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PODCAST

ZSL Wild Science Podcast

Zoological Society of London

Delve into topical issues in zoology, conservation and the environment, from saving species and protecting the planet, to finding out about the animals living across the globe, including in London"s own river Thames. Learn more about the science behind the conservation work being done by ZSL and others, in this podcast from ZSL"s Institute of Zoology. Hosted previously by Dr Monni Böhm and Ellie Darbey, and now by Harriet McAra.

science natural sciences

All Episodes

01:04:06

ZSL #048 The rubber story and the road to sustainability

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2025/08/22

What do car tyres, yoga mats and trainers have in common? They all contain natural rubber, tapped from trees by millions of small farmers, mostly in Asia. While natural rubber production is renewable, its impact on the environment through deforestation, habitat loss and soil degradation, can be great when not managed sustainably. In this episode, we hear from a Thai rubber farmer, about the challenges faced on the ground, as well as one of the world’s biggest tyre makers, Michelin, about rubber’s

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33:42

ZSL #046 Feeding the Zoo: Nutrition for animals under...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2025/04/16

Making sure that the animals held in ZSL’s two conservation zoos, London and Whipsnade, are fed a diet that can help them thrive is crucial, both for keeping them healthy under managed care, and ensuring they are in the best possible shape for a return to the wild. Amanda Ferguson is ZSL’s Diet Management Officer and is responsible for creating tailored diets for all the animals across both ZSL Zoos, from snails to elephants! We learn how to feed an animal for which there are no guidelines, why

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16:59

ZSL #045 BONUS Nature's Negotiators: Saving the...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2024/12/30

After our Nature’s Negotiators miniseries, where we learned all about the complexities, challenges and importance of United Nations climate and biodiversity meetings, we wanted to give the gift of a bonus episode to round things off! We catch up with Bethan to hear how things went after she attended COP29, United Nations Climate Change Conference, in Azerbaijan. Overview 00:11 Harriet McAra, Host of Wild Science, Episode introduction 00:54 Bethan Laughlin, ZSL’s Senior Policy Specialist, on

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35:02

ZSL #044 Nature's Negotiators: The UN's Wildest...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2024/12/18

2024 has been a big year for international climate policy, with two UN Conference of Parties, or COPs, taking place in quick succession; COP16 in Colombia followed just a few weeks later by COP29 in Azerbaijan. In this episode of Wild Science, we follow on from part one of our Nature’s Negotiators miniseries, and are once again joined by Bethan Laughlin, ZSL Senior Policy Specialist. We discuss the challenges and successes of the two biodiversity and climate COPs, tackle some new UN lingo, and hear

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33:40

ZSL #043 Back to the Wild: Assessing disease risks...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2024/10/18

What does it take to reintroduce an animal to the wild safely? How do we make sure that disease risk to existing populations, and to the animals being reintroduced, is mitigated? Hear from the Disease Risk Analysis and Health Surveillance Team (DRAHS) at ZSL who are working to give animals the best start possible as they return to the wild, and whose work has contributed to the recovery of over 30 species across the world. Overview 00:11 Harriet McAra, Introduction to episode 01:01 Dr Tony

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34:40

ZSL #042 Nature's Negotiators: The UN's Wildest...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2024/08/21

You may have heard of a COP, and you’ve almost definitely heard of the United Nations (UN), but how much do you know about the negotiations that go into getting nature, climate and biodiversity embedded into international policy? Ahead of the United Nations Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP16) in Colombia this autumn, we’re hearing from policy experts in this two-part miniseries on how we can save the planet one meeting at a time…or at least try to. Overview 00:11 Introduction to Nature’s

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29:05

ZSL #041 Reimagining Coral Reefs

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2024/06/14

Out of sight…but not out of mind? Coral reefs exist largely out of sight for the majority of the world’s population, so the vast array of ecosystem services they provide for local communities are often forgotten, leading conservation efforts to feel like an uphill battle. In this episode, we talk to the people trying to tackle this problem; from using the sounds that healthy and degraded coral reefs make to monitor their restoration, to bringing people closer to coral reefs using virtual reality.

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28:01

ZSL #040 Mammal conservation in Korea:...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2024/05/20

Co-existence between communities living on the Korean Peninsula and carnivores such as leopards, tigers and black bears, has historically presented many challenges leading to population declines in these species. However, thanks to international treaties such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, as well as economic growth and conservation translocations, the tide is now turning on these declines in South Korea. In this episode, host Harriet McAra is joined by Joshua

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01:36

ZSL #039 Wild Science is back for 2024

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2024/05/10

The ZSL Wild Science podcast is back! After a break, we have returned to explore even more topical issues in zoology, conservation and the environment. New host, Harriet McAra, Science Communications and Events Manager at ZSL's Institute of Zoology, will take listeners on a journey to learn more about the incredible science behind ZSL's cutting-edge conservation work. Resources If there’s a topic you’d like to hear on a future podcast, or if you’d like to share your thoughts any previous episodes,

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52:46

ZSL #038 Extinct in the wild: the vital role of...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2023/03/28

The world is facing a crisis of species extinction, however targeted efforts in conservation biology can provide a glimmer of hope. A new study led by ZSL, published recently in Science, is the first to assess animals and plants categorised as ‘Extinct in the Wild’ by the IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species – until now, a surprisingly overlooked group. In this episode, our host Ellie Darbey, with the help of four fantastic guests, discovers the incredible potential for conservation zoos,

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42:44

ZSL #037 How can we recover nature in our cities:...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2022/12/20

It’s no secret that cities are generally perceived as spaces of little conservation relevance, yet local urban wildlife underpins a range of ecosystem services. In a time where rapid changes in the climate are causing more extreme natural events, wildlife is disappearing and we are becoming more and more disconnected from nature through urbanisation, could the recovery of urban ecosystems be a potential solution for a more resilient planet? In this episode, our host Ellie Darbey will discover how we

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53:06

ZSL #036 What lies beneath: investigating the amazing...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2021/12/09

Pathology is the science of diagnosing diseases by observing physical changes in animal cells and tissues, either in living, or more commonly dead animals. In this episode, our host Ellie Darbey will explore the unseen…or rather, unheard world of wildlife pathology with the help of ZSL’s experienced pathologists, veterinarians, and scientists. Through post mortems on black widow spiders, to giant stranded humpback whales, these four pathology professionals will show the value of this diagnostic work

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50:14

ZSL #035 Nature-based solutions - putting nature at...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2021/10/05

The anthropogenically driven climate crisis and unprecedented rates of biodiversity loss are both threatening the foundations of economies, livelihoods, food security, health and quality of life worldwide. Treating these two crises separately can be ineffectual or even deepen the problem. A recent landmark study calls for a more integrated approach to tackling the climate and biodiversity crises. Ellie Darbey will be joined by lead author of the article, Dr Nathalie Pettorelli, along with three

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52:58

ZSL #034 Marine habitat restoration in the UK: tales...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2021/08/06

Coastal marine habitats are essential to the health of our marine ecosystem, and hold both environmental and social importance. They provide valuable ecosystem services, but for decades they have been impacted by harmful human activities. In her final episode as host, Monni Böhm will be joined by co-host Celine Gamble and an expert panel to explore the need for active restoration to conserve four incredible marine habitats: native oyster beds, saltmarshes, kelp forests and seagrass. How can we scale

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49:42

ZSL #033 Putting reptiles on the map: ZSL Science for...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2021/05/19

Reptiles - lizards, snakes, turtles and crocodilians – make up almost one third of all land vertebrate species on Earth, and also occur in many marine and freshwater systems. Yet despite their amazing diversity, reptiles remain hugely underrepresented in conservation research and action, when compared to mammals, birds, and even amphibians. In this episode, our host Ellie Darbey finds out from four fantastic reptile experts how this is changing through increased global efforts to put reptiles on the

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42:40

ZSL #032 Coral reefs: running the gauntlet of climate...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2021/04/01

Coral reefs are the most biodiverse marine ecosystems in the world, and more than 500 million people worldwide rely on coral reefs for their livelihoods, food security, and coastal protection. However, coral reefs are impacted by several threats, including rises in sea-surface temperature due to climate change. Join Monni as she navigates these unique underwater ecosystems with the help of five fantastic coral connoisseurs. How can new technologies be used to protect and preserve coral reefs for the

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38:53

ZSL #031 Habitat loss and human health –...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2021/03/04

After more than a year of Covid-19 impacting global populations, health systems and economies, one of the major questions being asked was how did this start, and how can we prevent it from happening again? As we humans increasingly disturb our planet’s natural habitats and convert them to agricultural and urban areas, the way we interact with wildlife around us also changes. In this episode, Monni turns to a team of experts in wildlife diseases, to discuss this link between ecosystem degradation and

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47:28

ZSL #030 Can surveillance technology and social...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2021/02/02

Law breaking, such as poaching or fishing inside marine reserves, is a great challenge to conservationists because research is often complicated by ethics and data privacy. However, important technological progress has been made in recent years, especially in the fields of surveillance and vessel tracking. Join Monni as she finds out from a panel of experts how machine learning and technology developments in drones, infrared imaging, global positioning systems and cameras can help tackle wildlife

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43:55

ZSL #029 The future of biodiversity conservation -...

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2020/12/22

Conservationists are working hard to stem global biodiversity loss. Yet, just like biodiversity itself, the conservation movement is very diverse, with a variety of ideas shaping its framing, purpose and application. In this episode, Monni and co-hosts Yara Shennan-Farpón, Helen Muller and Thalassa McMurdo Hamilton, speak with Dr Chris Sandbrook, co-creator of the Future of Conservation Survey, about some of the lessons learned from analysing the perspectives of nearly 10,000 conservationists from

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47:09

ZSL #028 What's next for rewilding?

ZSL Wild Science Podcast ·

2020/12/11

Rewilding has emerged as a captivating, but controversial, concept in conservation. Depending on how rewilding is defined, it aims to increase “wildness” of nature, regenerate ecosystem functioning, develop self-sustaining ecosystems, or a combination of these. Join Monni as she finds out from the experts how real “wildness” can be achieved, and why now is an important time for the UK to be thinking about rewilding. What is even possible in places like the UK where we have quite limited space

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47 results

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