BBC Earth Podcast

Latest Episodes:

A wombat ate my homework Feb 02, 2021

Show notes

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 road to recovery came in the unexpected form of a mischievous Australian magpie.

Finally, we’ll burrow into the world of wombats and meet a woman who has journeyed through much of life’s ups and downs with these four-legged creatures at her side.

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

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Saving a species through sound Jan 26, 2021

Show notes

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 discovery with a woman who has become known on the tiny island of Guam in Micronesia as the ‘Manta Mum’. Julie Hartup is a microbiologist who has spent over a decade studying the enigmatic Manta Rays. She explains how a simple hypothesis led to a beautiful discovery.

Finally, we’ll speak to marine biologist Dr Edith Widder who has spent most of her career trying to communicate with the animals that live in our oceans.

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.

Fire ants floating for survival Jan 19, 2021

Show notes

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 the Antarctic to breed. For them, sticking together is crucial for surviving such harsh conditions.

Finally, we'll hear about slime mould. To prevent starving, genetically different strains of slime mould come together. But within this system exist loners. What can they teach us about the evolution of social behaviours?

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.

Looking for mushrooms, finding happiness Jan 12, 2021

Show notes

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 Planet, managed to document the life of a creature measuring the size of an apostrophe: the fig wasp.

Finally we go to Ethiopia, where small pockets of forest surrounding churches continue to thrive.

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.

Baby iguanas born inside a volcano Jan 05, 2021

Show notes

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 affair with the natural world.

The birder and science communicator explains how you don’t have to travel as far as you might think to get up close to nature.

Connections with the world around us can be found in even the most trying of times.

Elisabeth Bailey’s mystery illness led to an unlikely companionship with a forest snail. She shares some surprising facts about these creatures, including the sound of a wild snail eating.

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 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.

My best friend was an octopus Dec 19, 2019

Show notes

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. Hear from legendary composer, Hans Zimmer, as he describes the process of composing for natural history documentaries - such as Seven Worlds, One Planet - and how these thought provoking series differs from his work on iconic, blockbuster movie soundtracks. In this episode we also tell the story of Bernie Krause who is a "soundscape ecologist", responsible for tracking and recording the sounds of our planet which are rapidly vanishing.

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 story that tugged your heart strings…

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcearth/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bbcearth/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/bbcearth

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This river is legally a “person” Dec 12, 2019

Show notes

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 much. This week we reveal stories of discovery from tiny tales of moss to the unexplored and vast ocean floor. We listen to James, a rhino keeper who talks about the plight of a species which is "functionally extinct": the Northern White Rhino. There are only two left in the world but conservation scientists have hope; using Southern White Rhinos as surrogates, the scientists are taking on a pioneering mission to bring the species to term.

Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know what you thought of this week's episode on social media:

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Frozen squirrels and the human brain Dec 05, 2019

Show notes

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 who has studied fireflies her entire life and tells us about the beautiful display these creatures put on, when trying to attract a mate. We speak to a man who describes nature’s resurgence following the catastrophic nuclear disaster in Chernobyl and get to grips with some surprising silver linings to a human catastrophe.

Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know what you thought of this week's episode on social media:

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Twitter: https://twitter.com/bbcearth

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The singing sand dunes of the Sahara Nov 28, 2019

Show notes

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 1930s, when the Tasmanian Tiger was confirmed “extinct”. Unlike the tiger you have pictured in your imagination, this one was more dog-like, with stripes across its back and a tail not dissimilar to that of a kangaroo. There have supposedly been 8 sightings of this creature in the last 3 years, suggesting science should not give up on it just yet…

Should these stories leave you perplexed, just wait until you hear from Doug Larson who was the first to discover an ancient forest, undisturbed since deglaciation. These 700 year-old trees had never been found by humans until Doug came along.. Mind. Blown.

Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know what you thought of this week's episode on social media:

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Twitter: https://twitter.com/bbcearth

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The music that makes camels cry Nov 21, 2019

Show notes

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 flightless birds that resemble dinosaurs for Seven Worlds, One Planet and hear the magical music that helps camels through birth and makes them shed a tear or two.

Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know what you thought of this week's episode on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcearth/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bbcearth/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/bbcearth

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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