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  • Why Societies Collapse? – Jared Diamond (2003)

    Why Societies Collapse? – Jared Diamond (2003)

    February 28, 2012 at 1:22 pm / Human Nature, Video

    Jared Diamond examines how societies collapse in a five-point framework: [1] Impact on environment, [2] Climate change, [3] Relations with friendly neighbors, [4] Relations with unfriendly neighbors, [5] Perception and resolution of environmental problems. Diamond is the author of  a Pulitzer prize winner book Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, published in 1997. He seeks to explain Eurasian hegemony throughout history. Using evidence from ecology, archaeology, genetics, linguistics, and distinct historical case studies, he argues that the differences in social structure and technology among human societies do […]

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  • The Botany of Desire – Michael Pollan – PBS (2009)

    The Botany of Desire – Michael Pollan – PBS (2009)

    February 15, 2012 at 10:40 pm / Evolution, Human Nature, PBS Nature, Video

    Domestication is a defining feature of recent human evolution. In animals first trait selected by humans was behavior. In plants harvestability through selection of non-shattering seeds was the first trait of domestication. Plant domestication paved the way to agriculture which enabled highly specialized sedentary human societies. Domesticated plants differ from their wild ancestors in distinct ways that can be categorized under a term called as the domestication syndrome. Domestication syndrome includes reduced shattering of seeds (seeds don’t separate from the […]

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  • Ants – Nature’s Secret Power (2006)

    Ants – Nature’s Secret Power (2006)

    January 29, 2012 at 11:23 am / Ecological Documentaries, Evolution, Natural history, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

    Ants, bees and wasps make up only 3 percent of animal diversity yet they may constitute up to 50 percent of the total animal biomass in land habitats. Bert Hölldobler is a leading entomologist (scientist who studies insects). He collaborated with ant biologist E.O. Wilson and developed the field of Sociobiology. The documentary does an excellent job introducing us observations coming from both natural and laboratory setting. First observation comes from the European red wood ants (Formica polyctena). These ants […]

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  • Nesting Nightjar in Camouflage

    Nesting Nightjar in Camouflage

    January 16, 2012 at 11:25 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Natural history, Short Observations, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

    This is an excellent footage capturing the behavior of a ground nesting nightjar. These birds are night-flying aerial insectivores active during dusk and dawn. It is almost impossible to see them during the day because of their camouflage. Nightjars are also known as goatsuckers which has no biological basis. If an intruder comes dangerously close to the nest, adults perform a well-known “broken wing” display. It is an excellent visual distraction. The bird will easily disappear soon after the intruder is at a […]

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  • Red wasp hunting grasshopper.

    Red wasp hunting grasshopper.

    January 16, 2012 at 10:43 pm / NatureDocumentaries.org, Short Observations, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

    These sequences were captured on May 14th 2010 in Athens, GA, USA. Young grasshopper nymphs (Romalea microptera) all emerged together as a brood were hanging out on a plant (Galium spp.). There were 17 of them. Red wasp (Polistes carolina) began hovering over for a couple of minutes and attacked one of them. The wasp began eating by chewing the abdomen first and later flew over to the top of a kudzu vine (Pueraria montana) to eat the rest. Although […]

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  • Daytime Hunting of Barred Owl (Strix varia)

    Daytime Hunting of Barred Owl (Strix varia)

    January 16, 2012 at 10:42 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Evolution, NatureDocumentaries.org, Short Observations, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

    On April 16th 2011, a barred owl glided over my head while I was filming something else along the Orange Trail of the State Botanical Garden of Georgia in Athens, GA. Hunting during daytime indicates that this individual has extra mouths to feed. You can hear the altruistic alarm calls of other nervous birds and rodents. The high pitched alarm call (of a chipmunk?) is particularly audible immediately before each move of the owl. I deliberately kept the scenes long […]

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