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A Stunning Artwork by the Japanese Puffer Fish – BBC Life

July 30, 2018 at 1:45 pm / Natural history, Short Observations, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

The evolutionary origins of nest building behavior in vertebrates are deep rooted and go all the way back to the fish. The behavior can be very complex with stunning results such as that of the Japanese puffer fish. When the behavior was documented for the first time by Japanese divers it created a big excitement among biologist. Here in this short observation the selective pressures on the male puffer fish exceeds those from predation and nest parasitism but purely sexual. […]

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Seed Dispersal by Dung Mimicry – Nature (2015)

July 20, 2018 at 3:47 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Evolution, Natural history, Short Observations, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

Plant-animal interactions have not always evolved to become mutualistic win-win strategies like birds dispersing seeds of palms while feeding on the fruits. Plants can be rather deceptive. They can hijact sensory vulnerabilities of animals. Secondary metabolites such as nicotine, caffeine, codeine can be rather addictive. Plant chemicals can also be used as deterrent. A sub-Saharan desert plant taily weed (Ochradenus baccatus) detonates a mustard bomb in the mouths of seed predators who dare to chew and destroy its seeds. Plant […]

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The Lost Forests of New England – Ray Asselin (2018)

July 14, 2018 at 8:33 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Natural history, Video

The documentary by filmmaker Ray Asselin highlights many values of oldgrowth forests and features forest ecologists including David Foster of Harvard Forest, Peter Dunwiddie of University of Washington, Tony D’Amato of University of Vermont, Tom Wessels of Antioch University of New England, David Orwig and Neil Pederson of Harvard Forest. Among these people Robert Leverett is a nature enthusiast who has spearheaded local expeditions to find the last bits of old-growth patches and gain recognition. Today old-growth forests occupy a […]

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A Copperhead Snake Taking Its First Breath – Copperhead Institute (2015)

July 12, 2018 at 8:25 pm / Natural history, Short Observations, Video

In this short observation you can see a juvenile copperhead individual taking its first breath filmed by The Copperhead Institute in South Carolina. Copperheads are ovoviviparous, that is babies are born alive. Eggs incubate inside the mother’s body instead of being oviposited like many other reptiles such as turtles. Copperheads mate in the spring. This results upto 18 offspring in late summer or fall. Snakes may seem as asocial however, prior to giving birth female copperheads may gather in certain […]

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A Bumblebee Mimic Robber Fly (Laphria macquarti) Hunting

June 28, 2018 at 4:55 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Natural history, NatureDocumentaries.org, Short Observations, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

A Bumblebee Mimic Robber Fly (Laphria macquarti) hunting. June 26th 2018, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, MD. Robber flies (Asilidae) are predatory insects. Adult forms of both sexes launch grasping aerial attacks on other insects, including stinging insects such as bees and wasps. For this reason they are also known as ‘bee catchers’. Foraging occurs in sunny habitats. They are seldom found in deep woods where it is dark. Here in this observation, the habitat is an exposed sunny edge […]

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The Incredible Oyster Reef – Chesapeake Bay Foundation (2017)

June 28, 2018 at 4:01 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Natural history, Wildlife Documentaries

Poor water quality, disease, and harvesting nearly put an end to native oyster (Crassostrea virginica) in Chesapeake Bay. Restoration of the bay to pre-Columbian levels is challenging. The film commissioned by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation explores the ecology of this keystone species providing services to maintain a healthy biological community. A single oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water in the Chesapeake Bay in a single day. Oysters filter nutrient and suspended sediment from the water column. Moreover, […]

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The Ecology of Fear – KQED/QUEST (2014)

May 28, 2018 at 5:32 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Natural history, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

The return of wolves had a profound impact on vast wilderness areas in North America. Biologist Aaron Wirsing explores why wolves and other top predators are necessary for maintenance of diversity in ecosystems. Using a “deer-cam” Wirsing is quantifying some of the behavioral relationships between predator and prey. Wildlife cameras provide unprecedented opportunities to view social lives of many wild animals including mountain lions. The gray wolf is one of the world’s most adaptable and widely distributed mammals, ranging over […]

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An Agouti Eating Pulp of the Dipteryx panamanensis Seed Coat

April 14, 2018 at 2:27 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Natural history, NatureDocumentaries.org, Short Observations, Video

Agoutis are rodents exclusive to forested and wooded lands of the American tropics. Their habitats include rainforests and savannas. Some species have even adapted to live in cultivated fields. They are active during daytime. At night they hide in hollow tree trunks or in burrows among roots. Here in this short observation recorded at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) in Barro Colorado Island, Panama you can see an agouti feeding on the outer pulp of the one of the […]

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Priceless Blaschka Glass Models | Natural History Museum (2012)

March 26, 2018 at 7:24 am / Natural history, Video

The delicate glass artworks of sea creatures crafted by father-and-son team Leopold and Rudolph Blaschka were made between 1866 to 1889. Glassmakers Leopold Blaschka (1822-1895) and his son Rudolph Blaschka (1857-1939), provide a rich insight into the scientific appetite of the late Victorians in many disciplines of biology including botany as well as invertebrate zoology. Together they solved a rather difficult display obstacle faced by many natural history museums. Many botanical and zoological specimens loose their original qualities when preserved […]

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Harvard Restores the Famed Collection of Blaschka Glass Plant Models – Ned Brown (2016)

March 25, 2018 at 9:18 pm / Natural history, Video

Glassmakers Leopold Blaschka (1822-1895) and his son Rudolph Blaschka (1857-1939), provide a rich insight into the scientific appetite of the late Victorians in many disciplines of biology including botany as well as invertebrate zoology. Together they solved a rather difficult display obstacle faced by many natural history museums. Many botanical and zoological specimens loose their original qualities when preserved in herbariums and collection facilities. For outreach purposes especially in museums displays of such specimens are not appealing to their visitors. […]

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First Footage of Deep-sea Angler Fish Mating – Kirsten & Joachim Jakobsen / Science (2018)

March 22, 2018 at 1:44 pm / Evolution, Natural history, Short Observations, Video

A video recording of a female anglerfish attached to her mate created a wave of excitement among marine biologists. Anglerfish have a quite striking look for most people. This deep-sea adapted fish is well known by the public with their scary huge teeth and a light emitting lure. There are about 160 species of anglerfish worldwide. Most of what we know about these fishes have almost invariably came from dead specimens. Nobody has ever observed these animals in their natural […]

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How Copper Engravings are Done – Eric Meier (2009)

March 9, 2018 at 2:27 pm / Natural history, Technical Notes, Video

Natural History largely depended on artists before the invention of photography. Some of the most successful scientific expeditions such as the Voyage of the Endeavor by Captain James Cook had artists on board that would sketch and draw. These drawings would later be masterfully retraced onto copper plates for reproduction in a dedicated studio that required a lot of resources beyond the capacity of a ship. The process was extremely labor intensive and slow but the results were impressive for […]

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Hungry Polar Bear Ambushes Seal | The Hunt | BBC Earth (2017)

March 9, 2018 at 10:55 am / BBC documentaries, Ecological Documentaries, Evolution, Natural history, Short Observations, Video

Being a predator is very difficult. The “one in twenty” success rate is almost a universal rule of thumb to describe predator hunting efficiency. Prey defines the terms of engagement. Predator has to play catch up and therefore has to be stronger, faster more agile and perhaps more clever in planning a successful attack. We know this relationship from studies that have exquisitely measured predator-prey related physical parameters in Cheetahs and Lions hunting Impalas and Zebras. Connections between apex predators […]

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David Attenborough: Joseph Banks – Endeavor / Philip Stevens (2014)

March 9, 2018 at 9:41 am / Ecological Documentaries, Evolution, Natural history, Video

The year 2018 marks the 250th anniversary of the legendary first voyage of Captain James Cook on board the collier frigate ship Endeavor. The voyage was a first in that science didn’t loose against the call of the adventure like many others did. The Endeavor established the fundamentals of scientific research on a vessel and set the pace for many other long distance expeditions including the voyage Darwin took on board the Beagle. Endeavor earned its place in history as […]

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Anatomy of a Hunt: Speed, Strategy and Survival / Nature (2018)

March 7, 2018 at 1:00 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Evolution, Natural history, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

As predators chase down their prey on the open savanna it’s a race for survival. Lions and cheetahs are some of the most athletic animals on the planet but strength and speed aren’t everything. By precisely measuring the movements of predators and prey during hunts, researchers have now modeled the optimum strategy of both hunter and hunted, unpacking the subtle details of this evolutionary arms race. During a typical run, a Cheetah can leap 25 feet on a single stride […]

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