As humans, we fail to think of ourselves as incorporated into the animal kingdom, But with these eight talks, you might see how we factor into the food chain. From extinct species, to warding off growing ones, these speakers from the 14-city TED Talent Search have seen it all, so listen to their stories of majesty and survival.

Andrea Marshall: An up-close look at the majestic manta Ray
TED@Johannesburg
Andrea Marshall, fascinated with the ocean at a young age, wrote her first doctoral thesis on the manta ray — the cartilaginous, friendly, brainy rays that constantly swim and never sleep for up to 40 or 50 years.

Allan Savory: How wildlife can resuscitate dying land
TED@Johannesburg
Allan Savory posits that agriculture is causing more damage than fossil fuels because of the eroding soil used to harvest crops. To counteract the prominence of global desertification, Allan founded the Holistic Management method that controls wildlife grazing patterns to mimic nature on this forgotten land.

Emma Stokes: Imagine a world without tigers
TED@Bangalore
This wildlife conservation scientist traveled across Asia for five years trying to document the dwindling 3,500 global tiger population. But in all that time, she has only seen one tiger. In this talk she crafts two stories — a world with this beautiful species, and a world without.

Dino Martins: Honeybees and humans — an ancient love affair
TED@Nairobi
Did you know honeybees and humans both originate from East Africa? In this talk, Dino Martins sheds light on the ancient love affair between honeybees, honey guide birds, honey badgers and humans.

Carin Bondar: Reproduction and survival in the Animal Kingdom
TED@Vancouver
This notable science writer shows us how we’re not the only species in the animal kingdom learning how to reproduce and use contraception. In this interesting talk, Carin Bondar gives us brief insights into how our primate and insect friends have similar wits about them.

Sarath Champati: Eye to eye with wild animals
TED@Bangalore
In this talk, Sarath Champati shares his love of being a naturalist through photos and enchanting tales of encounters with some of the world’s most endangered animals.

Munir Virani: Why I love vultures
TED@Nairobi
Did you know that 11 out of 16 species of vultures are at risk of becoming extinct? We didn’t either, but watch this talk to find out why they are so culturally, and ecologically, important.

Richard Turere: My invention that outsmarted lions
TED@Nairobi
This brilliant 13-year-old simultaneously saved his family and their livestock from getting mauled by lions in the middle of the night with an electronic contraption after fiddling with the insides of VCRs, lightbulbs, and bike reflectors. Watch this talk and become a tinkerer too.

Check out more wonderful playlists from the TED Talent Search. Rating of these 293 talks is open until August 31.