Nature

This archive contains nature video documentaries

Chris Packham's Animal Einsteins episode 5

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 5

Nature / 7 minutes of reading / / By

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 5: In this episode Chris Packham reveals the intelligent cons and deceitful behaviour that animal Einsteins use to survive and prosper in the game of life – from disguising themselves to outwit predators, and kidnapping babies to save their own offspring, to reading our body language to pull off a successful robbery. We start with the ultimate master of disguise – the octopus. Prof Roger Hanlon describes how octopus intelligence rivals that of vertebrates, with extraordinarily fast and complex decision-making that transforms their appearance faster than the blink of an eye. If camouflage doesn’t fool […]

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Chris Packham's Animal Einsteins episode 4

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 4

Nature / 4 minutes of reading / / By

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 4: Chris Packham looks at social intelligence in the animal kingdom and finds out why it is that, for animals, being together means being clever. He looks at how lions hunt in teams and each hold a very specific position, how vampire bats build trust and donor networks through grooming, and how wild wolves first became domesticated and transformed into man’s best friend.       Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 2 is a television series presented by Chris Packham that explores the intelligence and problem-solving abilities of various animal species. The series consists of

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Wild Isles episode 2 - Woodland

Wild Isles episode 2 – Woodland

Nature / 4 minutes of reading / / By

Wild Isles episode 2 – Woodland – Sir David Attenborough explores the incredible diversity of Britain’s woodlands, taking us on a seasonal journey through our forests, and revealing a host of spectacular animals and the hidden dramas that rule their lives. In an ancient pine tree in the Cairngorms, two eagle chicks are on the verge of fledging their gargantuan nest. In winter in the Forest of Dean, the reintroduction of wild boar has given the robin a lifeline. As they root through the thick snow, the boar unearth the worms with their snouts, which the robins otherwise couldn’t find.

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Chris Packham's Animal Einsteins episode 3

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 3

Nature / 4 minutes of reading / / By

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 3: Finding somewhere to keep safe is one of the biggest challenges an animal faces. But some animals don’t have to find a safe place – they build one. In this episode, Chris reveals some of the best building animals in the world – a group that is incredibly varied. Accomplished animal architects include everything from beavers to bees and prairie dogs to bowerbirds. They don’t only build homes, however – they also make structures to raise their young, store food, catch prey and impress mates. But what can be learnt from their building brilliance?

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Chris Packham's Animal Einsteins episode 2

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 2

Nature / 4 minutes of reading / / By

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 2: In this episode, Chris Packham reveals some of the cleverest animal communicators on the planet. For decades, people have longed to emulate Dr Doolittle and be able to understand what animals are communicating to one another. But their methods often go far beyond the capabilities of our human senses. Now, thanks to dedicated researchers, new science and cutting-edge technology, we’re being given a glimpse into the ingenious ways that animals get their message across – that dolphins have individual names for each other, that cuttlefish use covert signals, and that humans can understand apes

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Chris Packham's Animal Einsteins episode 1

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 1

Nature / 3 minutes of reading / / By

Chris Packham’s Animal Einsteins episode 1: In this episode, Chris Packham investigates how nature’s masterminds measure up against human brain power. Looking at a variety of animals, such as ravens, crows, bees and starlings, Chris explores how different animals can use tools, solve complex puzzles, recognise themselves in mirrors and even reason like humans.     Animals have to be smart to survive. Chris Packham reveals the natural world’s surprising brainboxes and uncovers the clever strategies that give certain species the upper hand. If you want to see bees playing football or cuttlefish dreaming, look no further. Chris Packham’s new

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Wild Isles episode 1 - Our Precious Isles

Wild Isles episode 1 – Our Precious Isles

Nature / 4 minutes of reading / / By

Wild Isles episode 1 – Our Precious Isles: Sir David Attenborough celebrates the rich variety of habitats that exist on our doorstep, proving that wildlife in the British Isles is every bit as dramatic and spectacular as anywhere else on the planet. This episode looks at the wildlife that exists in our unique landscapes, from the micro world of bumblebees to the high-speed life of the kingfisher. Filmed in extraordinary detail, killer whales hunt for seals in our seas, golden eagles scavenge in snowy Scottish mountains, sinister woodland plants take pollinating insects hostage, and puffins are chased by greedy gulls

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Secrets of the Jurassic Dinosaurs episode 1

Secrets of the Jurassic Dinosaurs episode 1

Science, Nature / 4 minutes of reading / / By

Secrets of the Jurassic Dinosaurs episode 1: Liz Bonnin joins an international team of palaeontologists in the remote badlands of Wyoming as they investigate a mysterious dinosaur graveyard. Packed with over a dozen skeletons, including predators such as the fearsome Allosaurus and iconic giants like Diplodocus, as well as fossilised plants and footprints, the site is a treasure trove that is helping to change the way we think about the Jurassic – the golden age of dinosaurs. The astonishing evidence also helps the team to answer why so many dinosaurs came here and what killed them in such great numbers

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Islands of Evolution episode 3 - Madeira

Islands of Evolution episode 3 – Madeira

Nature, Science / 3 minutes of reading / / By

Islands of Evolution episode 3 – Madeira: In the final episode, Richard Fortey travels to Madeira to examine what happens to a volcanic island as it nears the end of its life cycle and starts sinking back into the sea. Here, in the island’s laurisilva forest, he examines the remains of an ancient forest that once carpeted all of Europe, finds island lizards that live to be four times older than their mainland counterparts, and meets a huge wolf spider. With the help of local divers, he also discovers an unexpectedly rich marine habitat populated by whales, dolphins and unusual

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Islands of Evolution episode 2 - Madagascar

Islands of Evolution episode 2 – Madagascar

Science, Nature / 3 minutes of reading / / By

Islands of Evolution episode 2 – Madagascar: Professor Richard Fortey travels to the rainforests of Madagascar – an ancient island that has spawned some of the most extraordinary groups of plants and animals anywhere in the world. From beautiful Indri lemurs, toxic frogs, and the cat-like giant mongoose called the fossa, to evolutionary oddities like the giraffe-necked weevil and the otherworldly aye-aye, he uncovers the secrets of the evolutionary niche – examining how, given millions of years, animals and plants can adapt to fill almost any opportunity they find.       Three-part series in which Professor Richard Fortey investigates

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Islands of Evolution episode 1 - Hawaii

Islands of Evolution episode 1 – Hawaii

Science, Nature / 4 minutes of reading / / By

Islands of Evolution episode 1 – Hawaii: Richard Fortey investigates why islands are laboratories of evolution. On Hawaii he finds honeycreeper birds, carnivorous caterpillars and silversword plants. In the first episode, Fortey is on Hawaii to investigate how life colonises a newly born island. According to some estimates, Hawaii has been successfully colonised by only one new species every 35,000 years due to its remote location – yet the Hawaiian Islands teem with a great diversity of life. In search of the evolutionary secrets of how one species becomes many, Fortey encounters beautiful honeycreeper birds whose evolution rivals that of

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Secret Mind of Slime

Secret Mind of Slime

Nature / 4 minutes of reading / / By

Secret Mind of Slime: Meet slime molds: the brainless blobs that can learn, make decisions, and navigate mazes. Who says you need brains to be smart? Extremely primitive life-forms called slime molds can navigate mazes, choose between foods, and create efficient networks—no brain required. New research on these organisms, which are neither plant nor animal, could help reveal the fundamental rules underlying all decision making.       Slime mold is an informal name given to several kinds of unrelated eukaryotic organisms with a life cycle that includes a free-living single-celled stage and the formation of spores. Spores are often

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