Archive for 2014
Nov 2014: The Wiltschkos and magnetic navigation in birds
A sensory ecology bonanza! Professor Wolfgang and Roswita Wiltschko, the husband and wife team who were the first to show that birds have a magnetic sense and use the earth’s magnetic field to orientate, talk about their Scientific Spark. Tanya Kleinhappel.
Oct 2014: Ben Sheldon, rock goby camouflage, and lizard imitation
Professor Ben Sheldon, who is the Luc Hoffman Chair of field ornithology and director of the Edward Grey Institute of field ornithology at the University of Oxford tells me what sparked his interest in birds and gives advice to young scientists. Alice.
Sept 2014: Leigh Simmons, stickleback personality, and caterpillars with hats
Dieter Hochuli from the University of Sydney, tells me what life’s like for a caterpillar, and how one has evolved a cool mechanism to avoid being attacked. I find out how personality might influence your decision making, if you’re a stickleback. And.
Aug 2014: Marlene Zuk, hummingbird taste perception, and magpie thieves
In this 1st birthday episode, I find out about some more avian criminals of the animal kingdom. I learn that most birds can’t taste sugar, but hummingbirds can, and I learn how. And in the Scientific Spark, I talk to Marlene Zuk, Professor of behavioural.
July 2014: Isabella Rossellini and mammas, spider mimicry, and secret communication in horses
This month over 1000 scientists flocked to New York’s Hunter College to attend the meeting of the International Society for Behavioural Ecology or ISBE. In the coming months I will be featuring interviews from researchers who attended the meeting, and.
June 2014: Robert Hinde, and an antipredator defence special
Professor Robert Hinde, the Emeritus Royal Society Research Professor of Zoology at the University of Cambridge is this month's Scientific Spark. Robert talks about the early days of ornithology research just after the war, and his memories of David.
May 2014: Neil Metcalfe, ZSL's hihi, and cuckoo - hawk mimicry
This month, the masters of disguise: I find out about an animal
that can mimic two different species, for two entirely different reasons. I learn
about a colourful bird from New Zealand called the Hihi, who’s very good at eating its requisite
7 portions.
April 2014: David Sherry and marsh tits, zebra stripes, and Arabian babblers
David Sherry from the Western University in Canada tells me what inspired him to study the hoarding behavior of birds, in the Scientific Spark. Oded Keynan explains the benefits to having offspring stick around for an extended period of time. I also.
March 2014: Temple Grandin, autism, weaver birds, and tadpole social learning
The social lives of animals is this month's theme. I talk to Damien Farine from the Edward Grey Institute at Oxford University, who tells me how weaver birds decide how many house mates they want to live with. I discover how being hungry can affect how.
Feb 2014: Kirsty MacLeod and meerkats, birds and airplanes, and New Zealand conservation with James Russell
Meerkats may
look cute and cuddly, but this month, Kirsty MacLeod from Cambridge University
tells me that for some, life isn’t as picture perfect as it seems. I find out
about the US Department of Agriculture’s latest research on the quest for safer
skies..
Jan 2014: Lesley Morrell, prairie dogs, and stinky parrots
This month, I speak to Milla Mihailova from Deakin University in Australia, who tells me about parrots with a particularly pungent stench. I get up close and personal with some black tailed prairie dogs, to find out why they can’t help following the.
