Best of Natural History Radio

24/30: This weeks Saving Species is recorded in front of an audience at the National Botanic Garden of Wales. And the programme has a theme - fungi. It's at this time of year that many of us see the fruiting bodies of fungi, the "mushroom", but so much more goes on underground and in the leaf litter. On the panel we have fungi expert Professor Lynne Boddy of Cardiff University and Rosie Plumer, the Director of the National Botanic Garden of Wales. Delivering some specially written prose is writer and broadcaster Paul Evans and a special report from naturalist Ray Woods. And of course questions from the audience. Presenter Brett Westwood Producer Sheena Duncan Editor Julian Hector

Ep: 23 of 30 - BBC1 airs the Natural History Units latest wildlife landmark Frozen Planet this week. The series Executive Producer Alastair Fothergill will be in the Saving Species studio to talk about the series and especially recounting the experience taking Sir David Attenborough down to the Antarctic ice shelf - a lasting experience Alastair tells us that portrays the change under way in the Antarctic. Also in the programme, the latest news of the Spectacled Eiders Julian Hector visited in the Arctic. This species is the only bird in the Arctic to winter on ice. Matt Sexson of the U.S. Geological Survey will tell us the latest movements and behaviour of the birds our programme met in the summer. Presenter Brett westwood Producer Sheena Duncan Editor Julian Hector

22/30: We report from the city of Bristol on the behaviour of Herring Gulls. There are reports of Herring Gulls stalking, waiting and seizing opportunities to snatch food from picnics on the beach and it's well known in the city of Bristol that Herring Gulls scavenge fast food in the streets. And yet Herring Gulls are in decline, they are now listed in the Red Data Book of threatened species. What is causing the Herring Gull decline in the UK when so much food seems available. And - all part of living with nature, we report on the status of the Wild Boar in the UK. Can there ever be too many of them? Our news hound Kelvin Boot will be live on the line with topical news and events. Presenter Brett Westwood Producer Mary Colwell Editor Julian Hector

Bitten By The Bug: "Sorby" In the last of this series of five programmes exploring the aims and enthusiasms of their members, Brett Westwood searches for mountain hares on the Sheffield moors with Derek Whiteley and Val Clinging from the Sorby Natural History Society and discusses the future of natural history societies here in the UK. Produced and Presented by Brett Westwood.

Bitten By The Bug: "Mosses" In the fourth of this series of five programmes exploring the aims and enthusiasms of their members,Brett Westwood is initiated into the delights of mosses and liverworts when he joins a foray with two botanists from the British Bryological Society and hears about the publication of their brand new field guide. Produced and Presented by Brett Westwood.

Bitten By The Bug: "Bookham Commons" In the third of this series of five programmes exploring the aims and enthusiasms of their members , Brett Westwood gets to the heart of our natural history societies and finds that here in the UK they are in surprisingly good shape. In 2011 the London Natural History Society celebrates 70 years of studying one place, Bookham Commons in Surrey. The results of the findings, which include purple emperor butterflies and 1800 species of beetle, have influenced the way the National Trust manages the site for people and wildlife. Brett joins a beetle hunt with Stuart Cole of the London Natural History Society and Ian Swinney from the National Trust and discovers the jewel-like mint leaf-beetle as well as the value of keeping a donkey on site. Produced and Presented by Brett Westwood.

Bitten By The Bug: "The Flies Workshop" In the second of this series of five programmes exploring the aims and enthusiasms of their members , Brett Westwood gets to the heart of our natural history societies and finds that here in the UK they are it is in surprisingly good shape. The Dipterist’s Forum was established to study the 7000 and more species of two-winged flies which occur in the UK, from bluebottles to mosquitos. At a field centre in Shrewsbury he learns how to navigate his way around a fly, pursues winter gnats over a garden compost-heap and gets to grips with the finer points of fungus gnats, a bewildering group of several hundred species most of which are less than 5mm long. Produced and Presented by Brett Westwood

Bitten By The Bug: BSBI Field Trip In the first of this series of five programmes exploring the aims and enthusiasms of society members , Brett Westwood gets to the heart of our natural history societies and finds that here in the UK they are in surprisingly good shape. The first programme takes him to the Somerset Levels with the Botanical Society, where he joins a field meeting studying aquatic plants. Field trips are the life-blood of any society and a tour of the dykes and ditches produces not only the smallest flowering plant in the UK , but also the largest cells of any British plant. Produced and Presented by Brett Westwood

Research biologist Lucy Hawkes from Bangor University is in the studio reporting on her latest work on the Bar-Headed Goose. We find out how studying their migration helps inform their conservation. Chris Sperring reports on the re-introduction of the Fen Raft Spider into a restored marshland in Suffolk. And the BTO are live on the programme to bring us up to date with the Cuckoos on the move.

20/30 The Pika is a small mammal that lives in the high altitude grasslands in mountain ranges from Japan, through central Asia and North America. Andrew Smith and his team of field biologists from Arizona State University has studied the Pika for many years on the Tibetan Plateau. It's in Tibet, he claims, they are wrongly blamed for the degrading of the grasslands by the Chinese. We have been to see Andrew Smith and have a reply from the Chinese Academy of Science. Also in the programme: Kelvin Boot reports the status of polar plankton from a meeting (about plankton) in Plymouth. And the Curlew - the piping call of which contributes to the soundscape of uplands in summer and estuaries in winter, are seriously in decline in Ireland, SW Scotland and Wales. By how much and why we will find out. Presented by Brett Westwood Produced by Mary Colwell Editor Julian Hector

19/30 We have our third report from the tundra of the Alaskan North Slope. Species has been reporting the work of U.S. Geological Survey biologist Matt Sexson on Spectacled Eiders. Zoo vets Maria Spriggs and Gwen Myers of Mesker Park Zoo Indiana and Columbus Zoo Ohio respectively, provide the clinical support in the field. So what is conservation medicine and is there an increasing role for vets in the wider world of saving wildlife in our increasingly stressed planet? Also in the programme: the British Trust for Ornithology highlight garden bird disease getting into Europe. Kelvin Boot is live from Aberdeen at an international conference on marine biodiversity. And we acknowledge the death this week of Professor Wangari Maathai, a Kenyan woman who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her work teaching women to plant trees. Wangari Maathai believed the destruction of the natural world was directly linked to sustained poverty in Kenya.

18/30 Saving Species goes to Alaska to find the Spectacled Eider, a duck which is the focus of intense research and a species that represents the future of many Arctic species. Presented by Brett Westwood Produced by Sheena Duncan Editor Julian Hector

17/30 Butterfly expert Matthew Oates is tramping the wilds with Brett looking for the Purple Hairstreak Butterfly. And Julian Hector reports from the North Slope of Alaska where he meets the team working on the extraordinary Spectacled Eider. We also hear from Sarah Pitt who has been looking for Water Voles - so this weeks edition of Saving Species is truly outdoors. Presented by Brett Westwood Produced by Sheena Duncan

Presenter Brett Westwood introduces the the Horrid Ground Weaver - a miniscule hairy creature found, it is thought, in only one place in the UK - And a team of biologists are on the hunt. Also in the programme: The latest news on Indian Vulture conservation - and the release of the European Cranes on the Somerset Levels. With news from Kelvin Boot.

Brett Westwood presents. The Wailing Wall in Jerusalem is the oldest known nesting site in the world for the common swift but numbers are falling there and elsewhere - why and what is being done to help? And Brett discovers more about the private life of the beautiful woodland butterfly the Silver Washed Fritillary. Brett also gets an update on Chris, the Saving Species cuckoo that is making its way to its wintering area in Africa. With news from Kelvin Boot.

The Malham Sedge has not been seen for four years. Paul Evans joins a research project run by Ian Wallace on Malham Tarn in Yorkshire to find out if this rare caddisfly still exists.

The Weardale uplands are home to rich and varied plant communities. For this weeks' Living World, Paul Evans joins Dr Phil Gates on a botanical exploration with a difference: A wildflower rich landscape with a sinister botanical twist in its tail.

The Yorkshire Dales has some of the most spectacular scenery in England. In this weeks' Living World, Michael Scott explores the plants of the limestone pavement with Tim Thom. Produced by Andrew Dawes

Its summertime and for this weeks Living World Paul Evans crosses over to the Farne Islands off the Northumberland coast where he joins warden David Steele on a puffin safari. Produced by Andrew Dawes

14/30 Chris the cuckoo is south bound, heading for Africa - but where exactly is he? We visit the British Trust for Ornithology's HQ in East Anglia and find out latest progress of him and his compatriots. We also have a report about the UK Lady Bird Survey being conducted by the Biological Records Centre. Over recent years we have heard much about the invasive harlequin ladybird pushing out our native species - but is this really the case. And how easy is it to see all the ladybrid species found in the British Isles? We'll be encouraging you to join in and if you don't know your ladybirds, why not use ispot.

Brett Westwood presents. Ponds in the UK are the target for significant conservation measures, but how well have we done looking after the wildlife of these mini wetlands? We talk to Natural England on the future of Biodiversity Action Plans (BAPs). Also in the programme we feature the latest report from Bob Swann surveying the seabird colonies of Tain and Canna. And a report from Newcastle from Trai Anfield on the future of urban nesting Kittiwakes who are being re-located to breeding towers on the River Tyne. With news from Kelvin Boot.

Brett Westwood presents. Saving Species has an interview with Sperm Whale biologist Hal Whitehead and reports live from the International Whale Commission. We also have a report on wetlands in England and an interview from Kenya on the status of Giraffes. Giraffe numbers have been falling in Africa - why?

11/30 The Green Turtle is one of nature's great travellers, migrating from feeding grounds to breeding grounds traversing the oceans of the world. Like so many species reported in the series, Green Turtles are in decline. Our reporter James Brickell reports from the Great Barrier Reef with biologists who are both trying to understand the natural history of these magnificent creatures and help in their conservation. And we have turtle biologist Brendan Godley from Exeter University live in the studio. We'll have an update from the two Beavers we're following in Devon - Chris Sperring has been down to visit the site and to see the Beavers. And how is Chris the Cuckoo doing? We'll be spying in on his migration south. Presenter: Brett Westwood Producer: Sheena Duncan Editor: Julian Hector

10/30 This week in the Saving Species studio we have Lucy Hawkes visiting who is a biologist working on the Bar-Headed Goose. The Bar-Headed goose is famous for its high altitude migration, climbing from the lowlands of India, over and above the highest peaks of the Himalayas, to their breeding grounds on the high altitude grasslands of Outer Mongolia. We also talk to Daniel Pauly, a leading marine biologist from University of British Columbia, about his take on the state of global oceans - And get out with Michael Scott on an Earth Watch expedition looking for whales around the British coastline. Presenter: Brett Westwood Producer: Mary Colwell Editor: Julian Hector

As part of the Saving Species mini-series "Citizen Conservation", presented by Sarah Pitt, there is a feature on the conservation of Dormice. It seems that one of the most important habitats to protect for Dormice is "scrub". But what is scrub? Also in the programme is a report on the status of the Manx Shearwater seabirds, recorded on location on Canna near the Isle of Skye by Bob Swann. Followed by an interview with the RSPB about the role of controlling predators to protect seabird chicks. Other subjects also in the programme include Large Blue Butterflies with Matthew Oates; plus the latest on the Cuckoos the BTO have attached special transmitters too, reported in an earlier edition of Saving Species. Presenter: Brett Westwood Producer: Mary Colwell Editor: Julian Hector

8/30 Britain is internationally important for seabird species. There are colonies of Gannets, Fulmars, Manx Shearwaters, Puffins, Guillemots, Razor Bills, Greater Black-backed Gulls and Storm Petrels to name just a few. In recent years there have been reports that the breeding success of British seabirds is in decline although unusually cold winters in the last two years might have slowed this decline. To find out the latest about the UK's seabird populations Brett Westwood will be on the Farne Islands, with guests - And live with the National Trust from the Long Nanny Arctic Tern colony. Kelvin Boot will be in the Saving Species studio in Bristol. Presenter: Kelvin Boot Producer: Mary Colwell Editor: Julian Hector

This week's Saving Species explores the mysteries of bird migration. Joanna Pinnock joins the British Trust for Ornithology on an early morning expedition to put a special transmitter on a Cuckoo. Chris Sperring is in Somerset finding out about the fortune of the pied flycatcher, and Mark Brazil reports from the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido on the little understood Latham's Snipe. Presenter: Brett Westwood, Producer: Sheena Duncan, Editor: Julian Hector.

Saving Species reports the extraordinary findings of a twenty year study into the wildlife of a garden. Presented by Joanna Pinnock

Saving Species is in front of an audience on the Tyntesfield Estate near Bristol – it’s here, care of the National Trust, a BioBlitz is taking place. Saving Species asks the question, “where are tomorrows naturalists going to come from”?

Presenter Paul Evans meets up with John Hughes from the Shropshire Wildlife Trust to traverse Wem Moss National Nature Reserve in search of a wetland specialist, the raft spider Dolomedes fimbriatus: Britain's largest native spider.

Brett Westwood presents. Saving Species reports from a project in Norfolk restoring an ancient wood. We feature a report from Bob Swann who has monitored the same two seabird colonies in Scotland for 25 years. Patrick Evans reads his second piece from the area around Chernobyl - this week we hear about the Przewalski's Horse. Produced by Mary Colwell, Editor: Julian Hector.

Devon is home to all four oil beetle species recorded in Britain. For this weeks' Living World, Paul Evans joins naturalist John Walters on an oil beetle hunt.

Saving Species reports from the Congo and the future of Lowland Gorilla's and the translocation of Desert Tortoises in the Mojave desert. Plus, how has the UK wildlife reacted to this years most unusual spring - high seasonal temperatures, very low rainfall and habitat fires.

Paul Evans follows the Poet's Path into the heart of wild daffodil country as he celebrates spring in the Dymock woods in Gloucestershire, home to the Dymock Poets in WW1.

The re-introduction of European Beavers into the British countryside continues to be a long and complex consultation process, with many Beavers now in large habitat-scale enclosures. Plus the first report from journalist Patrick Evans on the state of wildlife in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.

Islay is a haven for birds. For this weeks' Living World, Michael Scott joins long time Islay resident Malcolm Ogilvie for a birdwatch along the shores of Loch Gruinart.

Saving Species is back for another year of live broadcasting about the world of wildlife conservation. The first programme is a reminder that spring has sprung and the UK's most treasured migrant birds are back - the Swallows. During the winter a BBC Natural History Unit team visited Nigeria to track down a little know population of wintering swallows - and they found them. With upward of five million individuals, the sky darkened with the swirling avian biomass. We reveal how we know East Anglia is the destination of some of these West African Swallows are migrating to.

James Aldred encounters one of the world's most powerful birds of prey, the Harpy Eagle.

Lionel Kelleway meets Gill Turner, who has observed the behaviour of brown hares for the last 15 years to explore this question. Together, they marvel at the antics of the brown hare - one of the first signs of Spring - on a very special farm in Hertfordshire.

Lionel Kelleway joins Cairngorm Mountain Head Ranger Nic Bullivant on the snow fields of Caringorm looking for the Ptarmigan in their harsh and open mountain-scape.

Lionel Kelleway visits two very different yew trees in Scotland, including The Fortingall Yew - possibly the oldest living thing in Europe.

Lionel Kelleway travels to Lake Windermere in the Lake District to encounter one of Britains rarest fish, the Arctic charr, a remanant of the last Ice Age.

Brett Westwood presents. If we accept that saving all endangered species might not be practical, affordable or possible - then how are decisions made about what to save? We have a special report from Howard Stableford who went to see the Californian Condor project and we'll have James Leape, International Director General WWF live into the programme. Also in the programme David Robinson, Professor of Biology at the Open University looks at the performance of ispot across 40 episodes of Saving Species. And Kelvin Boot is in the studio talking about the proposed sale of British woodlands.

Lionel Kelleway joins Brian Morrell from WWT Caerlaverock to witness a wildlife spectacle rarely encountered in Britain - the dawn flight of thousands of Barnacle geese over the Solway Firth in Scotalnd.

Brett Westwood presents. In this programme we have our final "Memories" piece remembering the past abundance of the tenacious predators, stoats and weasels. We also discover the dangers of fragmenting heathland through the narrow-headed ant. Also in the programme we feature close encounters with the Africa Penguin on a remote island off the coast of South Africa. With news from Kelvin Boot.

Brett Westwood presents. We feature the final episode in our special series about "Lady Bird Book Britain". In this programme it's the winter edition, with the joys of swirling starlings, Mistletoe and birds at the bird table. And we turn our attention to charismatic mega fauna(!) and tourism. With two special reports, one from James Brickell in Australia and another from Mark Brazil in India, we examine how using tourists, are helping with research and protecting Whales and Tigers.

This week Brett Westwood meets Damon Bridge of the Great Crane Project to catch up on the progress of the European Cranes that were introduced to the Somerset Levels. Mark Brazil sends a report from Brazil where he has been on the trail of the hyacinth macaw. Chris Sperring presents the Autumn edition of the 'Ladybird Book Britain' series, and we have our regular wildlife news round-up with Kelvin Boot.

This week Kelvin Boot presents the latest findings about goose migration, following up on research first broadcast in the BBC Natural History Unit Radio series 'World on the Move'. Sarah Pitt meets Graham Martin to talk about Tawny Owls. Also in the programme, the mystery of the 'Star Jelly' solved by the Open University's iSpot, and details of a new species of Gecko.

Guest presenter Matthew Hill presents a special programme focussing on tigers. Matthew travelled to Tadoba National Tiger Reserve in India for Saving Species. There, he investigated a story about tigers that involves a local Indian community, a retired heart surgeon from Bristol and a remarkable education programme to conserve tigers, not kill them.

This week, Brett Westwood talks to Karen Partridge about the alarming situation facing lions in Africa and a controversial reintroduction programme. We also have the second in our series of 'Ladybird Book Britain', as well as a Christmassy wildlife news roundup with Kelvin Boot.

Brett Westwood presents. We feature a special report about Sloths from the southern most tip of the Caribbean off the coast of Panama. Also in the programme we have the first of our special Ladybird Book series. Chris Sperring takes the first editions of these books about Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter - published in 1959 - and explores what species have gone, what have arrived and what hasn't changed. And with the news of two species of sharks attacking holiday makers in the Red Sea what does this do to the efforts to save sharks from extinction?

Brett Westwood presents a special edition of Saving Species from the 100 Foot Washes in Norfolk with an invited panel of experts and a live audience - And not to forget the thousands of migratory swans.

The raven is both agile and majestic in flight but shrouded in mystery, superstition and folk law. How was it that our biggest member of the crow family, a bird once protected as an important scavenger in ancient times, was then persecuted almost to extinction in the British Isles, with less that 1000 pairs clinging onto a precarious future in few remote hills in upland Britain? In this week's Living World, Lionel Kelleway travels to a remote part of Shropshire where thankfully the raven is making a remarkable comeback.

Brett Westwood presents. We take a look at British farmland and ask how fit it is for wildlife to flourish. We go in search of the small flower the Blue Pimpernel and Britain's "Big Six" of farmland birds to discover what changes to farming arable land have been needed to allow them to re-emerge. We also feature a report from South America where Mark Brazil has had a close encounter with the Maned Wolf - one of the rarest mammals in the world and perhaps one of the least understood. With news from Kelvin Boot.

Lionel Kelleway travels to Herefordshire to marvel at the Old Masters of the British countryside; ancient trees, including the oldest oak in Britain.

This week Brett Westwood presents a programme featuring a report from Japan about whooper swans. Brett visits a garden that has become a site of national importance because of its diversity of fungi, before discussing the conservation of fungi with an expert from Kew Gardens. Also in the programme a 'Memories' piece about freshwater fish and our regular wildlife news with Kelvin Boot.

Brett Westwood presents. Saving Species looks into the issues of invasive species. What should countries do with wildlife aliens? When does a non-native species, like an eagle owl, become "invasive"? We discuss whether the eradication of invasive species in any one setting is wildlife conservation. With news from Kelvin Boot.

Lionel Kelleway visits hedgerow ecologist Rob Walton on a farm in Devon, where they explore the value of hedges for wildlife and search for a dormouse along the way.

Brett Westwood presents. We return to St Bee's Island off the Queensland coast in Australia for our second exclusive report about Koalas. We also feature a special report from Madagascar and the work being done out there to save the Madgascan Pochard from the brink of extinction. Chris Sperring sends a report to us from Orkney where the Grey Seals are pupping. With news from Kelvin Boot.

The British Isles are home to 6500 species of wasps and bees. Lionel Kelleway travels to Devon in the hope of seeing a potter wasp bringing paralysed caterpillars to the pot.

Brett Westwood presents a programme full of geese. Joanna Pinnock witnesses the arrival in Norfolk of pink-footed geese, while Michael Scott visits the Scottish island of Islay. Geese migration is a spectacle, but is it also a problem? We have perspectives from farmers and conservation organisations. Finally, Kelvin Boot sums up developments from the Nagoya biodiversity conference.

Brett Westwood presents. In the light of the British Government's spending review, is it business as usual for running nature reserves? Also in the programme, we have a live report from Nagoya in Japan where governments and conservation organisations from around the world have been meeting to discuss new biodiversity targets. Chris Sperring has his eye on Fallow Deer and brings you the spectacle of their rut on Exmoor together with their impacts of woodland. And Kelvin Boot has been with iSpot users in the New Forest looking for fungi.

Brett Westwood presents. Saving Species is in London looking for south-bound migrating birds. Ornithologist Ian Wallace has watched the skies wherever he’s lived since he was a young man, including London’s Primrose Hill. So how would his earlier findings compare with todays visible migration? And we'll have a special piece from a sacred forest in Ethiopia, a unique wooded island refuge in a desert of over tilled land - a forest protected by a church and its followers. We hear from Claire Ozanne from Roehampton University as she and colleagues conduct the first ever wildlife survey of this refuge.

Brett Westwood presents. In earlier episodes of Saving Species we followed the life and times of British seabirds on the Isle of May and the Cliffs near Tain, both in Scotland. Over recent weeks lots of data has been crunched and we have ornithologist Bob Swann telling us how Fulmars, Kittiwakes, Puffins and Shags and other seabirds have done in various places around the UK. Biologists from Oxford University have been studying the decline in British birds and have come up with work that indicates that bird decline in the UK is an indicator of wider mass extinctions over the world. Also, bees. We report new research looking at what the Honey Bee waggle dance tells us about nectar sources in gardens and the countryside. And to a great source of autumn nectar, Kelvin Boot hunts down the Ivy Bee.

Brett Westwood presents. Chris Sperring reports from a woodland in Wales amongst erupting fruiting bodies and discovers the importance of conserving fungi for the health of woodlands. Ted Oakes is back in the Minnesota woodlands trying to locate black bears and see how they are responding to conservation. We're also back in Africa with a report from Tessa McGregor about the successful conservation of the Grevy's Zebra in the Samburu National Park in Kenya. With news from Kelvin Boot.

Presented by Kelvin Boot. Saving Species visits the Mississippi Delta and asks naturalists and biologists "just how tough are the oceans' defences to huge pollution events like the recent oil spill"? Howard Stableford will be in the area gathering information about the resilience of a huge river Delta and its relationship with the sea. How much flex is in the system? We'll find out.

Brett Westwood presents. Saba Douglas-Hamilton reports from Samburu national park in Kenya. In her first report we hear about the affects of severe flooding after a period of sustained drought on the savannah and get an insight into the elephants within the national park. And we hear from Mark Brazil in the Aleution Islands (a string of islands streaming off the western tip of Alaska) and his close encounters with Stellers Sea Lions. And in the UK, culm grassland making a return - the preferred habitat of the Marsh Fritillary. With news from Kelvin Boot.

Brett Westwood presents. We focus on the seabird species the Little Auk which inhabit the northern archipelago of Svalbard at the height of their breeding season. Joanna Pinnock visits a compost heap in Cambridgeshire. And we follow on this theme with a special studio guest who needs a warm living compost heap to successfully raise her young - the Grass Snake. Also in the programme we feature the Large Blue Butterfly.

Brett Westwood presents. For the first time in 400 years European Cranes are free-living on the Somerset Levels. Saving Species is live in the wetlands to witness this important landmark. And we get into citizen science. The Open University with OPAL (open air laboratory) launch a hedge row survey for us to conduct and we join a "BioBlitz" in Dorset - all lay people oberserving and recording and filing the data on public record. But is it of any real value? We ask the questions.

Wildlife filmmaker Hannah Stitfall and wildlife film researcher Dom Davies enjoy a close encounter with one of our most mysterious birds, the woodcock, when they review another selection from the LIVING WORLD archive. The woodcock is a wader which spends most of its life in woodland where its wonderful mottled plumage makes it very hard to see, especially as they are nocturnal so most active at night. The population swells in winter when over a million more migrate here from Scandinavia and Russia in search of earthworms and insects which they probe from the ground with their long bills. Hannah and Dom also discuss another remarkable feature of these birds which is their strange roding flight call.

Where do flies go in winter and what happens to them? Wildlife filmmaker Hannah Stitfall and wildlife film researcher Billy Clark review another selection from the Living World archive to try and find out the answer. The original programme was recorded beside an icy pond in a woodland near Kidderminster where, with the help of pooters and ‘ghostbuster gear’, a surprising number of flies are discovered in winter including the stunning-looking dollies, best known for their metallic green sheen and long dancing legs!

Keen naturalist Hannah Stitfall is joined by wildlife film researcher Dom Davies to review another programme from the LIVING WORLD archive. The subject today is Spined Loach - a fish you might never heard of because, whilst locally they are abundant, they are classified as a rare protected species and are only found in a handful of places in the UK. Also known as the Spotted Weather Loach because of their ability to detect changes in atmospheric or barometric pressure brought about by changes in the weather, they half bury themselves in fine organic sediment at the bottom of rivers or lakes during the day and then at night sieve the sediment, eating small shrimps and ejecting the mud and sand through their gills. As Hannah and Dom discover, these little fish also have some amazing survival techniques which enable them to survive low oxygen levels, whilst the spines which protrude from under their eyes are thought to help ward off predators.

In this episode from 2011 Joanna Pinnock wonders what makes jackdaws roost together, and to find out more heads to the Cambridgeshire countryside with corvid scientist Dr Alex Thornton. Arriving in the dead of night they await one of nature’s spectacles, of thousands of jackdaws simultaneously leaving their night roost in a cacophony of sound. It is one of those winter spectacles often overlooked but rivalling any in the natural world. So what is actually going on here? For Hannah and Billy this gives them the opportunity to discuss corvid activity. Science is beginning to unravel the biology and social intelligence of corvids, recently dubbed feathered apes, but there is a lot still to learn about these familiar if mysterious jackdaws. If the morning was a spectacle, how will that compare with the evening gathering at the roost; some roosts have been recorded in the Domesday Book and are still being used centuries later?

Think sprite or hobgoblin and you are nearly there when it comes to the Aye-Aye, surely one of the weirdest looking creatures on earth? With its large saucer-like eyes, massive ears, and long skeletal middle finger which its uses to tap for grubs on logs, this lemur both fascinates and terrifies us. Endemic to the forests of Madagascar, some local people believe that if one looks at you, someone in your village will die. They even hang up an aye-aye on the edge of the village in some areas to ward off evil spirits. We are responsible for the demise of the aye-aye in other ways; by destroying the forests on which it depends. But as we hear, get up close to an aye-aye and you’ll meet one of the most alluring and watchable mammals on the planet. Not merely a creature in close harmony with its disappearing world, but as Brett Westwood and Verity Sharp discover an ambassador for conservation which still has us in its thrall.

The relationship between humans and pigeons is one of the oldest on the planet. They have been our co-workers; delivering messages, assisting during the war, providing a source of food, a sport and obsession for many, and a suitable religious sacrifice. They helped Darwin with his theory of Natural Selection, have become a powerful symbol of peace and helped us unravel some of the mysteries of navigation. Yet many of us still regard them as vermin, as “rats with wings”. Brett Westwood and Verity Sharp probe into this paradox, and explore how pigeons have helped us and what they can reveal about the homing instinct and what it means for us to feel at home

For a plant that we generally associate with shady, damp places, a plant that has no flowers or scent, the Fern has drawn us into her fronds and driven an obsession that is quite like any other. Pteridomania or Fern Madness swept through Victorian Britain in part thanks to the availability of plate glass from which manufacturers could build glass cases for growing ferns. The trade in ferns all but wiped out some species from parts of the UK and fern hawkers sold specimens on street corners in London. Brett Westwood and Verity Sharp trace our relationship with the fern on a journey from a slide of spores in Durham, to the art of Nature Printing via a garden fernery and discover that the fern is still weaving its magic spell over us.

Poppies are associated with many things but to most people they are a symbol of remembrance or associated with the opium trade. Natural Histories examines our fascination with the flower. Lia Leendertz visits the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew where James Wearn shows her a collection of poppy paraphernalia from around the world. Andrew Lack, of Oxford Brookes University and author of Poppy, explains how the flower made its way to the British Isles with the introduction of agriculture, and Joe Crawford of Exeter University describes the popularity of the opium poppy in 19th century Britain, especially among female poets. A vibrant opium trade led British horticulturalists to try and establish a home grown opium crop - without success. Fiona Stafford appraises the poppy in art encouraging us to look again at Monet's late 19th century painting of a poppy field in northern France. It was painted just a few decades before the outbreak of the Great War which established the red poppy as a permanent reminder of the bloodshed of fallen soldiers.

How did we get from the gorgeous red junglefowl scratching away in the jungles of south-east Asia to the chicken now eaten in its millions? Brett Westwood and Joanna Pinnock trace the trail. The story's told by Greger Larson, Director of the Palaeogenomics & Bio-Archaeology Research Network; Annie Potts, Director, New Zealand Centre for Human-Animal Studies; Dr Joanne Edgar, University of Bristol School of Veterinary Sciences and by a visit to meet real red junglefowl, the original chicken, at the Pheasantry at Sudeley Castle in Gloucestershire.

Bees have been the subject of fascination and reverence since ancient times. Natural Histories explores the story of bees and why humans like to compare themselves to them, seeing ourselves as either virtuous workers or moral examples. The ancient Greek poets thought of themselves as bees who foraged and chose the sweetest words to produce great art, while the Victorians admired bees for their industry and selflessness. But with news of declining bee populations around the world, Natural Histories talks to those who monitor the decline of some species and try to address the ecological problems causing their demise, as well as to honeybee keepers who say that in the cities, bees are actually thriving.

The dreamy smile of the sloth has made it wildly popular, but once its slowness was condemned and saw it named after one of the seven deadly sins. Brett Westwood and Joanna Pinnock talk to those who really know, understand and live with sloths and ask if we're still projecting our own feelings onto them. Our changing attitudes to sloths tell us more about ourselves than about this harmless animal. Dr Rebecca Cliffe, founder of the Sloth Conservation Foundation and a leading researcher, is in the rainforest in Costa Rica with them right now. She describes how local people feel about them, while she sits under a tree with a sloth at the top. Joanna Pinnock tries for her own encounter with Marilyn the sloth and her baby Elio at ZSL London Zoo, and experiences the magic of sloths at first hand. William Hartston, author of Sloths: A Celebration of the World’s Most Misunderstood Mammal. explains the vexed history of sloth first as a sin then its next incarnation as a harmless South American treetop dweller named after that sin, and the repercussions for the animal down the centuries. He also shares his opinion on the best sloth in film. And it's not Sid from Ice Age. And the poet Debbie Lim reads her poem Gift of the Sloth, describing other ways in which they deserve our admiration, but again not for the reasons that the current popular image of sloths would seem to suggest.

Wildlife film maker Hannah Stitfall is joined by Dom Davies, a wildlife film researcher to discuss another pick from the Living World archive. Today their subject is Stone Curlews and a programme in which the presenter Joanna Pinnock travels to Wiltshire in search of these crepuscular waders whose haunting calls can be heard after dusk. She is joined by Nick Adams of the RSPB who has been working with local farmers on a conservation project to improve the habitat for these birds and restore the population which became seriously depleted in the mid-1980s. For Hannah and Dom the programme offers a rare encounter with a bird that few of us will have seen or heard.

Zoologist and wildlife film maker Hannah Stitfall is joined by Billy Clark, a researcher with the BBC Natural History Unit to discuss another selection from the LIVING WORLD archive. Today the subject is over-wintering ladybirds and the challenges these most familiar of insects face during dormancy. They also discuss the origin of the name 'Ladybird', the diverse range of species we have, threats from an alien species and a ladybird survey that is looking for your help.

In the final episode, Becky Ripley and Emily Knight search for pufflings that have run into trouble on their journey from their burrows to the sea, guided by the light of the moon.

The season is ending. Becky Ripley and Emily Knight go in search of the last pufflings left in the burrows on the Isle of May to give them a quick check-up before the birds leave their family homes and head out to sea.

How do you draw puffins to an island they abandoned long ago? Emily Knight and Rebecca Ripley are on Ramsey Island off the west coast of Wales. Here they're trying a very loud solution - blasting out the sound of puffins, from boom bass speakers.

Emily Knight and Rebecca Ripley are taking a break from the island in this episode, If you think puffins are just small penguins, Warhorse author Sir Michael Morpurgo is here to tell you how wrong you are in this tale of how Puffin Books led him to love the birds.

Becky Ripley and Emily Knight find the Isle of May's beaches awash with plastic waste and discover its not just plastic we can see that is damaging, but tiny fragments shed from our clothes too.

This week Emily and Becky take a break from the Isle of May. In their absence, award-winning author Adam Nicolson presents a rich, visual piece of writing that celebrates the real puffin that's there to be seen when you look past the looks.

Becky Ripley and Emily Knight return to the Isle of May, where they string up a giant net to catch puffins as they fly past. When the fish in their beaks are sent flying, they go running to gather them up in the name of science.

New series in which Hannah Stitfall and a guest discuss one of her picks from the LIVING WORLD archive. Today they eavesdrop on an encounter at a secret location in Norfolk with the UK’s rarest frog, the pool frog. The frogs were introduced here from Sweden over a decade ago, after the last native East Anglian pool frogs died out in the wild and their progress has been carefully monitored. As well as the frogs there’s a very smelly encounter with a couple of grass snakes!

New series. Wildlife film maker Hannah Stitfall and guest discuss one of her selections from the LIVING WORLD archive. Today the subject is Skomer Island off the coast of Wales and its city of sea birds, as well as the ‘clowns of the air’, an endemic vole and strange cries at night.

High winds and choppy waters slow Emily Knight and Becky Ripley's return to the island, raising fears for some of the seabirds' chicks, and there's news of a mass puffin death in Alaska

Becky Ripley and Emily Knight invite you to sink deep in sound as they present an immersive wildlife experience from master recordist Chris Watson

Becky and Emily find themselves deep in a game of puffin roulette, all in the name of science. They go grovelling underground into puffin burrows to count how many chicks have been laid in this year's breeding season and the pufflings' protective parents don't shy away from an attack.

Follow the story via #PlanetPuffin

Emily Knight & Becky Ripley, from Blue Planet II: The Podcast, explore the Scottish puffin paradise where they’ll be following breeding season in #planetpuffin. In episode 2 the duo stake out in a hide on the Isle of May to monitor how many puffins have survived the cold winter months. Spring is here, and the breeding season is about to kick off.

Emily Knight & Becky Ripley, from Blue Planet II: The Podcast, drop anchor at Scotland’s Ilse of May as the puffins return after a winter at sea and the year’s breeding season is getting under way.

They meet reserve manager Steely for a tour around the island’s three famous lighthouses and hear the ghastly story that could have put its first burning beacon of flames to rest.

And a husband and wife who dedicated decades to studying puffins on the Isle of May reveal how much there’s left to discover about the mysterious life of the island’s puffins.

As they report through the summer, Emily and Becky would love to hear your puffin stories: #planetpuffin

Join them for a slice of island life, where stories of the past are met by the cries of seabirds.

Follow the fortunes of a Scottish puffin colony across this year’s breeding season with Emily Knight & Becky Ripley, from Blue Planet II: The Podcast, in #planetpuffin

The eider duck, known locally as "Cuddy's" duck, is regarded as the first bird in the world to have been given conservation protection, when St Cuthbert offered the eider duck sanctuary on the Farne Islands in the seventh century. Today, they breed in vast numbers off the Northumbrian coast, and Brett Westwood travels to Amble harbour to see the duck's colourful breeding plumage, and listen to the famous "crooning" calls of the males in the company of the RSPB's Paul Morrison and biologist Hilary Broker-Carey

Since the programme was first broadcast the eider duck has been part of a discussion on Marine Conservation Zones. Wildlife presenter Lindsey Chapman revisits this Living World from 2002 before bringing the story up to date for today's audience.

Producer Andrew Dawes

We all know about the myth of the Mad March Hare, but what is the background to it? Is there any biological reason for the name? Lionel Kelleway meets Gill Turner, who has observed the behaviour of brown hares since the late 1990's to explore this question. Together, they marvel at the antics of the brown hare - one of the first signs of spring - on a very special farm in Hertfordshire.

In the years since the programme was first broadcast, the situation of brown hares has changed considerably. Wildlife presenter Lindsey Chapman revisits this Living World from 2011 before bringing the story gently up to date for today's listener.

Producer Andrew Dawes