PhD Lounge
Attached

PhD Lounge

Luis Maia

  • 29 Episodes
  • English
  • Last updated Jul 23, 2023
Donate
Make a 1-time donation

Hello students and graduates. The PhD Lounge podcast has now a one-time donation where you can contribute with any amount to help the podcast get to the top and be within the listener preferences algorithm. So have a seat, enjoy listening and consider to make a donation for more interviews and sessions of PhD Lounge Podcast. Thank you for tuning in, it has been a pleasure.

« Back to episodes

Late-Night Talk: Nikita Bedov. Rethinking Food Chains: What Happens When Predator Eats Predator?

Nov 12, 2025 • S02 E14 • 01:53:57

Students and Graduates!

Nikita is a PhD candidate in Biology at Swansea University who submitted his PhD on the behaviour and ecology of predator interactions, and working at two field sites in sub-Saharan Africa to quantify the famous fight between mongooses and snakes. He also has his YouTube channel, Diary of the Adventurer and the podcast Baffling Biology.

Nikita explores how mongooses and snakes flip the food chain, why threat discrimination is context-driven, and what long-term field data reveal about venom resistance and group defence. Along the way, Nikita shares his thoughts on funding, field logistics, science communication, and making space for creative projects during a PhD.
• mutual predation between mongooses and snakes in Africa
• threat discrimination shaped by movement, learning and context
• venom resistance in mongooses and pup vulnerability
• group mobbing against pythons versus solo risk
• field sites, habituation and camera-trap ecosystems
• self-funding, teaching work and practical trade-offs
• Diary of the Adventurer and Baffling Biology platforms
• science without hype and avoiding dramatization
• choosing supervisors, writing early and skill-building

Follow his YouTube channel Diary of the Adventurer: http://www.youtube.com/@diaryoftheadventurer

Nikita's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikita-bedov-2a2019174/

Nikita's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikitaecras/

Baffling Biology: https://bafflingbiologypodcast.weebly.com/

Thank you all for tuning in, it has been a pleasure!

Image
Title