© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

The Plant that Makes Its Home on a Cactus

Season 1 Episode 4 | 3m 16s

Tristerix seeds travel in bird droppings, when they land on a cactus they grow long probe-like stems, that latch onto the cactus body and inject it with parasitic threads. A year later Tristerix bursts out of the cactus skin as a bloom of beautiful flowers that attract hummingbird pollinators.

Extras
Discover how two revolutionary ancient inventions changed the course of humanity forever.
Learn about Marlee Matlin, Oscar-winning actress and champion of the Deaf community.
Follow ancient humans’ journey into an icy and perilous new land.
The Xudum pride works together to bring down a huge buffalo, but things don't go according to plan.
A new generation of lions, cheetahs, and leopards comes of age in Botswana’s Okavango Delta.
Phil Sharp’s RNA breakthrough sparked a revolution in science, health, and biotech.
Discover how Homo sapiens outlasted Neanderthals – and how they helped make us who we are today.
Lediba shows off her incredible agility while hunting monkeys high above the ground in the treetops.
Elephants threaten the safety of lion mum Serami’s cubs.
Young Xudum lionesses return north as Pobe faces tragedy, and Lediba struggles to feed her cub.
Latest Episodes
Sir David Attenborough reveals how humans help plants, many of which face extinction.
Sir David Attenborough explores desert plants with survival tactics.
Sir David Attenborough reveals the surprising effects of the seasons on plant life.
Sir David Attenborough discovers amazing water plants, some of which can count and hunt.
Sir David Attenborough takes a plants-eye view of life in a rainforest.