Natural Histories: Fish and Invertebrates

Award-winning wildlife presenter Brett Westwood explores our relationship with fish and invertebrates, and their impact on human culture and society. Throughout the ages, human beings have had a profound fascination with the natural world. It has influenced all aspects of our civilisation, from science and religion to music, art, literature and film. These 12 episodes, taken from Radio 4's epic series Natural Histories, find presenter Brett Westwood exploring two major groups of animals - fish, who have lived on Earth for over 450 million years, and invertebrates, who make up 97 percent of all species worldwide - to find out how our perception and representation of them has changed over time. Beginning with one of our most iconic predators, he dives into the world of sharks, showing how Jaws gave them a reputation as fearsome killers - and signed the death warrant for millions of their number. Brett also meets the closest thing to an alien lifeform: an octopus, discovering how the sea