extinció
De-extinction: to revive a species
In Masjoan at Espinelves (Girona) there is a collection with more than 250 species of stuffed birds, gathered by the naturalist Marià Masferrer Rierola in the late nineteenth century. Among the various species there is the Carolina parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis), a bird native to the United States, which was extinct in 1918 by hunting and […]
The scientific illustration
In the XXI century scientific illustration remains an indispensable tool in various disciplines. Enables to describe a new species of jellyfish, reconstruct the true aspect of an extinct bird called “dodo”, understand step by step operation of liver transplantation, or see the interaction between a drug and a protein.
Eggs at lab
Eggs are a valuable food source. A fried egg, a Spanish omelette, cakes and sweets of all kinds, and even the eggs of sturgeon, the exquisite caviar, are different versions of eggs in a dish. But humans also know how to use eggs as privileged medium for research, they are like a miniature laboratory to […]
Forest fires, adapt or die
The Mediterranean is an area hard hit by forest fires since it is characterized by hot and dry summers. The recurrent fires have pushed the vegetation to acquire two adaptations for surviving: massive germination after fire and regrowth. But it has also forced the fire department and forest ecologists devote many resources to understand fire […]
Fishing drowns
The European Union has suspended the fishing of bluefin tuna because it is near extinction. Meanwhile, the journal “Science” published that in 2048 the markets could run out of fish because the populations of most commercial species are being depleted. What measures should be taken to avoid economic collapse and environmental disaster? Are we on […]
The Mediterranean monk seal
The reporter Pere Renom travels to the Cabo Blanco peninsula on the coast of Mauritania, to see the last great Mediterranean monk seal colony and know what is being done to preserve it. Also navigates to the Columbrete Islands to study one of the last places in the Western Mediterranean where it disappeared.
The Ebro River: invaders and invaded
Although the Ebro is one of the best preserved large rivers in Europe, is also the scene of an environmental conflict between native and invasive species. To understand this conflict the reporter Pere Renom will practise kayaking on some of the wildest corners of the Ebro river. He will find naiades, a group of freshwater […]
