HN commenters push it, often forcefully, as the video to watch to see what factory farming really involves, and some say it changed their diet.
Topics › Life Sciences, Mind & Health
The best animals & nature videos, according to Hacker News
60 videos about animals & nature that Hacker News commenters keep pointing each other to, ranked by how many separate months they were recommended. Part of Life Sciences, Mind & Health.
HN recommends it often and warmly, as an inspiring and peaceful view of self-reliance and handcraft, in threads on cabins, solitude and woodworking.
Adams fans repeatedly call it one of his best talks, a funny and moving look at extinction and the environment.
HN returns to it as the canonical footage of persistence hunting in threads about human endurance running and evolution.
Recommended as the authentic original that many prefer over Werner Herzog's shortened re-cut.
HN commenters recommend it as one of Veritasium's best videos and one that has aged well.
Shared in climate and land-use threads as a vivid example of how letting land regrow can restore forest.
HN uses it as a short, well-sourced overview showing that fossil fuels kill far more people than nuclear power.
Commenters call it a must-watch, funny and entertaining demonstration that morality has natural roots in animals.
HN commenters point people to it as a cheap, simple, effective way to kill mosquitoes, and some report trying it successfully.
Recommended as a thorough debunking of Koko's supposed language ability in threads about animal communication.
HN cites it as the go-to example of how one keystone species can reshape an entire ecosystem.
Offered as vivid evidence that animals, crows in particular, play for pleasure and display intelligence beyond survival needs.
HN users recommend it as a moving, heartwarming film whenever Istanbul's cats or cat history come up.
HN commenters shared it during early 2020 as a clear explanation of wet markets and how human encroachment on wildlife drives outbreaks.
HN recommends it as a well-done critique of the documentary, sometimes in preference to watching the film itself.
HN commenters point to it as a fun, research-grounded explainer whenever bed bug threads come up.
Recommended as a good high-level view of Humphrey's book and his argument on how consciousness evolved.
HN recommends it as a good visual explanation of how cats land on their feet.
Brought up whenever threads touch on mimicry, voice cloning or bird vocalization, and people say the ending is startling.
HN links it as the quick introduction to zombie-ant fungi whenever the topic comes up.
Used as vivid evidence of crow intelligence and animal physical reasoning in discussions of cognition.
Shared in crow-intelligence threads as a striking demonstration that changes how people see crows.
Shared whenever birds mimic sounds come up, as a mind-blowing example of vocal mimicry.
HN recommends it as a classic on why some animals are suited to farming and domestication and others are not.
Recommended as a clear, evidence-backed introduction to the economics of animal welfare in meat and egg production.
HN recommends it as striking footage of how cleverly jumping spiders plan their attacks.
HN cites it as a compelling example of unforeseen ecosystem effects and rewilding.
HN commenters recommend the series as an excellent, accessible introduction to microscopic life, using this episode as the diatom primer.
HN fans point to it as a fun, nerdy crossover of bird song acoustics and technology, and the story itself got its own thread.
HN uses it again and again as shorthand for the idea that resentment of unfair pay and inequality is built into primates, including us.
HN shares it as an amusing parallel to human drinking habits and as a possible window into addiction.
Recommended in cockatoo threads as a fun and remarkable demonstration of the birds' problem-solving ability.
HN recommends it as a decent, entertaining summary of Lilly's life and work whenever dolphin communication research comes up.
Shared in dog-breeding threads as a snappy summary of the genetic-diversity problem.
Linked in owl-feather and quiet-flight threads as a clear audio comparison.
HN cites it as a clear, well-made treatment of convergent evolution and crabs.
Cited in screwworm threads as a short description of the sterile-insect barrier system that worked for decades.
Commenters use it in earthquake threads as an anecdote that animals may sense tremors seconds before humans, and occasionally as a joke about cat alarms.
Linked in threads about Dune's sound design as a first-hand interview about the squirrel recording.
HN uses it as the canonical example that evolution is not optimal and can get stuck in local maxima.
Cited as a benchmark for leaderless swarm behavior that robots and drones could aim to match.
HN cites it as proof that some octopuses really do crawl out of the water to hunt.
HN cites it in discussions of pay fairness and inequality as a short, funny demonstration of the fairness instinct.
Cited in ecology threads as background on how overgrazing prevents Scottish forests from regenerating.
Linked in threads about fuzzy categories, such as fish, trees and fruit, as the origin of the phrase and a fun illustration.
HN uses it as shorthand for the innate human and primate sense of fairness in threads on pay, wealth and inequality.
Linked in crow-intelligence threads as concrete evidence that crows can learn to trade coins or tokens for food.
Cited purely as a joke or meme whenever a thread touches on fearlessness, persistence or honey badgers.
HN points to it as the origin of the Party Parrot emote and as the famous viral kakapo clip whenever kakapo come up.
HN uses it as the standard illustration of animal tool use and adaptive intelligence in crow threads.
HN commenters cite the footage as anecdotal evidence in threads about animals sensing the Earth's magnetic field, and for the head-tilt listening behavior.
Referenced as a vivid illustration of explore-then-exploit optimization and decentralized network design.
Linked as a quick demonstration of orangutans copying human tool use and chores.
HN links it as the clearest demonstration that crows can fashion tools.
Cited as the direct link to the infamous exploding whale footage, and used for jokes about explosions and whales.
HN references it as a vivid illustration of sexual selection and as a metaphor for competitive display.
Cited as a striking example of coordinated hunting and intelligence in orcas.
HN mentions it almost only as a joke or nostalgic reference when spiders and drugs come up.
Cited as a vivid example of parasites controlling host behavior whenever zombie-fungus comparisons come up.
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