bbcearth.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/bbcearth/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/bbcearth/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbcearth Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.