The Zoology Ramblings Podcast

• Episode 37: beaver economics, remembering Jane Goodall, nipple-skinned frog, water opossum, tuna in Cornwall, Exmoor pine martens, forgotten leopards & hopeful journalism

  Welcome to the thirty-seventh episode of the Zoology Ramblings Podcast! In this episode, Emma and Robi start with some news, with Robi talking about a farmer who's used beavers not only to stop flooding, but boost income on his farm. Emma offers a tribute to the wonderful Jane Goodall, looking back at her legacy. For his species of the week, Robi talks about the Vietnamese mossy frog and Emma discusses the Gollum-looking water opossum. Onto their local conservation stories, Robi talks about the impact of growing populations of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna off in Cornwall and Emma shares news of an exciting new pine marten release in Exmoor National Park. To end, Robi delves into the 'forgotten leopards' and Emma discusses the importance of hopeful journalism. Robi Watkinson is a Conservation Biologist and wildlife filmmaker specialising in the spatial and movement ecology of large carnivores, camera trapping survey methods, rewilding, metapopulation dynamics and conservation planning. He has an MSc in Conservation Biology from the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, and the Institute of Communities and Wildlife in Africa, University of Cape Town. He is based between Cape Town and London, and has strong interests in equitable and inclusive conservation, palaeontology and wildlife taxonomy and evolution!Emma Hodson is a Zoologist and wildlife content creator, currently working in the community and engagement team at Avon Wildlife Trust. Emma’s role as a Wildlife Champions Project Officer involves supporting and upskilling people to take action for nature in their local communities. Emma has experience in remote wildlife fieldwork, and has been part of Arctic fox, macaw and cetacean research teams in Iceland, Peru and Wales respectively. She has also been involved in animal care and rehabilitation work in Costa Rica and South Africa. Emma is particularly passionate about the interface between community engagement and wildlife monitoring, and enjoys running workshops and giving talks on topics including camera trapping, beaver ecology and rewilding. You can watch "Rewilding A Nation" for free on WaterBear by following this link: https://www.waterbear.com/watch/rewilding-a-nation . You can follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @zoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

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• Episode 36 (REWILDING DEEP DIVE): big gay beaver day, eDNA and sniffer dogs, Ethiopian wolves, antbed parrot moth & Scottish wildcat re-introduction

  Welcome to the thirty-sixth episode of the Zoology Ramblings Podcast! In this episode, Emma and Robi talk about their recent meet up at the Ealing Beaver Project for a Big Gay Beaver Day. Robi also shares some exciting news of eDNA and sniffer dogs rediscovering lost Sumatran rhinos. Emma then talks about the Ethiopian wolves for her species of the week, including an exciting new discovery of them feeding on nectar. Robi then talks about the ingeniously adapted antbed parrot moth that lives in temperature-regulated termite mounds. Emma and Robi end by delving into Scottish wildcats and their suitability for reintroduction across the UK. Robi Watkinson is a Conservation Biologist and wildlife filmmaker specialising in the spatial and movement ecology of large carnivores, camera trapping survey methods, rewilding, metapopulation dynamics and conservation planning. He has an MSc in Conservation Biology from the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, and the Institute of Communities and Wildlife in Africa, University of Cape Town. He is based between Cape Town and London, and has strong interests in equitable and inclusive conservation, palaeontology and wildlife taxonomy and evolution!Emma Hodson is a Zoologist and wildlife content creator, currently working in the community and engagement team at Avon Wildlife Trust. Emma’s role as a Wildlife Champions Project Officer involves supporting and upskilling people to take action for nature in their local communities. Emma has experience in remote wildlife fieldwork, and has been part of Arctic fox, macaw and cetacean research teams in Iceland, Peru and Wales respectively. She has also been involved in animal care and rehabilitation work in Costa Rica and South Africa. Emma is particularly passionate about the interface between community engagement and wildlife monitoring, and enjoys running workshops and giving talks on topics including camera trapping, beaver ecology and rewilding. You can watch "Rewilding A Nation" for free on WaterBear by following this link: https://www.waterbear.com/watch/rewilding-a-nation . You can follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @zoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

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• Episode 35: reviewing Attenborough's Oceans film, Aesculapian snakes, proboscis bats, ladybird swarms, dholes in Europe, biofluorescent marsupials & little kiwi rediscovered

  Welcome to the thirty-fifth episode of the Zoology Ramblings Podcast! In this episode, Emma and Robi start with some news, including good news for spoonbills in Norfolk, and bat-friendly lighting in the Netherlands. Robi and Emma then review Attenborough's new Oceans film, sharing highlights as well as differing opinions about the effectiveness of top-down vs bottom-up influence. They then dive into their species of the week, where Emma talks about the Aesculapian snakes in the UK and Robi talks about the amazingly camouflaged proboscis bat. For their local conservation stories, Emma discusses the ladybird swarms that have been spotted all across the UK due to warmer weather. Robi takes us on an interesting thought experiment about the history of dholes in Europe and their relationship to big bats. They end this episode with their global conservation stories, where Emma talks about glow in the dark marsupials and Robi shares exciting news about the rediscovered little kiwi. Robi Watkinson is a Conservation Biologist and wildlife filmmaker specialising in the spatial and movement ecology of large carnivores, camera trapping survey methods, rewilding, metapopulation dynamics and conservation planning. He has an MSc in Conservation Biology from the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, and the Institute of Communities and Wildlife in Africa, University of Cape Town. He is based between Cape Town and London, and has strong interests in equitable and inclusive conservation, palaeontology and wildlife taxonomy and evolution!Emma Hodson is a Zoologist and wildlife content creator, currently working in the community and engagement team at Avon Wildlife Trust. Emma’s role as a Wildlife Champions Project Officer involves supporting and upskilling people to take action for nature in their local communities. Emma has experience in remote wildlife fieldwork, and has been part of Arctic fox, macaw and cetacean research teams in Iceland, Peru and Wales respectively. She has also been involved in animal care and rehabilitation work in Costa Rica and South Africa. Emma is particularly passionate about the interface between community engagement and wildlife monitoring, and enjoys running workshops and giving talks on topics including camera trapping, beaver ecology and rewilding. You can watch "Rewilding A Nation" for free on WaterBear by following this link: https://www.waterbear.com/watch/rewilding-a-nation . You can follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @zoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

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• Episode 34: (SPECIAL EPISODE): silver-backed chevrotain update, tool use in orca, Rhino Rewild initiative, basking sharks, Guam kingfisher & getting into zoology/conservation

  Welcome to the thirty-fourth episode of the Zoology Ramblings Podcast! In this special episode, Emma and Robi answer their most commonly asked question: how did you get into zoology/conservation? Emma and Robi offer a personal dive into their professional pathways, looking at how they got into the jobs they are in now, outlining the challenges of the environmental sector and what makes it all worth it. Emma and Robi also share some news to start, including welcoming our first Patreon members - thank you for supporting the podcast! Robi gives an update about the silver-backed chevrotain, which now has its own conservation breeding programme. Emma explores the first documented case of tool use in orca, talking about how orca are using kelp to mutually remove parasites from each other. Robi also talks about the exciting African Parks Rhino Rewild initiative, which has see 70 southern white rhinos transferred from South Africa to Rwanda. For their species of the week, Emma talks about the basking shark and Robi discusses the forest-dwelling Guam kingfisher. Robi Watkinson is a Conservation Biologist and wildlife filmmaker specialising in the spatial and movement ecology of large carnivores, camera trapping survey methods, rewilding, metapopulation dynamics and conservation planning. He has an MSc in Conservation Biology from the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, and the Institute of Communities and Wildlife in Africa, University of Cape Town. He is based between Cape Town and London, and has strong interests in equitable and inclusive conservation, palaeontology and wildlife taxonomy and evolution!Emma Hodson is a Zoologist and wildlife content creator, currently working in the community and engagement team at Avon Wildlife Trust. Emma’s role as a Wildlife Champions Project Officer involves supporting and upskilling people to take action for nature in their local communities. Emma has experience in remote wildlife fieldwork, and has been part of Arctic fox, macaw and cetacean research teams in Iceland, Peru and Wales respectively. She has also been involved in animal care and rehabilitation work in Costa Rica and South Africa. Emma is particularly passionate about the interface between community engagement and wildlife monitoring, and enjoys running workshops and giving talks on topics including camera trapping, beaver ecology and rewilding. You can watch "Rewilding A Nation" for free on WaterBear by following this link: https://www.waterbear.com/watch/rewilding-a-nation . You can follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @zoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

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• Episode 33: Patreon launch, UK nature festivals, BioShorts publication, banana slugs, immortal jellyfish, state of Europe's carnivores, backwards bills, dire wolves & rewilding rehabilitation

  Welcome to the thirty-third episode of the Zoology Ramblings Podcast! In this episode, Emma and Robi share exciting news about the launch of the Zoology Ramblings Patreon, where listeners can support the podcast and gain early access to episodes as well as behind the scenes notes. Emma shares updates from recent UK nature festivals and Robi also shares some positive news about his undergraduate dissertation getting published in BioShorts - an open access platform dedicated to supporting early career researchers. Emma and Robi then talk about weird and wonderful 'squishy things' - banana slugs and immortal jellyfish! For their local conservation news, Robi talks about the state of Europe's carnivores and Emma discusses the UK's new planning and infrastructure bill. They end with their global conservation stories, where Robi disputes dire wolf de-extinction and Emma talks about a rewilding rehabilitation programme for Ukrainian soldiers. Robi Watkinson is a Conservation Biologist and wildlife filmmaker specialising in the spatial and movement ecology of large carnivores, camera trapping survey methods, rewilding, metapopulation dynamics and conservation planning. He has an MSc in Conservation Biology from the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, and the Institute of Communities and Wildlife in Africa, University of Cape Town. He is based between Cape Town and London, and has strong interests in equitable and inclusive conservation, palaeontology and wildlife taxonomy and evolution!Emma Hodson is a Zoologist and wildlife content creator, currently working in the community and engagement team at Avon Wildlife Trust. Emma’s role as a Wildlife Champions Project Officer involves supporting and upskilling people to take action for nature in their local communities. Emma has experience in remote wildlife fieldwork, and has been part of Arctic fox, macaw and cetacean research teams in Iceland, Peru and Wales respectively. She has also been involved in animal care and rehabilitation work in Costa Rica and South Africa. Emma is particularly passionate about the interface between community engagement and wildlife monitoring, and enjoys running workshops and giving talks on topics including camera trapping, beaver ecology and rewilding. You can watch "Rewilding A Nation" for free on WaterBear by following this link: https://www.waterbear.com/watch/rewilding-a-nation . You can follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @zoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

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