Talk to the Animals

Episode 2 (1x2)

Data di messa in onda: Lug 17, 2014

Lucy Cooke is a zoologist and animal explorer on a worldwide quest to crack the animal code. In programme two Lucy meets up with scientists who are finding out how animals communicate with their friends and enemies and even what they say to the neighbours. First stop is Africa to meet the spotted hyena and Lucy discovers just how complex their calls are, she learns that they call for help when they're outnumbered and can count how many adversaries they face just by listening to their enemies' calls. Next, Lucy says hello to the chippy chickadee in California - Lucy learns that this little bird has a sophisticated alarm system that rates the level of threat depending on the predator they face. In Kenya Lucy uses an ornamental leopard, a wooden snake and hawk-shaped kite to trick some vervet monkeys into warning each other of danger. When the monkeys' calls and behaviours are different for each fake predator it's clear they can identify the threat and issue each other with detailed escape plans. Lucy is introduced to the only bat in the world that can eavesdrop on frogs and she witnesses the first recorded instance of animals communicating using infra-red; it's a heated discussion between a Californian ground squirrel and a rattlesnake. Next Lucy wants to explore how animals communicate with their friends - she learns that horses recognise their friends and that dolphins not only greet each other, they all have unique signatures or names. For the final leg of her journey Lucy meets two incredible birds who talk to their neighbours - the fork-tailed drongo mimics other species to trick nearby meerkats into giving up their food. But it's the greater honey guide's conversation with its human neigbours that Lucy finds particularly profound and moving.