When Dorothea Bate turned up at the Natural History Museum in late 1890s London and demanded a job she would have been unaware of the tremendous legacy her work would leave. Her boldness led Dorothea to the Mediterranean looking for the bones of extinct mammals, finding many species of tiny elephants and hippos.

She would later become the first female scientist to be employed by the museum. We delve into the palaeontology department at the Natural History Museum to reveal the bones Dorothea unearthed – some of which turned out to not be elephants after all.

Palaeontologist Tori explains why Dorothea Bate is one of her Natural History Heroes.

First heard on BBC Radio 4 in September 2015. Show less