The Research Behind the Documentaries
In the pilot of Blue Planet II, we are introduced to the dramatic scenery of Northern Japan, where life teems beneath the surface. Out of a patch of flora emerges the rather odd looking male Kobudai, a one meter long fish weighing around 15 kilos. His bulbous head and protruding chin give a sort of... Continue Reading →
It’s hard to get the girl. In the case of the marvelous spatuletail hummingbird (Loddigesia mirabilis), males need more than just pretty looks — they need stamina, as shown in Episode 5 of David Attenborough’s Life Season 1. Males of this species are unique in one particular feature: their spatules (or rackets) [1]. The male... Continue Reading →
The first episode of Blue Planet II features an intriguing segment in which the Asian Sheepshead Wrasse (Semicossyphus reticulatus) changes from a female to a male and then competes with other males for territory and mates. The fish has male and female organs, which enables it to change from a female to male during its... Continue Reading →
In Blue Planet II, Episode 1: One Ocean, we are introduced to the Kobudai fish, an example of the sexual fluidity of fish. After 10 years, a large female Kobudai fish undergoes a several month-long transformation into a large, bulbous and aggressive male. These are known as sequential hermaphrodites, and in the Kobudai fish case,... Continue Reading →
The Evolution of Planet Earth 