Welcome to the fourteenth episode of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

In this episode, Emma talks about the recent decision by the British Government to possibly give beavers native species status and legal protection, and Robi chats about some hope for tuna species despite dwindling populations of other marine species. For the animals of the week, the dynamic duo talk about the fearsome Nile crocodiles, predators half-made of time, and the bizarre reticulated sirens!. In the conservation section, the team explore research to make seeds more drought resistant by using organic materials and explore the possibility of recovering jaguar populations in the USA. 

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the thirteenth episode of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

In this episode, our animals of the weeks include the shadowy short-eared dog and the cryptic little black tapir, which may or may not be a new species. The dynamic duo then delve deeper into some wider conservation stories, including a sad update about the status of vaquitas in Baha California and the newly discovered, yet already critically endangered Rice's Whale. 

Shoutout to Wayne Gourlay for the suggestion of the short-eared dog!

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the twelfth episode of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

In episode 12, Robi and Emma reveal very exciting news - The Zoology Ramblings Podcast has been selected as one of Spotify’s 8 winners of the Next Wave Initiative! We are so thrilled to have been selected alongside 7 other amazing podcasts which cover some very important and pressing topics in our society today.

For the species of the week, Robi and Emma talk about their recent expedition down to Devon to try and film wild (illegal - but now free) beavers! For the conservation section, Robi covers the elusive and possible extinct white-eyed river martin of Thailand, whilst Emma talks about cicadas and their weird and wonderful life cycle!

Shoutout to listener Hayley for the recommendation to discuss cicadas!

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the eleventh episode of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

In episode 11, Robi and Emma ramble first about their species of the week: the enigmatic tayra of Central and South America, and the tiny monito del monte, a South American marsupial lost on a sea of time! Then for our global conservation section, the dynamic duo focus on zoonotic diseases and the lessons we can learn from the Covid-19 pandemic on our relationship with the wild, and also highlight why the taxonomic classification of the African elephant really does, truly, matter. For our UK conservation topics, Emma talk about the very exciting reintroduction of beavers to Wales for the first time in 400 years and Robi talks about the fantastic white stork project and our recent interview with the wonderful conservationist and project manager of the white stork project Lucy Groves. 

⁠https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969720364494⁠

⁠https://oneworldonehealth.wcs.org/About-Us/Mission/The-Manhattan-Principles.aspx⁠

⁠https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24933240-800-how-our-abuse-of-nature-makes-pandemics-like-covid-19-more-likely/⁠

⁠https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/zoonoses⁠

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the tenth episode of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

For the species of the week, Robi talks about the Sunda Islands tigers (with a rambling tangent into tiger taxonomy and palaeontology!), and Emma discusses the Laysan albatross (and in particular one individual, named Wisdom) and their extraordinary long lives! For the local conservation section, the dynamic duo discuss the majestic eagle owl in Britain, and the controversial proposal of a new coal mine in Cumbria. For the global conservation section, the team discuss coral aquaculture and its use as a mitigation strategy against global climate change impacts.

Link to the petition to campaign against the Cumbria Coal Mine: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/stop-the-cumbria-coal-mine 

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the ninth episode (part 2) of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

In this episode the hosts talk about the Ebo forest in Cameroon and the incredible biodiversity of life it contains, as well as it’s threats and the pioneering individuals trying to conserve it. For the local conservation section, the dynamic duo chat about the invasive American mink which has exploded in numbers across Europe. 

https://whitleyaward.org/winners/community-protection-of-the-great-apes-of-ebo-forest/ 

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the ninth episode (part 1) of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

This episode has been split into two parts because of it’s length. In part 1, we touch on the species of the week, including neon-pink slugs which live atop a mountain in Australia, as well as the hirola, an alien-looking antelope on the brink of extinction. The team also talk about the first of their global conservation topics - the illegal trade in elephant ivory, and how it has become a conservation crisis for the persistence of wild elephant populations. 

⁠https://elephantsandbees.com⁠

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the eighth episode of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

In this special Episode Short, the dynamic duo go into a deep dissection of the illegal pangolin trade, and discuss the threats which both the Asian and African pangolins are facing. The team highlight amazing conservationists and organisations which are doing tireless work to try and conserve these incredible animals. Emma and Robi also discuss the links between the illegal wildlife trade and the Covid-19 pandemic.

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the seventh episode of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

In this special Episode Short, the dynamic duo go into a deep dive into the remarkable Orcinus orca, the Blackfish, the Killer Whale. They chat about their distribution, their complex social structures, and the global threats they face - as well as the plight they face in 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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!

Welcome to the sixth episode of The Zoology Ramblings Podcast!

Robi and Emma have been busy with the launch of The Biome Project, an exciting new wildlife filmmaking adventure! So this episode is a Special Episode, where the gang do a deep focus on just two species: the enormous and sadly extinct cave bear, Ursus spelaeus of Pleistocene Eurasia, and the gelada monkeys of the Ethiopian highlands, primates trapped on the roof of Africa by human expansion and a changing environment! 

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 Coordinator 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 follow more of our weird and wonderful wildlife adventures on instagram: @thezoologyramblingspodcast & @robi_watkinson_wildlife & @emma_hodson_wildlife

To get exclusive access to podcast notes, background research and references, consider supporting our Patreon (link to come), where you can get all sorts of extra goodies and Zoology Ramblings merch!