THE MICROBIAL MATCHMAKER: NATURE'S SURPRISING INFLUENCE ON ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR

2025

Big Love, Tiny Influencers

What if microbes shaped an elephant’s love life? Scientists are uncovering how bacteria influence animal attraction, and we brought it to life. Narrated by Biological Scientist Diego de Moura Campos, this animated textbook-style journey blends naturalist illustrations with swirling microbes—because sometimes, the tiniest creatures have the biggest impact.

Breakdown

  • Organisation: Arludo

  • Target Audience: School Children

  • Platforms: Youtube, Facebook, Instagram

What’s the Deal?

Imagine you're a 3.2-metre tall 3,000 kilogram elephant on a dating app, what do you think would influence your choices? A tiny microbe was definitely not at the top of our list. But in fact science is just uncovering the far-reaching influence of bacteria and microbes on other species. Here at Binkyfilms we found this research fascinating and were excited to bring these findings to life.

The film is narrated by Diego de Moura Campos, a Biological Scientist with a deep interest in the influence of microbes on animal reproductive behaviour. The visuals are made in the style of a scientific text book and guide you through the amazing ways in which this process plays out in various species. By the end of the project we shared Diego’s view: “Isn’t it incredible that we have these little tiny creatures influencing the behaviour of these really big animals”. Diego is proud of how this research can help protect animals into the future. We hope you can learn from his findings.

Path to Success

It was important to us to accurately represent the science behind this animation. We drew on text from current research papers to populate the pages of the animated textbook and selected animal species which have been included in current scientific studies. We then rendered these animals as naturalist drawings. The microbes and bacteria were represented by a continuously changing and moving flow of particles circulating around and between them. This led to an interesting watch and you can even pause the video and read the textbook!