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The Marine Iguanas' Unusual Shrinking Adaptation

Season 1 Episode 1 | 10m 42s

On the Galápagos Islands, Greg Lewbart and his team are trying to catch a marine iguana. Their goal is to study the iguana’s unusual adaptation. They have evolved the ability to shrink and regrow their vertebrae in response to changes in food availability. These conditions arises when the Pacific Ocean that is home to the algae they feed on warms, a result of the weather system known as El Niño.

Extras
A momentous occasion as a new Buffalo herd are returned to the Fort Peck Reservation.
Plants are reacting to our changing climate so scientists are looking to soil for answers.
Wildebeest numbers rose after eradicating rinderpest. The Serengeti ecosystem rebounded.
Forgotten and overlooked, grasslands could hold the key to our planet’s survival.
billy barr tells us the lilies emergence is out of sync with the hummingbirds arrival.
Red foxes are moving further north following the encroachment of the tree line.
Reindeer are playing a crucial role in preserving the tundra by eating forest vegetation.
At the planet’s frozen extremes, animals can reveal the changes taking place.
The ibex are Israel’s newest big city resident with rising desert temperatures.
Mylene finds that when temperatures rise, zebra finches can sing to their unhatched eggs.
Forgotten and overlooked, grasslands could hold the key to our planet’s survival.
Ice
At the planet’s frozen extremes, animals can reveal the changes taking place.
In the hottest places, species are going to extraordinary lengths to survive.
Remarkable island wildlife reveals insights into our rapidly changing planet.
Animals have a surprising story to tell about our rapidly changing planet.