Pulling Power

More from BBC Earth Podcast All episodes →

1. 

   S5 · E9 · 29 Nov 2022 · 30 min

   Individuals

   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…

2. 

   S5 · E8 · 22 Nov 2022 · 36 min

   Threat

   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…

3. 

   S5 · E7 · 15 Nov 2022 · 28 min

   Reflections

   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…

4. 

   S5 · E6 · 8 Nov 2022 · 40 min

   Defenders of the Earth

   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…

5. 

   S5 · E5 · 1 Nov 2022 · 33 min

   Whose Story?

   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…

6. 

   S5 · E3 · 17 Oct 2022 · 36 min

   Death

   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.…

7. 

   S5 · E2 · 10 Oct 2022 · 31 min

   Superpowers

   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…

8. 

   S5 · E1 · 3 Oct 2022 · 35 min

   Safari

   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…

9. 

   S5 · 26 Sep 2022 · 2 min

   Series trailer

   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…

10. 

    S4 · E12 · 13 Apr 2021 · 33 min

    Finding what doesn't want to be found

    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…