Skip to content
Learning from Darwin's Finches episode artwork

May 17, 2015 31 min

Learning from Darwin's Finches

from Ask A Biologist Podcast Hosted by Dr. Biology Talks with Peter and Rosemary Grant

The Galápagos Islands are home to some of the most amazing plants and animals. One group of animals, the Galapagos finches, have been the focus of biologists ever since Darwin wrote about them in his book, On the Origin of Species. Dr. Biology had the opportunity to sit down with Peter and Rosemary Grant to talk about the more than 30 years they spent studying what has come to be called Darwin’s finches. Don't miss listening to this Robinson Crusoe and Swiss Family Robinson adventure that includes the Grants' two children. If you have not already, please subscribe to the podcast so you can be notified about new episodes.

Episode details come from the podcast's RSS feed.

Embed this episode

Ready to play

Learning from Darwin's Finches

0:00 31:17

Chapters

  1. 0:00 Intro
  2. 1:50 How long did you spend researching finches in the Galapagos?
  3. 2:16 Which islands do you work on?
  4. 2:43 Daphne Island.
  5. 3:28 What's it like living on Daphne Island?
  6. 5:06 Misunderstandings of evolution.
  7. 5:44 Did you know you'd see evolution in action?
  8. 6:18 Observations on fast evolution.
  9. 7:09 What were you measuring?
  10. 7:54 Is "survival of the fittest" a good phrase to use?
  11. 9:14 What happens when the environment changes again?
  12. 10:54 Beak variation.
  13. 11:50 Darwin's finches in the Galapagos Islands.
  14. 12:49 How do you catch the finches and what do you measure?
  15. 13:48 How many birds have you captured?
  16. 13:56 Vampire...finches?
  17. 15:02 Other interesting finches.
  18. 16:15 Do you have a favorite finch?
  19. 17:40 How the finches learn certain behaviors.
  20. 18:07 Did your whole family collect data on the finches?
  21. 18:38 Choosing to grow up visiting the Galapagos.
  22. 19:14 Immersing the kids in nature and science.
  23. 20:03 Independence in science can make a big difference for kids.
  24. 20:16 Funny stories in the Galapagos.
  25. 22:26 Rosemary, when did you first know you wanted to be a biologist?
  26. 23:36 When Peter first knew he wanted to be a biologist.
  27. 24:46 Peter, if you couldn't do science or teach, what would you do?
  28. 26:22 Rosemary, if you couldn't do science or teach, what would you do?
  29. 27:07 Peter's advice to people interested in biology.
  30. 29:19 Rosemary's advice to people interested in biology.
  31. 30:28 Sign-off

No transcript yet.

Requests help us decide what to transcribe next.

Share this episode

Similar podcasts

French Your Way Jessica: Native French teacher founder of French Your Way Boost your French listening skills and test your comprehension with this one of a kind series of podcasts. Get the chance to listen to a real conversation between native speakers talking at normal speed AND customise your learning experience through carefully designed sets of questions (2 levels of difficulty) available for download at www.frenchvoicespodcast.com. All interviews also come with the transcript. French teacher Jessica interviews native speakers of French from around the world who share a bit of their life and passion. Where else would you meet in one same place a French yoga teacher based in Melbourne, a soap manufacturer from Provence, or a couple cycling around the world?

Frequently asked questions

How long is this episode of Ask A Biologist Podcast?

This episode is 31 minutes long.

When was this Ask A Biologist Podcast episode published?

This episode was published on May 17, 2015.

Can I download this Ask A Biologist Podcast episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.