The Lifegivers
The world’s essential pollinators – bees, moths and butterflies – bring color to the world and put food on our plates. Far from fragile, they’re hardy creatures living complex lives, featuring physical transformations and mind-blowing migrations.
Episodes
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The Lifegivers
S1 E2 - 53m 19s
The world’s essential pollinators – bees, moths and butterflies – bring color to the world and put food on our plates. Far from fragile, they’re hardy creatures living complex lives, featuring physical transformations and mind-blowing migrations.
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Insect Apocalypse?
S1 E1 - 53m 19s
Scientists and enthusiasts investigate the global insect "apocalypse," revealing the crucial roles bugs play on our planet and the bleak picture future without them.
Extras + Features
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Dung Beetles Do One of the Dirtiest Jobs in the Animal Kingdom
S1 E4 - 9m 52s
In Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game Reserve on the plains of South Africa, an army of dung beetles does one of the dirtiest jobs in the animal kingdom. Dr. Gimo Daniel studies these beetles, who voraciously recycle the dung of the much larger animals on the plains. It might seem like a bizarre and thankless undertaking, but dung beetles are crucial to the health and waste management of this environment.
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The Longstanding Tradition of Beetle Battles in Thailand
S1 E4 - 8m 19s
In Northern Thailand, the longstanding tradition of beetle fights is a fascinating spectacle. Ummat Somjee befriends local beetle fighters to understand how locals have raised these beetles to fight for sport. In order to raise strong beetles, and get them to fight, the Thai locals pay close attention to the Rhinoceros Beetle’s behavior, diet, and natural habitat.
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Searching for Praying Mantises in the Brazilian Amazon
S1 E3 - 10m 7s
Mantis expert Gavin Svenson heads to the Brazilian amazon to sample the diversity of mantises in the forest. It is important for Svenson to understand the and quantify the number of mantises in the amazon, he describes the problems with declines in that we cannot know what we are losing if we don’t know what we even have. Svenson wants to find a mantis he described and named after his daughter.
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Dragonflies Are Masters of Flight That Start Life Underwater
S1 E3 - 7m 4s
Dragonfly expert Jessica Ware is on a mission to understand the evolutionary history of dragonflies. Deep in the rainforest of Guyuna, Ware collects dragonflies and damselflies to bring back to her lab. Dragonflies and damselfies are well known for their dazzling beauty and constant presence around freshwater sources, but their early life stage as vicious underwater predators hidden from sight.
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The Evolutionary Race Between Moths and Bats
S1 E2 - 7m 55s
In Sumacó, Ecuador, Entomologists Jesse Barber and Akito Kawahara study the centuries-long evolutionary arms race between moths and bats. Moths have had to develop a wide range of bizarre and clever defenses to combat the threat of bats, from emitting toxic smells to jamming bats’ echolocation sonar with their thorax, Kawahara and Barber describe this fascinating battle in the night sky.
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The Epic Migration of Monarch Butterflies
S1 E2 - 4m 58s
In one of the most singular migratory events in the animal world, monarch butterflies spend their winters in the fir forests of Michoacan, Mexico. It takes multiple generations to make this trip, and when the monarchs arrive they completely cover the fir trees of the high altitude forests. Conservationist Homero Gonzalez describes the meaning of these monarchs to the local culture.
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Sylvana Ross Researches Tapinoma Sessile, the Odorous House Ant
S1 E1 - 9m 44s
Urban Ecologist Sylvana Ross visits Baltimore, Maryland to find Tapinoma Sessile, the odorous house ant. Ross’ research is focused on ants and how they respond to different environments within a city. By comparing ants in historically red-lined neighborhoods and those in more open, green spaces, Ross is able to measure how ants respond to human-altered habitats.
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Ummat Somjee Researches Flag-Footed Bugs in Panamá
S1 E1 - 6m 19s
In the rainforest of Panamá, evolutionary biologist Ummat Somjee researches the enigmatic behavior of a family of flag-footed bugs. By creating a quasi-natural lab he calls ‘The Bug Hut’ Somjee is able to observe the flag-footed bugs intimately. Somjee discovers how these insects use their unique appendages to scare predators away.
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Series Preview
S1 - 30s
A four-part global investigation into insect declines, exploring their diversity and their critical roles on the planet. Scientists reveal the beauty of bugs, from pollinators to insect assassins to the tiny clean-up crews that purify the planet.
Schedule
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Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Lifegivers
Tuesday
May 20
1 Hour
The colorful world of Earth's essential pollinators -- bees, moths and butterflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Lifegivers
Wednesday
May 21
1 Hour
The colorful world of Earth's essential pollinators -- bees, moths and butterflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Lifegivers
Wednesday
May 21
1 Hour
The colorful world of Earth's essential pollinators -- bees, moths and butterflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Wednesday
May 21
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Wednesday
May 21
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Thursday
May 22
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Thursday
May 22
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Saturday
May 24
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Sunday
May 25
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Sunday
May 25
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Sunday
May 25
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Tuesday
May 27
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Wednesday
May 28
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Eat or Be Eaten
Wednesday
May 28
1 Hour
The ruthless realm of some of the stealthiest and cleverest insects in the animal kingdom -- from praying mantises and aquatic insects to dragonflies. -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Beetle Mania
Wednesday
May 28
1 Hour
The crucial ecological roles that beetles play in nearly every environment, and why they are often regarded "the most important species on the planet." -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Beetle Mania
Wednesday
May 28
1 Hour
The crucial ecological roles that beetles play in nearly every environment, and why they are often regarded "the most important species on the planet." -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Beetle Mania
Thursday
May 29
1 Hour
The crucial ecological roles that beetles play in nearly every environment, and why they are often regarded "the most important species on the planet." -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Beetle Mania
Thursday
May 29
1 Hour
The crucial ecological roles that beetles play in nearly every environment, and why they are often regarded "the most important species on the planet." -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Beetle Mania
Saturday
May 31
1 Hour
The crucial ecological roles that beetles play in nearly every environment, and why they are often regarded "the most important species on the planet." -
Image
Bugs That Rule the World
Beetle Mania
Sunday
Jun 1
1 Hour
The crucial ecological roles that beetles play in nearly every environment, and why they are often regarded "the most important species on the planet."
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