#65 Nick and the Lord Howe Island stick insects (Australia)

Join host Dr. Cat Vendl as she meets Dr. Nick Doidge, zoo veterinarian and researcher, working to save the world's rarest insect – the Lord Howe Island Stick Insect, nicknamed the "tree lobster."

Thought extinct for 80 years, these living fossils were dramatically rediscovered on a volcanic rock stack in the Pacific Ocean. But after bringing them back from just two individuals, a new threat emerged: deadly bacterial infections threatening the entire captive population.

Discover how Nick has developed cutting-edge diagnostic tools to detect the pathogenic bacterial strains ahead of the insects' planned reintroduction to Lord Howe Island next year.

This episode reveals the intricate science behind saving a species that survived impossible odds on a cliff face in the middle of the ocean.

Links

Nick's profile on the One Health Research Group at Melbourne Uni

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