Skip to main content

Up Next

The World Before Plate Tectonics

The World Before Plate Tectonics

Season 3 Episode 10
9:24
When Dinosaurs Chilled in the Arctic

When Dinosaurs Chilled in the Arctic

Season 3 Episode 11
9:20
How the Walrus Got Its Tusks

How the Walrus Got Its Tusks

Season 3 Episode 12
7:42
The Story of the Dino Stampede

The Story of the Dino Stampede

Season 3 Episode 13
10:43
The Biggest Frog that Ever Lived

The Biggest Frog that Ever Lived

Season 3 Episode 14
7:05
The Dinosaur Who Was Buried at Sea

The Dinosaur Who Was Buried at Sea

Season 3 Episode 15
12:11
How We Figured Out Fermentation

How We Figured Out Fermentation

Season 3 Episode 16
9:20
The Oddest Couple in the Fossil Record

The Oddest Couple in the Fossil Record

Season 3 Episode 17
8:48
The Sea Monster from the Andes

The Sea Monster from the Andes

Season 3 Episode 19
6:27
Back to Show
Eons

How We Identified One of Earth’s Earliest Animals

Season 3 Episode 8

Scientists had no idea what type of organisms the life forms of the Ediacaran were—lichen, colonies of bacteria, fungi or something else. It turns out, the key to solving the puzzle of Precambrian life was a tiny bit of fossilized fat.

Only Available with Passport Starting
Support Provided By
Season
What Will Earth Be Like 300 Million Years From Now?
9:34
We’re taking a look towards the deep future. After all, the story is far from over.
What Was The Earliest Surgery?
7:59
When did we start practicing medicine in its varied, complex forms?
How Snake Venom Sparked An Evolutionary Arms Race
9:11
For some, the rise of venomous elapid snakes was an almost apocalyptic catastrophe.
Why Is It So Hard to Tell the Sex of a Dinosaur?
12:07
When you only have fossils, how do you know if a dinosaur is female or male?
Animals Are Older Than We Thought
11:57
What are animal-like fossils doing in rocks a billion years old?
Our Most Mysterious Extinct Cousins
9:41
Paranthropus lived alongside our ancestors. If we are still here, why aren’t they?
How Ancient Microbes Rode Bug Bits Out to Sea
8:42
Exoskeleton fragments may have allowed microbes to sail the ocean and change the world.
Why Only Earth Has Fire
10:45
Fire only exists only on Earth because fire can’t exist without life.
Beans & Bees (Not Bats) Gave Us Butterflies
7:09
Turns out bats didn’t give us butterflies and we should be thanking bees and beans.
The Huge Extinctions We Are Just Now Discovering
8:58
Graptolites show us how unpredictable the Silurian period really could be.
When Did We Stop Being Naked?
9:05
How can we figure out when we first started wearing clothes?
Do Thunderbeasts Prove Giant Animals Are Inevitable?
7:50
From an evolutionary perspective, is bigger always better?
Active loading indicator