Wild Inside: Jungle Royalty - The Jaguar

Wild Inside embarks on something we hardly ever witness – a look
inside some of nature’s most wondrous animals. Its a rare chance
to delve deep into some enigmatic and very different wild animals
– from a reptile, to a mammal to a fish – unravelling the
intricate internal complexity inside three of the most amazing
animals ever to evolve. What makes the ultimate predator? What
are the keys to successful survival in an ever-changing
environment? Whilst we’ve gained a lot by observing their
behaviour from the outside, to truly understand these animals, we
need to look at what’s on the inside too.


Ben Garrod, Professor of Evolutionary Biology and Science
Engagement at the University of East Anglia, together with friend
and expert veterinary surgeon Dr Jess French, open up and
investigate what makes each of these animals unique. During each
animal post mortem, they’re joined by experts in comparative
anatomy, evolution and behaviour as they put these enigmatic
animals under the knife. Along the way they reveal some unique
adaptations which give each species a leg (or claw) up in
surviving in the big wild world.


The series begins with one of the truly exotic loaners of the cat
family – which at just over two metres long, covered with
beautiful gold and black rosette markings, is pure jungle royalty
- the greatest of the South American big cats - the Jaguar


Part 2: One of the largest predatory reptiles - the Burmese
Python whose extraordinary singular body plan has enabled nearly
4000 species of snakes to succeed in inhabiting nearly every part
of the planet,


Part 3: The largest bony fish you might never have heard of – the
bizarre-looking Oceanic Sunfish which is being spotted
increasingly in UK waters


Presented by Prof Ben Garrod and Dr Jess French and produced by
Adrian Washbourne.


First broadcast on Tuesday 7 December 2021.