Inside Nature's Giants - 1/4 - The Elephant Monday 29 June
Ch4 9::00pm - 10:00pm
Veterinary scientist Mark Evans gives us natural history from the inside out. It sounds innocuous, until the team in orange suits start sharpening their knives and the carcass of a once noble beast is skinned and sliced. This quartet of animal autopsies will reveal the internal mysteries of the giraffe, crocodile and whale, and starts tonight with the huge, leathery and daunting body of an elephant. An audience of Royal Veterinary College students observes as the workings of the feet, lungs, trunk and ears are exposed, the better to explain how the biggest animal on land has adapted to survive. With Professor Richard Dawkins and a team of best-in-field scientists on hand, it's all very serious: elephant poo is a "faecal pellet". Nevertheless, Inside Nature's Giants is edutainment at its goriest. Though there's plenty here that will fascinate prospective vets and biologists - particularly the huge, pearly-pink digestive system, unravelled like sausages on the dissection-room floor - anyone else would be wise to finish their TV dinner first.
radiotimes
