© 2026 Michigan State University Board of Trustees
Public Media from Michigan State University
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Access to this video is a benefit to members

Animal Odd Couples

Season 31 Episode 3 | 53m 20s

Love apparently knows no boundaries in the animal kingdom. Despite the odds, there are countless stories of the most unlikely cross-species relationships imaginable. Instincts gone awry? NATURE investigates why animals form these special bonds and what these relationships suggest about the nature of animal emotions. Animal Odd Couples premiered Wednesday, November 7, 2012.

Aired: 11/06/12 | Expires: 02/03/21
Major support for NATURE is provided by The Arnhold Family in memory of Henry and Clarisse Arnhold, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, The Fairweather Foundation, Charles Rosenblum, Kathy Chiao and Ken Hao, Sarah and Sandra Lyu in memory of Seung and Dorothy Lyu, The Lillian Goldman Charitable Trust, Dr. George Stanley and Sandra Caruso, Colin S. Edwards, Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, Filomen M. D’Agostino Foundation, Gregg Peters Monsees Foundation, Koo and Patricia Yuen, Seton J. Melvin, Sandra Atlas Bass, George D. Smith Fund, Inc., Dr. Coralyn W. Whitney Program Fund for Science and Nature, Bradley L. Goldberg Family Foundation, The Hite Foundation, Arlene and Milton D. Berkman, Paul H. Klingenstein and Kathleen R. Bole, Perpetual Kindness Foundation and Sun Hill Renewal Fund, and by Viewers Like You.
Extras
In northern Kenya, a remarkable conservation experiment is unfolding at Reteti Sanctuary.
Parenthood is the ultimate journey, full of danger.
A boxer crab mother relies on living anemones for defense.
This spider mother provides one last meal for her brood: herself.
Go behind the scenes of our miniseries "Parenthood."
An unlikely partnership in East Lombok turns shark hunting into a ecotourism venture.
See how jungle animal parents raise children by mastering their environment.
Sharing a tree hole, two unlikely allies protect their families in very different ways.
This isn’t a prison. It’s a carefully built nursery, sealed for protection.
A langur mother climbs dangerous cliffs to protect her baby from rival males.