Back Garden Biology

Dedicated to moths, this episode explores how and why these unsung heroes deserve more attention. Lindsay examines the horse chestnut leaf miner and hunts for spectacular hornet moths in her local park; Doug Boyes explains why he is a life-long fan; and Professor Ben Sheldon empties his moth-trap so we can all see who’s hanging out in the garden at night.

Dedicated to moths, this episode explores how and why these unsung heroes deserve more attention. Lindsay examines the horse chestnut leaf miner and hunts for spectacular hornet moths in her local park; Doug Boyes explains why he is a life-long fan; and Professor Ben Sheldon empties his moth-trap so we can all see who’s hanging out in the garden at night. Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

Woodpigeons are common garden birds, whose familiar call has been likened to someone complaining about their feet. But woodpigeons make fantastic parents, and like all pigeons and doves produce a kind of 'milk' to feed their young. Find out more about them and discover how an Oxford PhD student is trying to uncover more about the feral pigeons in town centres and their wild relative, the rock dove.

Woodpigeons are common garden birds, whose familiar call has been likened to someone complaining about their feet. But woodpigeons make fantastic parents, and like all pigeons and doves produce a kind of 'milk' to feed their young. Find out more about them and discover how an Oxford PhD student is trying to uncover more about the feral pigeons in town centres and their wild relative, the rock dove.

Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

Find out how birds, insects and plants exploit iridescence. The natural world is filled with colour, but colours can be produced in different ways. Solid colours are due to chemical pigments, but other colour phenomena, such as iridescence are due to physical structures. Find out how birds, insects and plants exploit iridescence to dazzle sexual partners and intimidate rivals, or even just to make the most of the left-over light that other plants can't use.

Blue and great tits commonly use nest-boxes in gardens. In this episode we explore their nesting behaviour and get a priviledged view inside the nest-boxes at Wytham Woods. We explore what determines the number of eggs that they lay and ask whether could they lay more.

Blue and great tits commonly use nest-boxes in gardens. In this episode we explore their nesting behaviour and get a priviledged view inside the nest-boxes at Wytham Woods. We explore what determines the number of eggs that they lay and ask whether could they lay more. Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

Lindsay searches for the truth about our verdant green world and tackles a mystery about her rose-bushes: who ate all the greenfly? We live on a green planet and it's hard to imagine it being any different. But the fact that most plants are covered in lush green leaves needs some explaining. Part of the explanation lies deep inside plant cells and part of it with the insects that feed on them. Join Lindsay as she searches for the truth about our verdant world and tackles a mystery that unfolds on her rose-bushes: who ate all the greenfly?

Lindsay searches for the truth about our verdant green world and tackles a mystery about her rose-bushes: who ate all the greenfly? We live on a green planet and it's hard to imagine it being any different. But the fact that most plants are covered in lush green leaves needs some explaining. Part of the explanation lies deep inside plant cells and part of it with the insects that feed on them. Join Lindsay as she searches for the truth about our verdant world and tackles a mystery that unfolds on her rose-bushes: who ate all the greenfly? Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

Did you know that just five groups of insects dominate your garden? And can you tell the difference between bugs and beetles? In this week's episode, meet the Bug Five and learn how to tell them apart, with beautiful drawings by Lindsay's former student, Pandora Dewan, and lots of new video clips. You are encouraged to select your own Bug Five, by choosing your favourite representative of each of the five groups and you can decide whether Linday's Bug Five are better or worse than those selected by entomologist Liam Crowley.