Creature Feature

Today we talk about animals who escape after being eaten! There's only a few exits to choose from, but these Houdinis make sure not to end up being dinner, even after all hope seems lost. But it's a race against the clock to not be burned alive in the most horrifying way possible. Also, we mention Moo Deng, everyone's favorite little pygmy hippo, yay! 

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Enjoy one of my favorite old episodes: animals who live the trash lifestyle, pretend to be trash, live inside trash, or are generally having a crappy day (and that's how they like it)! With guest, Pallavi Gunalan! Stay tuned for the results of last week's Mystery Animal Sound next week! 

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Today on the show, Weird little guys! Animals that are a wee bit freaky, and also, a bit wee. We're going to get progressively littler, and weirder as we go on. From a cryptid that is essentially a tiny sandworm from Dune, to an even smaller animal that likes to get ahead of home security, these animals have devised some odd evolutionary strategies. Featuring Molly Conger of the new podcast Weird Little Guys! 

Footnotes

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Crocodilians may have a somewhat intimidating appearance, but that doesn't mean they don't have feelings! We talk about why it's not cool to bop crocs on the nose with a shovel unless you're about to get eaten. 

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I answer your questions! Why are some cats born without tails? Can dogs play fetch in space? What's the deal with leafcutter ants, and what are cool insects wings not used for flight? 

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Today on the show we continue hot shark summer with shark biologist and author of the book, "Sharks Don't Sink," Jasmin Graham! 

Guest: Jasmin Graham 

Footnotes: Minorities in Shark Science website: https://www.misselasmo.org/

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Everything you could possibly ever want to know about camels! Plus: flesh balloons (romantic flesh balloons)! 

Guest: Bridgett Greenberg

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wzSqttUixtTsUlLPKKKmXWuHRQyUgko7TT9UUz6y33I/edit?usp=sharing

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Sharks on cocaine? Embryonic sharks with super powers? Stomach eversion!? We talk hot shark summer. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: how much musk can a musk duck chuck? 

Guest: Chris Crofton

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oIBqVnzRnWU0dk2eUqPueCsMxlJyxc7-jEMLgvh6l14/edit?usp=sharing

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The weirdest, wildest animals you can find in bodies of freshwater! From mysterious lumpy orbs, to the largest living pancake in the world, we're talking about all that's wet, fresh, and slimy. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: how many baby bjorns can you carry at once? 

Guest: Abe Epperson 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MMRHJvxBAZB6O-LaiV9X-0mBMNVeybNZ1yAFNfE5rUM/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions! From debunking bigfeet to wascally wabbit phywogeny, and whether aliens could be revived after billions of years (and then kill us).

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Beat the summer heat with these worm facts! Some worms like it cold, some like it hot, but what they all have in common is living life as a basic tube. That's right we're talking about worms who live in the most extreme places on earth, able to endure temperatures and chemicals that would easily kill a human.

Guest: Soren Bowie 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_0sOAU6eIBMyVGfW6KFU2IDu3TMVBnJ5kQLI1pW3FEI/edit?usp=sharing

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Today on the show, earth! Is it a spaceship? Is it a blue marble? A giant egg? A hologram projected by aliens? Or is it a living, breathing organism? I'm joined by science writer Ferris Jabr to talk about his new book "Becoming Earth" and whether the planet is alive!

Guest: Ferris Jabr 

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Katie is hiding under her bed from the fireworks, so here's one of her favorite summer episodes: Top ways animals stay cool in the heat, your results may vary! From gular fluttering to a stinky cool down method, bee fans and mucus cocoons, there are all sorts of ways to stay chill in the summer heat! 

Guests: Ella Hubber, Tom Lum, and Caroline Roper

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/197ka55555R0ejpocBcPs4je_ZKXen1aDLbwqcwfw9rY/edit?usp=sharing

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 How do zebras get stripes? How does Mike Wazowski keep his eyeball moist? And how come a group of crows is called a "murder?" I answer your questions! 

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From clownfish to bonobos, biology and the animal world is far more complex than prudes like to think it is. Joining me today are Laine and Owen, hosts of the podcast A Field Guide to Gay Animals, a podcast exploring queerness in the natural world!

Guests: Owen Ever & Laine Kaplan-Levenson

Footnotes: Last week's mystery animal sound source

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These animals steal the food right out of your mouths! The most daring (and grossest) thieves in the world. Discover this and more as we answer the age old question, should there be spider butt dentists? 

Guest: Katherine Spiers 

Footnotes: This week's mystery animal sound source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPiFdOStVkM

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Today we're looking at the mutated creatures of the Fallout franchise and discussing whether they could actually exist in a nuclear wasteland! It's a real optimistic episode and we discuss BIG BUGS! How can we bring back big bugs?! 

Guest: Will Poole 

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These animals did NOT forget leg day! From leg battles, to deadly runway assassins, to miraculous thighs. 

Guest: Joey Clift 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uMXBcVWbP2SsR00Gh4NUuXFZbPKlRpSFo2GOtjznN7k/edit?usp=sharing

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These animals have figured out how to treat their own ailments with the medicine available to them in their habitats. Plus, what can we learn from animals about human medicine? Discover this and more as we answer the age old question, does swallowing a rough leaf a day keep Doctor Zaius away? 

Guest: Dr. Kaveh Hoda

Source for last week's mystery animal sound: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/v_rSygXA1lw

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I answer your questions, like why do animals act weird during an eclipse? How do animals know what to eat? What's the deal with dino penises? 

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The Wise owl, the lazy sloth, and the courageous lion, how much do these animals live up to their names, or should we not judge a book by its cover or a sloth by its algae? Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: is owls stupid?

Guest: Adam Todd Brown

Source of last week's mystery animal sound: 

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/TDMftMtr5to

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To celebrate cicadageddon 2024, here's one of my favorite past episodes, this one on cicadapocalypse 2021: BROOD X has been waiting 17 years to emerge from the ground. What is Brood X? Should we panic? Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: How is it fair that swarms of baby turtles are considered cute, but swarms of bugs are considered “horrifying?” 

Guest: Mara Wilson

Footnotes:

Cicada

https://live.staticflickr.com/3067/2607912292_150e08400e_z.jpg

Cicada tymbal 

https://www.cicadamania.com/images/tymbalanism.gif

Cicada sounds

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNJ6DL_1R9I

Holes left by mass cicada emergence (warning for trypophobia)

https://plant-pest-advisory.rutgers.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/A-e1373044330806.jpg

Lots of cicadas!

https://mk0charlottestopdskr.kinstacdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Cicadas-swarm-north-carolina.jpg

Mass sea turtle hatching! 

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/olive-ridley-sea-turtle-swarm-filmed-costa-rica

Giant river turtle!

https://zooinstitutes.com/img/animals/83/831567514683_33.jpg

Mass river turtle hatching!

https://www.treehugger.com/rare-turtles-hatch-beach-brazil-5092340

Soft coral

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/84bPOAlpoBNPmyhMTsbhJ-iF7UDOo1lCST_18GrEChIqlOg6CL-nO1yx_6AVw8g2FWgRFAndhaD3HAUw_zMrVDbbNGYQS2Uqob1196fcVrNv7bveRZTylg03CdBwB3BCnpQ

Stony coral

https://www.ecomagazine.com/images/Newsletter/0_2020/Week_1-6-20/underwater-photography-of-coral-reef-3100361.jpg

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You can be a citizen scientist in your own backyard! Broods! Birds! And mushroom butts! I'm joined by podcaster and voice actress Janet Varney.

Guest: Janet Varney 

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They're in the air! There's billions of them! And they're tiny! We're talking about aeroplankton, what they're doing up there, and what happens when they get in your nose. 

Guest: Soren Bowie

Last week's mystery animal sound source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8Phip5U-Wo

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Today, we talk RATS! From plague to pets, rats have had a huge impact on humanity! What was the role of rats in the plague? What even is a rat?? Should you keep them as pets??? And are we so different after all? 

Guest: Jeff May

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/199aAaHgq-CmEoMcR4iRMnbePedjKrs0iafQalrKhp0I/edit?usp=sharing

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We talk about wild human inventions inspired by animal designs!

Guest: Ellen Weatherford

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZEGyyeNn8trH-FmcchVthmmppq8-XiQlKILt-9fIISk/edit?usp=sharing

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Today on the show, we're doing a re-broadcast of an Easter classic! We're firing the Easter Bunny and looking for a replacement! That's right E.B., you're getting benched and we're sending another animal out there to make merry with the eggs and the flowers!

Guest: Soren Bowie 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uBq4b0mnk0TsQJfe5CqOZSg3Yk8CqCZ5vG5I1CgsYM8/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions, from the realism of Tarzan, to the details behind a frog Buffalo Bill, and how to best serve the birds of your community! 

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On today's show I subject my guest to a gauntlet of strange oddities, and he (and you) must guess whether these are animals, minerals, vegetables, or something else entirely...

Guest: DJ Danl

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rRUT2Ywx6B9XF-1SyNJ8lxVyLX94eY2n06FjiE4x-O8/edit?usp=sharing

Mystery animal sound credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMwAgft_kZ8

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Today: we're turning animals into robots! All the weirdest and wackiest ways that roboticists and researchers have played robo-god with animals. From robosaurus, to robot bees, and robo falcons, Adam and Katie discuss whether robots will inherit the earth. 

Guest: Adam Ganser

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1t7NmSAXc6vg0zMZkMHIZKlXSQI_ROlsAyglMHNQ53Ww/edit?usp=sharing

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Today we're talking about animals that look like they jumped off of a page from Lisa Frank's notebook! Pink dolphins, rainbow squirrels, surprisingly fabulous pigeons, and the most beautiful butts in the world. 

Guest: Joelle Monique 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/12uHLiRYjc0_-rKv_fCFSpkTMN8f4ysX9do1j_uLC0r4/edit?usp=sharing

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I dragged my husband on the show to talk about animals who give romantic gifts, like dead voles and nutritional secretions! Hope he takes the hint! 

Guest: Brett McCully

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/17Kn459lVK4NKOeLYcUM47R-EWo4RX6tgwp0cTvQBPFs/edit?usp=sharing

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Feed drop time! Check out this Let's Learn Everything episode I was a guest on! We talk about BIRDS. IN. SPAAAAAACE! Guests: Ella Huber, Tom Lum, Alex Schmidt, Caroline RoperFootnotes: Space quails video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7-hm3A7ayI

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It's a listener questions episode which means I answer your questions about animal baldness, skin, and poop! 

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I'm joined by naturalist, educator and author Heather Montgomery as we talk about her book "Sick" and the fascinating world of animal immune systems (and poop).

Guest: Heather Montgomery

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Summary: Happy holidays! I'll see you soon in the new year, until then, enjoy some of my favorite classic holiday episodes! This one's about weird ungulates.

Guest: Alex Schmidt

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ofN2BMRRxu3ITqZZZjcH7LSae9rq2umS0pJ39rHJlRU/edit?usp=sharing

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Happy holidays! I'll see you soon in the new year, but until then, enjoy a past episode... millions of years in the past. Who will pull Cave Santa's sleigh?

Guest: Alex Schmidt 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-moJs64fD53QyE_xt77iNcMexcY-sP4Pis2g7KK5qmo/edit?usp=sharing

Credit to Aaron Kenny for Creative Commons music 

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From hibernations to teeny naps, these wintery animals know how to catch a few z's! 

Guest: Jeff May 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dEiKigGPXidNf5Jaa_LQ8HvJkP0h-9Tz6KNzC-OkFds/edit?usp=sharing

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The weirdest, most expertly engineered eggs in the world! Not all eggs are, well, egg-shaped with Alex Schmidt! 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/16kSwzHPVP2CaYDiXf0jYvP1pBw140Ep8rjv77hOjAno/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions, like why are there so many parasites? Do frogs really not have teeth? And what's going on with these ants?!?

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Katie got the stomach flu, so here's one of her favorite old episodes! We promise the title is merely a coincidence. 

Guest: Will Poole 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uJ2hX52ElPgYMGS8nVpxjDX1ioBmv5lIc1V_zDG9QII/edit?usp=sharing

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A deep dive into the factual accuracies and inaccuracies of the Garfield Movie trailer! Beat by beat we will examine the trailer, and talk about whether there are real life examples in evolutionary biology that can lend credence to the new Garfield Movie trailer. Sadly, we are not being sponsored by The Garfield Movie.

Guest: Joey Clift

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KNPC0Xwqqh7W16Gy6mLciw1HSRy8YfddVuyYcq1N-cs/edit?usp=sharing

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Joined by pro-Javelina guest Kylie Brakeman, we discuss the righteous fight of the Javelina against the golf courses of Arizona! And other animals who are bravely waging war against golf! 

Guest: Kylie Brakeman 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uPIGPktJnmyjdY3xgSLjICSxXW-ZpnY7BP2QxPcGG6A/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions, from how an elephant gets so big on grass alone, to animal schedules, witchy familars and suspiciously crab-like aliens! 

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From dog-fox hybrids, to radioactive doggies of the Chernobyl exclusion zone, we're talking about all the best boys and girls in the world! Also: dogs whose job is to save the turtles!

Guest: Andrew Ti

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Real Halloweeny tales of animal biology! Undead fish skin, vampire mice, and flying zombies!

Guests: Seanbaby & Robert Brockway

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1njNgJ35GLVLDYnPbfKM2hRFPOvxyj6K2wjOkEX17rus/edit?usp=sharing

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Eye of newt, tongue of toad, well, more like excretion of toad, we're talking about the poisonous witch's brews of the animal kingdom! From trippy toads, to petrifying platypuses.

Guest: Jason Pargin

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An interview with naturalist/adventurer Forrest Galante!

Guest: Forrest Galante

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From the stretchiest mouthed reptiles, to sea creatures that are mostly mouths, we're talking about the most ghoulish gluttons on the globe!

Guest: Katherine Spiers 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TolY6_BOV5SNiN08aMnXTjeUi2Vq5CBwYWpHWwK34iE/edit?usp=sharing

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These animals did NOT forget leg day! From leg battles, to deadly runway assassins, to miraculous thighs. 

Guest: Joey Clift 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uMXBcVWbP2SsR00Gh4NUuXFZbPKlRpSFo2GOtjznN7k/edit?usp=sharing

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Did you know Katie is the co-host on another show called Secretly Incredibly Fascinating? This week we're dropping an episode into the Creature Feature feed, because it's all about octopuses!! 

Guest: Alex Schmidt

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 I answer your questions about backstroking sharks, chimpanzee bottoms, and giant wasp stingers!

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Separating the facts from fiction about amazing animal spit! 

Guest: Will Poole 

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We're slithering down the runway to talk about high animal fashion, from hats to outerwear to shabby chic, these animals are not born with it, they have meticulously crafted their fashionable attire from elements in their environment!

Guest: Maggie Mae Fish

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aH39L-0GNVWx8hf7uR9HOYI0LEXat0Z9K1-NcbSfsy4/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions, from dead wasp vengeance, cannibal babies, and adorable pets! 

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Crustacean news station! All the crabby stories fit to print… or pinch. Lobsters not saying no to drugs, and crabs implicated in a famous disappearance. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: can lobsters feel pain? 

Guest: Ellen Weatherford

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In honor of the Oppenheimer movie, we're talking about explosive animals! From tiny explosions to a real WWII story involving animal bombs? I promise it's at least a little funny! 

Guest: Adam Ganser

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In honor of the Barbie movie, today's theme is: PIIIINK! All the fabulous fuchsias, the prettiest pinks, found in nature! Pink is sometimes maligned as an "frivolous" color, but as we'll find out, nature takes its pink VERY seriously.  From camouflage, to ambushes, river battles and poison, we're taking a look at the dark side of pink.

Guest: Alex Schmidt

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Top ways animals stay cool in the heat, your results may vary! From gular fluttering to a stinky cool down method, bee fans and mucus cocoons, there are all sorts of ways to stay chill in the summer heat! 

Guests: Ella Hubber, Tom Lum, and Caroline Roper

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/197ka55555R0ejpocBcPs4je_ZKXen1aDLbwqcwfw9rY/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions, from otter armpit pockets to bugs that come back from the dead!

Footnotes: Listener puppet maker bat video: https://vimeo.com/778536169

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Today, we’re going to be playing a little game: see if you can guess which one of these animals we’re about to discuss is more likely to kill you than to cuddle you? Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: can you trim your hedges with a crocodile? 

Guest: Joey Clift 

Footnotes:

 Striped eel catfish: https://lh6.ggpht.com/HPMmXXIdHNPICfAwmozv5rDOOO3isj6S4eCmO7xsAdh03ZvnetNJpowsNwLajM_YTOEgDer-ClRaMr9G2iT0=s1200

The gharial crocodile: https://usercontent1.hubstatic.com/14168422_f1024.jpg

The basking shark: https://scx2.b-cdn.net/gfx/news/2017/baskingshark.jpg

Blue-ringed octopus (if you see this RUN AWAY): https://www.thoughtco.com/thmb/nk8JcdyT-e1AU_Qt5i_iivC0924=/2796x2097/smart/filters:no_upscale()/blue-ringed-octopus-467490389-5b66e3fcc9e77c0050c8aebc.jpg

Be wary of the cassowary: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Southern_Cassowary_7071.jpg

The shoebill stork is not a stork (but is kinda a dork): https://i.redd.it/fwvsltmy5lw41.jpg

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I answer your questions about speciation, weird eye situations, and swole gorillas! 

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Katie has returned to her home nesting ground for a quick break, so enjoy one of her favorite episodes from the past! I'm joined by Patch, the creator of the amazing biology YouTube channel TierZoo, to discuss how animals might beat some of the toughest, most iconic video game bosses out there! 

Guest: Patch from TierZoo

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EqBX-Pmk6SpmRBxFIO6W_k8tflRskHjyumSu5k70PpM/edit?usp=sharing

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Don't worry, these critters haven't been mutilated, but rather through evolution, they've ditch certain appendages. Legs? Don't need 'em. Wings? Forget about it. Tails? Lose 'em. Sometimes efficiency requires sacrifice, and body parts have go to go! Apologies for an initial audio issue (ironically, some missing audio data)! This has been fixed! Thank you for your patience 

Guest: Joelle Monique

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1v9AWcvOv1K2ailxCWHMD-LMOWn2DtGcAPD5udVNdNiE/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions, from what happens in a cocoon to the evolutionary history of bird bones! 

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Leeches leeches leeches leeches! How big can they get? Can we really use them in medicine? And are they secretly... cuuuute? 

Guest: Joey Clift

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/15XDOP0Auky-Ot2LdYBj0T6td_xGXm7wmyDrQy21nQWg/edit?usp=sharing

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Plants are just the hapless victims of herbivores, right? Wrong! Listen to how plants fight back in sometimes delicious fashion. 

Guest: Dr. Vikram Baliga

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These critters have a taste for the weird, the morbid, and the wildly unethical. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: what do you do with a cannibal boss baby?

Guests: Michael Swaim & Abe Epperson 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/111Bvmkr8zACAH3thS90DmvDLI0YqKQvunMMT_8Tzpv4/edit?usp=sharing

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Snouts, jaws, and eyeballs that look like they're about to break the graphics engine on the planet earth video game. Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: what's an echidna's deal?

Guest: Chris Crofton 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RM6R3-Di9qnzxORJcPI6u83J75SnRdHBI3FWlBq4Feo/edit?usp=sharing

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AUKS! You heard me right. From puffins, to razorbills, to crested auklets, these seafaring birds may be a little AUK-ward on land, but they can cut through the skies and the seas like acrobats. Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: what does bird cologne smell like?

Guest: Jack Baker

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IomXvjwFO1I0jUVubi-f0yv2S5ysOGH-pnuISSXEuYw/edit?usp=sharing

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LIPS! The lovely luscious lips of living and extinct animals. Who has the best pout? Plus, a talking beluga! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: if you have a real long tongue, where do you keep it? 

Guest: Anna Hossnieh 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hKwcP67esS0xOVIWmWJI9SXHbOByADpRbRMghZMCZHY/edit?usp=sharing

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Some worms like it cold, some like it hot, but what they all have in common is living life as a basic tube. That's right we're talking about worms who live in the most extreme places on earth, able to endure temperatures and chemicals that would easily kill a human.

Guest: Soren Bowie 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_0sOAU6eIBMyVGfW6KFU2IDu3TMVBnJ5kQLI1pW3FEI/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions, from epigenetics to dog pee studies! 

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Today on the show: dizzy apes, pirouetting spiders, and twisty birds. While these animals all have a different spin on spinning, they all share a love for the twirl. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: how do you get your lover back with the help of a bird? 

Guest: Bridgett Greenberg 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DR6X_VIhyUJV1li5AKl1776jxBCDqfd24UAOsvT68f8/edit?usp=sharing

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These non-alien lifeforms look more alien than the aliens in Avatar. From gloopy ghosts, to glowing alien eyes, these animals may give us a hint at what could be in store for us on alien planets. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: is the holy grail just a pile of snot? 

Guest: Daniel Whiteson 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1c6BwVI0pW24VOfG6DOK1mNc2hEIDR-jao4WzmlzusYc/edit?usp=sharing

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In this interview with infectious diseases expert Professor David Boulware, we discuss the real impact ophiocordyceps  has on ants, and whether we humans should be concerned. 

Guest: Professor David Boulware 

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From insect repellants, to treating dangerous bites, we'll find out that animals can look at a tree and see a pharmacy. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: would you call an elephant midwife a more of a mega-wife?

Guest: Joelle Monique

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If you're a fan of weird internet culture you've probably heard of the SCP foundation, a mysterious compendium of top-secret (totally real) trans-dimensional paranormal phenomena! So I'm going to go through some real life documented animals who could easily be SCP entries.

Guests: Robert Brockway & Seanbaby

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZXDxLMqpCBvdndCJUvDf3El5wZylsjyBtkyt97j3SnY/edit?usp=sharing

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From massive dragon hoards of nuts, to the treasures of tiny kickboxers, we're looking at caches that these animals only hope to clear by eating them. Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: can a giant weasel see into the future? 

Guest: Joey Clift

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xBRxZgWar2_mKRKfpTlqn0Rle8BCud_wDsxalnMyPj0/edit?usp=sharing

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These animals enjoy a good moshpit, and have secret powers! 

Guest: Danl Goodman

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mxjuqCMmHt8wY53h-nJME9NfQmdZQXbCynuqcvej5wI/edit?usp=sharing

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We talk about some of the angriest, most frustrated, most peeved critters out there, and how they cope! Joined by the absolutely furious Alex Schmidt! 

Guest: Alex Schmidt 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1sbuZSa8toAvXOTOv7JVt1fxLbLlgmzKh-cMCb-LsE8s/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your amazing questions, including one about milking pigs, animal drunkenness, anime style critters, too many legs, rat facts and bird aliens.

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Animals who live the trash lifestyle, pretend to be trash, live inside trash, or are generally having a crappy day (and that's how they like it)! 

Guest: Pallavi Gunalan

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1p-rA_E9WjWna6pEsuDmkfa9ZkFZ22m7myHd3_GUSB-k/edit?usp=sharing

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Today on the show, we're talking about real life metal heads! These animals are literally metal, reinforcing their bodies with metallic armor. From spiders, to snails, to waspy tails, you don't want to find yourself on the bad side of these tough as nails critters. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: are figs vegan?

Guest: Tom Reimann

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nEg3DpNzk38zrlUGQJebbTxx7RmXH8y_L5dr4H8Acd8/edit?usp=sharing

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Katie's enjoying Creature Kringletimes, so please enjoy this already-chewed on beaver episode! 

Guest: Soren Bowie 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jNkvYjDL2PFuljk7GJ2P3MKTbydqcDym5pgcNZx3TAg/edit?usp=sharing

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We're sacking Santa's reindeer and replacing them with my favorite contenders from Kringletime's past… way past… millions of years in the past.

Guest: Alex Schmidt 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-moJs64fD53QyE_xt77iNcMexcY-sP4Pis2g7KK5qmo/edit?usp=sharing

Credit to Aaron Kenny for Creative Commons music 

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I answer your fascinating questions, like whether there are more eyes or legs in the world, or if an elephant could be a witting accomplice!

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Sometimes the scary, tough, and slimy animals in the world just need a friend! From a friendly little shop of horrors, to the toughest animals in the world frolicking together, we find friendship and cooperation in the unlikeliest of places.

Guest: Ellen Weatherford 

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There are lots of things we know we shouldn't put in our mouth: cyanide, parasites, a styrofoam coffee cup you got out of the trash. But some animals have found a way to expand their culinary tastes, or even benefit, from things that would make a human restaurant shut down and the chefs go to prison. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: why are scientists so mean to larvae? 

Guest: Adam Ganser 

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Some of the silliest most adorable animals out there, a furry tank, a rabbit deer, and a fish who smiles! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: do you want to vacation on a pile of poop? 

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LIp-VyPwAtCWjU9pXkL22Hed5pV6nUZJlwH5rtPCdT8/edit?usp=sharing

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Some of the cutest serial killers in the animal kingdom! Big ol' eyes, big ol' ears, and a sweet feathery fuzzball who are more devious than Jack the Ripper. 

Guest: Bridgett Greenberg 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rRuJRXELHhZHG3jrUSG7uAxs82zrL6qJ8Jx1XrBp-8g/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions, from "can wild animals get the zoomies" to "vampire deer
?!?!" 

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 Hags, slime, frogs, and the boogie woogies who can kill you with a touch! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: can we use ectoplasm as a substitute for egg-whites in baking?

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You can pick your nose, you can pick your friends, and your nose can pick your friends! "Smell ya later" can be literal in the animal kingdom, and some secret handshakes make sure URINE the clique.

Guest: Jason Pargin

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Welcome to spooky October! Katie's definitely not busy diggin up bones in a pet cemetery to create an undead guinea-cat-bird, but she is doing something innocent this week. So enjoy this rerun of one of her favorite spooky episodes, and we'll see you next week with a fresh one!

Guest: Bridget Greenberg

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ikmVakjOrOSpD-9Ge4oRw9s11rIQS6cYOv35SquEXt8/edit?usp=sharing

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From flies who turn cows into swiss cheese, to the world's largest parasites, this episode is not for lunchtime! Content warning: really gross parasite stuff! 

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I answer your listener questions about how dog ears stick up or flop down, human fish, mammals during dinosaurs, and the mysteries of deep sea shrimp! 

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I'm joined by Tiktok's favorite zoologist Mamadou to talk about animals who seem cute... right up until they absolutely wreck you.

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1izCgFfOxu-jNVbClQbmhEKvuuAs9Xn2zT__6z2WzOqQ/edit?usp=sharing

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We're looking at the evolutionary history of the housecat, their wild ancestors, some murderous cousins, and the best way to entertain your overlords, I mean, the best way to entertain your cats! Join us and Mikel Delgado to learn more. 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11uo3M0yM6GstLHCmxbNFyuQ_n-8EJRsLAOKOegT9eJs/edit?usp=sharing

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Why is a bird of paradise so fantastic? Do the beautiful colors and crests found in birds and other animals have some secret purpose, or do they just like to look hot? Joining me today to discuss this question is science writer the New York Times Magazine, Scientific American, and many other publications, Ferris Jabr! 

Guest: Ferris Jabr 

Footnotes:

Check out Ferris Jabr's article on bird beauty! https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/09/magazine/beauty-evolution-animal.html

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If you don't like spiders, I've got bad news for you! Because today is all about spiders! From cute baby spider dreams, to spider catapults, and the friendship between a spider and a carnivorous plant! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: what's ruder after mating, eating your partner, or yeeting your partner? 

Guest: Ivy Le, host of FOGO: Fear of Going Outside

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1L6-fj-ZxyYBZ4aZQugZnbafE3V8Rc34er6ZNS6VmJf0/edit?usp=sharing

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I'm joined by the McElroy brothers to talk about CORAL! Why is it alive? Is it coming for us? Can you really get through life with only one hole? And can crabs teach us how to combine the art of cheerleading with that of boxing? 

Guests: Justin McElroy, Travis McElroy, & Griffin McElroy 

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/19CROfPYR-ROWOQY4aFd8YMj6L5-LTkHCZU95ZXVDswM/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your listener questions, from how eyeballs work, to whether toucans are transparent. And hey, are snakes just legless lizards?

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Some animals jump, some animals fly, and some animals fall with style! All the best fallers in the animal kingdom, with stunts that would make Tom Cruise's stuntman blush.

Guest: Alex Schmidt

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JOlreqBJHJanozq9hsPeJYoDgN2eYdoB7heL9M5DUpQ/edit?usp=sharing

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Katie on the run from a group of bloodthirsty penguins, so here's a re-run of our episode on the freakiest teeth in the animal kingdom. And if you think it's silly to be afraid of penguins, wait until you see inside their MOUTHS. Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yE2Oh8FIciFwlW6l-dJbhc1FaK5XcwAdwQWe19TcGHA/edit?usp=sharing

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We're zooming way out and looking at animals not as individuals, but as herds, colonies, crowds, and flocks. And we're going to find out that animals, including people, share more in common with particles found in physics than we may like to believe. Discover this and more with Daniel Whiteson as we answer the age-old question: when does an ant mosh pit get deadly? 

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We're addressing the elephant in the room... well, three elephants, who aren't actually elephants. The elephant shrew, the elephant fish, and the elephant bird! How can there be so many elephants?!? What are their secrets?? Can we boop their snoots?!!?!

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_sbovOjB-MPmirz8bqjbW1HTIWmm_4HXKnR8fe0q9pQ/edit?usp=sharing

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I answer your questions: combat between polar bears and great whites, turtle sleep, goat milk, turkey antics, and more! 

Footnotes: 

Camel playing soccer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=26&v=nXMa4fsH9xQ&feature=emb_title

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 We're having a heat wave here, and I imagine a lot of you out there are dealing with the same. So let's cool down with some stories of how animals beat the heat with Joelle Monique!

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Katie is on a short vacation (no she hasn't been taken over by parasitic wasps, haha) so here's one of her favorite older episodes, about animals who rebuild themselves with Dave Schilling.

Footnotes: 

Self-decapitating sea slug! 

https://vp.nyt.com/video/2021/03/08/92303_1_08tb-seaslug-video_wg_480p.mp4

Salamander limb regeneration! 

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_lJNO-ZRuE1g/TF6bvuBV7cI/AAAAAAAACO4/lRDWA1VFymA/s1600/regeneration.jpg

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From the domesticated donkey, to their wild ass kin, donkeys are an underestimated animal with a courageous heart. There are many varieties of donkeys, but all asses have one thing in common: a desire to kick ass. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: what's the lamborghini of the donkey world?

Guest: Andrew Ti

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1prV2OI4LB-SVFsFcfkVnjaSuJv397hut4wSpbLxmR1A/edit?usp=sharing

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I'm joined by Ed Yong, science journalist for the Atlantic, Pulitzer prize winner for his coverage of COVID-19, and author of the book, An Immense World, which explores the hugely diverse way in which animals perceive our planet.

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Do animals have money? Before you shake down your local squirrel, we're not talking about dollars, buttcoin, or whatever. Could animals have a currency, make trades, and understand when they're getting grifted? I'm joined by Brett McCully, an economist, who is also my husband. What a coincidence!

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From lynxes that refuse to be the missing lynx, to extinct cats who have a cheeky surprise. Join us with guest, Jeff May, as we discover this and more answers to the age-old question: you can pick your friends, you can pick your cat's nose, but can your cat pick their friends out of a police lineup? 
Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1l_nXTK9auiwiPJZ9UvucBFQ69KyON_hNGvObhUXANZw/edit?usp=sharing

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I've got the author of Around The World In 80 Birds, Mike Unwin, on to talk BIRDS! Why we love these little feathery dinos, and some of the most surprising birds from around the world! Thanks to Kevin MacLeod for extra sound effects!

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I'm answering your listener questions! Do owl eyes change colors? Would aliens be hot? What would a kraken look like?

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Etiquette is a manner of perspective and species, from flamingos with topsy-turvy eating habits, to the goats who have a more arboreal take on dining, you'll learn how to dine with the animals, and how to politely hold your termite-stick depending on your chimpanzee hosts's tastes. Discover this and more with Katherine Spiers as we answer the age-old question: Can Australia's version of the trash-eating racoon fly?

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10iFXcG4uUg4TuzMjuhA_FNJjHw9X7RT-Utv9lfJGBPo/edit?usp=sharing

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From rattlesnakes to copperheads, we're talking about some of America's most dangerous cutie noodles! How does their venom work? Do they really want to bite your stinky ol' leg? And how to respect nature's most potent linguini. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question, why are we injecting horses with snake venom? Featuring naturalist and snake expert Alexi Grousis!

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yuHcp1EU6xXdwVk1k2UPnVDLD1IG9mFVmL31NcsA3-k/edit?usp=sharing

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Physics and biology collide! This episode is from the wonderful physics podcast, Daniel and Jorge Explain The Universe, on which Katie is a guest host. Discover whether the human eye can see a single photon, how eyes evolved, and check out the Daniel and Jorge Explain The Universe podcast! 

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Today I'm joined by my friend and particle physicist Daniel Whiteson of Daniel & Jorge Explain the Universe to talk about how the beauty of nature, from a tiger's stripes to a butterfly's wings comes down to photons bonking around your eyeballs! And are there people who can see UV light?

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1n2S4DJ75HSp1jNLIzoNRyCJeO5WSdJ4z9F6csOsR6dI/edit?usp=sharing

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Roses are red, blood is blue, blood is green, and transparent too??? Join us as we discover all the colors of the blood rainbow with Seanbaby & Robert Brockway. 

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1omHDiujE1aOr7FHnkukk61Fjnd0asnlXMDh0R1Dl7P8/edit?usp=sharing

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Today on the show, we're firing the Easter Bunny and looking for a replacement with Soren Bowie! That's right E.B., you're getting benched and we're sending another animal out there to make merry with the eggs and the flowers!

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uBq4b0mnk0TsQJfe5CqOZSg3Yk8CqCZ5vG5I1CgsYM8/edit?usp=sharing

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From bird spas crawling with ants to chimpanzee pharmacology, Anna Hossnieh joins us as we learn that a millipede a day can keep the doctor away! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: should you replace your doctor with a spider?

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We have a special guest, Dr. Winifred Frick, chief scientist of Bat Conservation International. The Hill's horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus hilli, had been feared extinct, as neither hair nor wing has been seen for forty years. But after a 5 year period of survey efforts, Bat Conservation International, and the Rwanda Wildlife Conservation Association, spotted a bat with an incredibly strange looking face... 

Hill's Horseshoe bat rediscovery link: https://www.batcon.org/press/conservationists-announce-the-rediscovery-of-an-african-bat-species-lost-for-40-years/

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Everything you could possibly ever want to know about camels with special guest Bridgett Greenberg! Plus: flesh balloons (romantic flesh balloons)!

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wzSqttUixtTsUlLPKKKmXWuHRQyUgko7TT9UUz6y33I/edit?usp=sharing

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We're seeing red in a whole new light, from red fur to red hair to red scales! Join Maggie Mae Fish as we discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: why are red pandas? 

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YcPaLUqp6Eunc1LYwertLbAVbOvRs2-oroN9dYbpIQQ/edit?usp=sharing

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From dangerous booties to headbutts from hell, we're looking at froggies with some devilish secrets. Discover this and more with  Chris Crofton as we answer the age-old question: Are my eyes up here, or are they down there?

 Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Zs_MedD7Auz3U7l_A2cGSID5IBUVIT5nRDC6Q8FC6_g/edit?usp=sharing

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Big trypophobia warning for this episode, especially if your name is Pinocchio and you're made out of wood. From hidden delicacies within rotting logs, to nutty drama, to the story of a parasite's parasite, we're looking at what happens when the Giving Tree gives you nausea with Shereen Younes.

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OZVHmrD_DNgYp5Kx3D2iZLslDd9JpvSWTXbpERFzqbU/edit?usp=sharing

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Sometimes mating isn't so straightforward! From parasites that take the scenic route to reproduction to some species boycotting normal mating altogether! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: does a nematode understand what a little freak it's being?

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From bird humping helmets to toxic toad sausage thrown out of helicopters, sometimes conservationists have to get wild to save the wild. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: how do you keep a whooping crane from catching feelings for you; with guest Anna Salinas.

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Pf3_5_UfDGV-m82Pm1PQULxv9lxt_AEYYWLlLNJqHd0/edit?usp=sharing

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Guest: Pallavi Gunalan 

Summary: Life is tough on these teeny tinies, so they need creative solutions to get around the world without being immediately destroyed! From the world's itty bittiest snail, to dastardly little fish, to the world's lil'est cowboys doing a giddy-up in the sea, we're looking at some cuties who are sometimes surprisingly devious. 

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1c02vaTXLPLd0eMjrwGuxgtjHN70uK_iQakMHN-LhhaA/edit?usp=sharing

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It's listener questions day! A sexy game of rock paper scissors lizards, eels mating in the Bermuda triangle, and Doggie Bowser, M.D., all your questions answered! (P.S: No goats were harmed in the making of this podcast). 

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xSwpxwMqsXRIrWt9zvZlwpmOg_IERaov0A9q9Ie5MTM/edit?usp=sharing

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Inventions versus animals! Can we innovate our way into being as cool as animals? Can animals inspire breakthroughs in medical devices? And what does one of history's greatest inventors and sharks have in common?

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1d7QVe02iVmsXE83p9rJS-jzzhYL1f4XEd3F_lbKJlz0/edit?usp=sharing

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Sexy aquatic scandals! From the loudest fishy lovemaking in the world, to amphibians having a ball… discover this and more as we answer the age-old question, what does Ed Gein and marine biologists have in common? 

Footnotes:

Male gulf corvina singing a love song

https://dosits.org/galleries/audio-gallery/fishes/gulf-corvina/

Male western toad's saying "hands off!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2E-bcEJgLc

Last week's mystery animal sound:

https://sounds.bl.uk/Environment/Listen-to-Nature/022M-LISTNAT00077-0001V0

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From giant bugs to monkey dog friendships, a trio of good news stories to start out 2022! 

Footnotes: 

Giant millipede discovered 

https://www.livescience.com/giant-ancient-millipedes-uk

Dog and monkey alliance

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/videos/a-vervet-monkey-befriends-some-hostile-dogs/

Last week's mystery animal sound answer!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TeStCgLUWE

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Katie's flying back home this week (and boy are her arms tired) so we're playing a great episode from the past year! This one's about crabs, how they're taking over civilization, and WE (snap) ARE (snap) HERE (snap) FOR (snap) IT! She's joined by the incredible Kylie Brakeman.

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Are cats parasites? Do animals go to the gym? Have you ever been pranked by a monkey? All your questions answered!

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Some of today's most fascinating animals had surprising ancestors. From giant sloths to wooly rhinos to enormous… turtle rabbits? Discover all this and more as we answer the age-old question, which animal is best at sphere?

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It's a miracle! A Creaturekringletimes holiday special about miracles in nature, from immaculately conceived condors to the Tiny Tim of parrots! Join us with special guest, Will Poole.

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yn4zFLfJVkTcGI8l4cGnZ1oN9yJbx7Xi6eTSVNHFw_U/edit?usp=sharing

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We're joined by fan favorite, Alex Schmidt. Today, we're giving those CreatureKringleTimes reindeer a break and hiring some new mystical steeds to carry Kringle Claw's sleigh, and using a bit of Kringletime magic we're bringing some megafauna back from extinction! Discover some unforgettable ungulates as we answer the age-old question, did Santa steal the family dog??? 

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ofN2BMRRxu3ITqZZZjcH7LSae9rq2umS0pJ39rHJlRU/edit?usp=sharing

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From terrified bee shrieks to lemur airhorn songs, these animals are screaming for your attention. Join Will Poole as we answer the age-old question: what's better home security, Poop Safe or OxPecker Alert? 

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uJ2hX52ElPgYMGS8nVpxjDX1ioBmv5lIc1V_zDG9QII/edit?usp=sharing

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Ellen Weatherford joins us as we visit the world of pocket monsters again and show how real-life animals can be even more incredible than a boring ol' Pikachu. We're talking about the real-life animal inspiration for pokemon, as well as animals that SHOULD be in the next generation of pokemon. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: who's got the most boopable snoot? 

Footnotes:

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From adorable penguins to innocent-looking fish, these animals are hiding a mouth straight from your dentist's nightmares. Discover this and more witch, Joey Clift, as we answer the age-old question: which animal do you least want to see with human teeth? 

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It's a listener question episode! From cat tails to sperm whales, I'm answering your burning animal questions. Speaking of burning, what's going on near those thermal vents? And why are milkweed butterflies terrifying? 

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We're gonna play some squid games with lucky contestants, Molly Lambert, Lydia Bugg, and Danl Goodman, who definitely know what they signed up for! How will these humans fare against squids? After all, squids are spineless, right?

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1viiby4IDNFerj1S-Jeym6xisXBNV8kI-ANgZ5Ag8r_U/edit?usp=sharing

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How does your immune system work? And why are some animal's immune systems wildly different? Are fish aliens? Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: you can share your heart, but can you share your circulatory system? I'm joined today by the creator of the extremely popular YouTube series Kurzgesagt!

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Katie's been abducted by brain-eating aliens (or, as she puts it, "I have a cold, it's fine guys seriously") so here's a classic episode she thought you'd enjoy (unless it's just the alien brain parasites talking): 

Today we’re talking about ALIENS! Right here on earth. Does that sound paradoxical? Well, maybe you should think about whether we were the aliens all along?? Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question, do animals really need to breathe? With special guest Joelle Monique.

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From secret societies to secret nighttime powers, to secretly being a living animal in the first place, these critters are NOT letting you in their club unless you know the handshake! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: if you stab a rock, does it not bleed? 

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Dfn_6GNkH4x86gqVnUXgi4Zx2XFylqthpWS6sRvPMME/edit?usp=sharing

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I'm joined by Patch, the creator of the amazing biology YouTube channel TierZoo, to discuss how animals might beat some of the toughest, most iconic video game bosses out there! 

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EqBX-Pmk6SpmRBxFIO6W_k8tflRskHjyumSu5k70PpM/edit?usp=sharing

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Sometimes genetic oopsies can be beautiful (and change the course of evolutionary history)! From stretch daisies to puppy eyes, discover some marvelous mutations! Join us with today's guest, Pallavi Gunalan.

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1O06A0isbDFHt21m8O7uUSCtKwzoe2KzcbbHw_1ih9nc/edit?usp=sharing

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LISTENER QUESTIONS! From why flies fly like they fly, to the mysteries of whale eyes! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: what are the sparrows plotting?

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This one's all about beavers, their weird little bodies, godlike powers, and shocking history with Soren Bowie.

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jNkvYjDL2PFuljk7GJ2P3MKTbydqcDym5pgcNZx3TAg/edit?usp=sharing

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From human conspiracies involving animals, to literal conspiracies of lemurs, to a conspiracy of slander against some of the world’s most misunderstood animals, we’re getting out our thumbtacks and cork-boards to connect the dots, and sometimes spots with Ben Bowlin.

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/15xZeziURXFppY97q3P3fG2WVC6urd7CRFtRveP3DElw/edit?usp=sharing

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Today on the show, we’re talking about creatures who spit in the face of gravity! These critters laugh at the general concept of physics and take things to an extreme level, defying gravity, shrugging off spaceflight, and being just plain weird. Join us, and special guest Daniel Whiteson!

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ASz8xRJNNHWrpq-i42BIq4Cq4-5FeO7brISt80XsRrw/edit?usp=sharing

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Guest: Joelle Monique 

Footnotes: 

1. First-ever animal discovered who doesn't breathe?!? 
2. The blanket octopus!
3. Behold the blanket octopus's cape of wonder!
4. Blanket octopus looking like an alien spaceship: 
5.  The sarcastic fringehead (open mouth for a surprise)
6. The pink fairy armadillo burrowing right into our hearts.
7. Treehoppers are out of control.
8. WHAT ARE YOU DOING TREEHOPPERS?
9.  WHAAAAAT??
10. The King Vulture is the most festive undertaker ever.
11. She colorful. She chic. But most importantly. She eats dead meat.  
12. Cock-of-the-rock AKA Mr. Handsome 
13. Potoo's are alien ghosts, exhibit A. 
14. Potoo's are alien ghosts, exhibit B.
15. Potoo's are alien ghosts, exhibit C. 

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Guest: Blake Wexler 

Footnotes: 

• Microhylid frog and tarantula best friends:
• Coyote and badger going on adventures together!
• Coyote and badger hunting together (WARNING: squirrel carnage):
• Geladas and wolves have a diplomatic relationship:
• Birds & people working together to screw over bees:
• The weird sucker-head of a remora:
• Shark with pilotfish groupies:
• Urchin crab giving a piggyback ride to an urchin:
• Owen the hippo adopted by Mzee the tortoise:
• Dalmation adopts spotted lamb:
• Sperm whales seemingly adopt dolphin with spinal deformation:
• Check out the koala hospital where my daughter Twinkles (the koala) is from:
• Potoroo Palace in NSW Australia:
• Animal Tracks Sanctuary in Los Angeles:
• Wild Haven Ranch in Lake Arrowhead:

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With: Laci Mosley 

Footnotes: 

Chinstrap penguin stealing rocks: 

https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/video/chinstrap-penguin-steals-rocks-from-neighbours-stock-video-footage/3B2FBBE0_0118

Gelada male: https://www.instagram.com/p/-AtXWGIVc3/

Firefly femme fatale: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWdCMFvgFbo

Hawk moth caterpillar mimics viper: https://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/untamed/00000162-300f-ddf6-a5eb-712f562a0000

Passion flower mimicry: http://plantmimicrybz2820.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-passiflora-genus.html

Automimicry: https://naturestories.org/heres-looking-at-you-kid-6eaf9e8b76e

Conformity elevator experiment: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/01/the-psychology-of-conformity/251371/

Jumping spider ant mimics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ant_and_jumping_spider_Gorongosa_National_Park,_Mozambique.jpg

Jumping spider mimicking one ant carrying another (this is ONE spider): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant_mimicry#/media/File:Myrmarachne_plataleoides_male_thailand.jpg

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With one of our favorite guests, Kristi Yamaguccimane.

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_fTwRx3ZmUCCyVkhXgvgj1n75uuupAV2FYQ4Y8dT0_A/edit?usp=sharing

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today I'm presenting a trio of tiny terrors, and at the end, one humongous horror with Robert Brockway and, Seanbaby! And I’ll let you decide if all the miniature monsters formed a team, could they defeat the largest bear the world's ever seen?

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pNcfxtDGElm10cTKSAc6KIgY-IrBRpZnJe_VVTXmcac/edit?usp=sharing

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From discovering the origins of butts, to finding the mystery glitter-pooper at zoos, it turns out that poop can teach us a lot about animals. And later, I’ll be joined by the real-life Batman of Mexico Dr. Rodrigo Medellin, to talk about glowing poop and long-nosed bats!

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UkCm9D4Wc818HkwurBKIYkzIfjlzrimgClDLV7LsQZs/edit?usp=sharing

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We’re taking on scary urban legends about animals, and showing you that there’s nothing to fear! Well… okay, maybe there is, but it's not what you think! Join us with special guest Maggie Mae Fish.

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zPY_hNdmrgUy8GgrctKEBmwielWQNYfv080KVAxzjDo/edit?usp=sharing

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I'm answering listener questions again, from what makes ticks tick, to platypus egg cuisine, to attack of the clones! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question, how delicious is your sweat? 

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This week, these squirrels are NUTS! with Adam Ganser! Giant flying squirrels, rainbow squirrels, and goth squirrels! Dissquirrelver this and more as we answer the age-old question: is that dried squirrel pee you’re using as an aphrodisiac, or are you just happy to see me? 

Footnotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1kh0Q0Wi_dyvRwnbJN7Nlr1urhJr9G6lSMxEVjz767jk/edit?usp=sharing

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MEERKATS! What are they? Why do we love them? What are the horrifying, salacious details of meerkat murders? And where’s the love for their kinder cousins, the banded mongoose? Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: war… HUH, what is it good for? Absolutely mating!  

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/12ONuZIv1NQKBFQeaTMMMPzjDssHDdDN61RB74j-TAMY/edit?usp=sharing

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What the crab are crabs up to? Are crabs building a crab-ciety? What kinds of crabstructions are the crabs crabbing up crab? Discrabber this and more as we answer the age old crustacean, uh I mean question, should we all be crabs? 

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/15fGxThb_XQJ3DJBlfJM5HWL8TqTn6-xZ36jcx2I1lrA/edit?usp=sharing

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All the animal news that’s fit to paw-print, and a dose of extra science just for you with guest Shereen Lani Younes! Whales caught hugging on camera, Angelina Jolie covered in BEES, and a new glowing toadlet just dropped! Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: can you get sued by a bee for copyright infringement?

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zS50O8TnvmSwQLDnB-bhv7Ahwd18YNscCy6E3RbXFpg/edit?usp=sharing

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I'm reading your emails and questions about how bugs taste, graveyard dogs, juvenile delinquent birds, and existential ponderings about evolution. Discover this and more as we answer the TRULY age old question: zebras, black with white stripes or white with black stripes?

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nUQgscnJ7qOZSadnOGZZRhqjMtpMSLVutKXfXIyPvRw/edit?usp=sharing

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We are getting to the bottom of some viral animal stories! Are these real animals? Real behaviors? Or hogwash? From deep sea War of the Worlds aliens, to long ducks, to kissing carp, we’re taking on internet rumors and separating fact from fishion with Robert Brockway and Seanbaby.

Footnotes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1h9K21PgnglD8PvDZBsoh5e2df6eAxOAGzHAy58MsOVg/edit?usp=sharing

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Planet’s haunted guys! From ghostly worms, to eight-armed specters, to ghost bats far scarier than any vampire, we’ve got a passion for possession when it comes to these cute hauntings! Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: what are ghost dogs with Bridget Greenberg.

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ikmVakjOrOSpD-9Ge4oRw9s11rIQS6cYOv35SquEXt8/edit?usp=sharing

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We’re talkin' about the world’s most spectacular fliers, from the tiny and nimble hummingbird, to the bird with a wingspan longer than any basketball player. We’ll cover mammalian gliders and murmurating starlings with Anna Hossnieh!

Footnotes: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DBtY8v-AzSXBY7KZdGCIU__QavLFCvXLub1IEputujQ/edit?usp=sharing

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We're going on a deep dive on three listener questions with Kristi Yamaguccimane! From killer kangaroos to pesky parasites, to evolutionary copycats! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: Why is Australia? 

Footnotes:

Google doc with all the images for this episode https://docs.google.com/document/d/1I5PQ9z3QffxZAjwudtmSh1ENv7L9W8sl_u9LKBcGiys/edit?usp=sharing

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BROOD X has been waiting 17 years to emerge from the ground. What is Brood X? Should we panic? Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: How is it fair that swarms of baby turtles are considered cute, but swarms of bugs are considered “horrifying,” with Mara Wilson. 

Footnotes:

1. Cicada
2. Cicada tymbal 
3. Cicada sounds
4. Holes left by mass cicada emergence (warning for trypophobia)
5. Lots of cicadas!
6. Mass sea turtle hatching! 
7. Giant river turtle!
8. Mass river turtle hatching!
9. Soft coral
10. Stony coral

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We’re talking all things lagomorphs, from hares to rabbits to domesticated bunnies! We’ll learn that rabbits don’t lay colorful eggs, but they DO eat their own poop! Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: could a rabbit fly on those ears with enough thrust? Find out with our special guest Joelle Monique!

Footnotes:

1. Pika (but no pikachu)! 
2. A black-tailed jackrabbit
3. Another jackrabbit
4. Newborn HARES come out HAIRY
5. Newborn rabbits come out NUDE
6. The rare amani rabbit
7. FLEMISH GIANT RABBIT
8. Pygmy rabbit (juveniles) 
9. Netherland dwarf rabbit (haunted version)
10. Netherland dwarf rabbit (with more fluff) 
11. English lop
12. Fluffiest angora rabbit 

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We’ve got round-trip tickets to crustacean station, and I’m answering all your shrimpy questions. What is shrimp? How big they get? What’s up with that poop vein? Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: are shrimp just tiny lobsters? Join us with guest Danl Goodman on this journey under the sea.

Footnotes:

1. Deep sea shrimp?!
2. EYELESS deep sea shrimp?!?!
3. A pistol shrimp's big meaty claw
4. Brine shrimps is aliens
5. Beautiful peacock mantis shrimp
6. GIANT MANTIS SHRIMP
7. THERE'S A DUCK IN YOUR FROG metal cover
8. Check out more of Andrew's music!

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We're talking about animals who can rebuild themselves like some kind of T-1000 with Dave Schilling! Self-decapitation, magical dolphin healing, and the incredible regeneration that’s happening inside our very own bodies!

Footnotes: 

1. Self-decapitating sea slug! 
2. Salamander limb regeneration! 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I answer your questions about everything from penis bones to the origins of life

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From mathematical bee sex, to baby animals who are cute little calculators, to the way math can produce some of the most beautiful living works of art in the natural kingdom, these word problems are no problem at all! Join us as we explore mathanimals with Daniel Whiteson!

Footnotes:

1. Bee sex diagram (with the help of pokemon)
2. Zebrafish!

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Pallavi Gunalan and I are going to check out some animals that you typically would think of as being small, but sometimes get super large and very hunky chunky! From moths to snails to frogs and pollywogs, these animals will give you a HUGE surprise!

Footnotes:

1. Hercules moth!
2. Hercules moth caterpillar
3. Atlas moth with snake head wingtips
4. Giant African land snail 
5. Black Sea Hare
6. Goliath frog
7. Dart the bullfrog pollywog
8. Dart, a banana, and some beer
9. Sawfish rostrum sword!

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We’re getting to know some of the most fascinating noses in the animal kingdom with Hana Michels and Dave Bell! From a fantastical cryptid, to the real-life incredible noses that you couldn’t make up! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: why are bats? 

Footnotes:

1. Nosewalker cryptid!
2. A very "convincing" taxidermy
3. Another interesting "rhinograde"
4. Not quite factual taxidermy!
5. Unicornfish!
6. How handsome
7. Homer J. Simpson fish
8. Sawfish!
9. Cutie vampire bat
10. Horseshoe bat
11. Swordnose bat! 
12. Hammerhead bat!

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We’re talking about the biggest daredevils with Alex Schmidt. When it comes to derrieres, the pop stars of posteriors, the analysts of… well, you know. How do you survive a trip through a frog? What are some unconventional uses for a sea cucumber? And do you really need a butt?

Footnotes: 

1. Water scavenger beetles 
2. The daring Houdini act of the water scavenger beetle
3. The pearlfish at home sweet home 
4. Your close and personal friend, demodex folliculorum!
5. Gold speckled flatworm
6. A comb jelly!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on the show we’re gonna take a BITE out of TROGLOBITES! What happens deep in the cold, dark depths of caves? How does anything stay alive down there? What happens when you don’t need eyes? Find out with guest, Michael Swaim.

Footnotes:

1. Mexican blind cavefish!
2. Cave wolf spider!
3. Texas blind salamander! 
4. THE OLM! Aka "Human fish..." 
5. Cave leeches, oh dear...
6. White cave velvet worm :3 
7. All Yesterdays book!

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From the shiny and splendiferous scale worms of the deep, to scuba diving lizards, these animals all have one thing in common: they are 100% glam. Join us as we explore these extravagant trend setters with special guest Danl Goodman.

Footnotes: 

1. Elvis worm! 
2. Elvis worms fighting, oh no! 
3. Scale worm jaws, extra oh no! 
4. Living beetle jewelry 
5. Shiny diving lizards, oh my!
6. Shiny diving lizards caught on video! 

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We’re talking all things Jurassic, as we fact check Jurassic Park! Was John Hammond in over his head? Could life uuuuuuuuh find a way? And are T-Rexes eyesight REALLY based on movement? We’re digging up dinos and the truth with Kay B!

Footnotes:

1. Baby T-Rex was a cutie pie!
2. Yutyrannus was a monstrous chicken
3. More art of yutyrannus
4. Deinocheirus: world's most terrifying muppet? 
5. Deinocheirus, like Big Bird and snuffleupagus had a baby
6. Why is this feathery monstrosity not in movies??? 

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These animals seem like hoaxes! Living tampons that walk the earth, purple blobs who walk UNDER the earth, a new animal superhero, and the weird sex-capades of horny bees! Discover this and more with guest Vanessa Guerrero, as we answer the age-old question, is that a snorkel coming out of your butt or are you just happy to see me? 

Footnotes:

1. (Warning, icky) rat-tailed maggots look like crawling tampons
2. Purple frog (blob) 
3. Such a little blob
4. Backwards butt lookin guys 
5. Purple frogs in love :) 
6. Purple frog tadpole 
7. Alligators can regrow tails!
8. Blister beetle larvae tricking horny bees
9. Pile of larvae pretending to be a sexy female bee

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A quokka for your patience :) 

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This is the BEE MOVIE CANCELLATION SPECIAL!!! That’s right, we are TAKING ON BEE MOVIE, to HOLD IT ACCOUNTABLE for all its inaccuracies with Jamie Loftus and Caitlin Durante!! 

Footnotes: 

1. Bee orchid

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On this holiday special, we will explore three holiday classics, Rudolph the Red-nosed reindeer, Die Hard, and The Santa Clause, and recast the leading roles as even more incredible real-life animals with Joelle Monique! 

Footnotes:

1. Rudolph the Glowing Tasmanian Devil?
2. Glowing platypus 
3. Glowing wombats
4. Glowing bilby ears 
5. Bioluminescent sea unicorns? 
6. GIANT pyrosome: 
7. Flashing pyrosome
8. Blizzard of glowing pyrosomes
9. Die Hard planarian 
10. Planarian looking silly
11. Oh come on 
12. Yeti crabs (aka hoff crabs) 
13. Rock ptarmigan summer fashion 
14. Rock ptarmigan winter fashion
15. Rock ptarmigan peekin’ out of a snow cave 
16. Queen bee body vs. Worker bee 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Creature Feature holiday special episode will air next week! In the meantime, please enjoy this soothing Q&A where I answer your questions about animals! And though we talk about alien parasites and the horrifying truth behind guinea pigs, let the soothing tones of my voice and ambient music bring you some tranquility. 

Footnotes: 

1. Parasitic salminicola
2. Sun bear epic tongue 
3. Plough snails absolutely booking it 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on the show, we’re talking about those tubular dudes, those little wiggle pipes, those cylindrical squamates, SNAAAAAKES! From the goofiest, to the cutest, to the most dazzling snakes, we’re going to find out how truly odd snakes can be with our guest, Maggie Mae Fish!

Footnotes:

1. Arabian sand boa!
2. Madagascar leaf-nosed snake
3. Male and female leaf-nosed snakes
4. Tentacled snake 
5. Elephant trunk snake
6. Hognose snake 
7. Blunthead tree snake
8. Big-eye green whip snake
9. Sunbeam snakes
10. Brazilian Rainbow boa 
11. Formosan odd-scaled snake

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This year I know a lot of your responsible folks are modifying your normal holiday season to be safer. But we don’t have to isolate from turkeys, so I’m gonna invite a whole flock of turkeys into your home! We’re gonna talk turkey facts, turkey romance, turkey history, and alternative turkeys with our guest Alison Stevenson!

Show Notes:

1. A turkey snood that's... um...
2. Turkey sounds!
3. Ocellated turkey!
4. Ocellated turkey sounds!
5. Australian brush turkey!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The past few weeks have been pretty hectic when it comes to news, so here are some animal news stories that you may have missed with our guest Alex Schmidt! 

Footnotes: 

1. Anti-bear robot wolves! 
2. Dystopian bear facial recognition! 
3. Bear raids convenience stores!
4. Wolves got voted in! 
5. Giant murder hornet nest found! 
6. Two new species of greater glider discovered, found to be TOTALLY CUTE! 
7. Somebody let the devils back into Australia! 
8. GLOWING. PLATYPUS. 
9. Half male, half female bird, split right down the middle! 
10. Wrinkles faced bats think mask-wearing is sexy! 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I don’t know about you guys, but my brain is completely melted after this election week! So I thought I’d take it easy today and answer some fascinating listener questions!

Footnotes: 

Baby pygmy hippo ;) 

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Today we’re discussing some horror tropes you can find right in nature! Evil deadly lakes, fungus that isn’t fun, terrifying ANT-ics, and things that go bump in the night! Stay tuned for an audio guessing game with David Bell & Tom Reimann !

Footnotes:

1. Lake Natron
2. Dead animal statues of Lake Natron 
3. Alien fungus
4. Uh oh more alien fungus 
5. Jumping spider ant mimic
6. Predatory female spider ant mimic
7. Predatory male spider ant mimic 
8. Ant algorithim
9. Extinct vampire ant trapped in amber
10. Mystery caller #1
11. Mystery caller #2
12. Mystery caller #3
13. Mystery caller #4

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we’re visiting the spookiest, smartest, most spectacular family in the animal kingdom: the corvids! Crows, ravens, rooks and more! Are crows

the smartest being on earth? Do they mourn their dead? Featuring crow expert Dr. Kaeli Swift!

Footnotes!

Dr. Swift's spooky crow study! 

DO NOT BE ALARMED! CROW RESEARCH! 

Genius New Caledonian crows 

Crow gifts? 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this first episode of our two-episode spooktacular, Bridgett Greenberg and Abe Epperson help us flee from a chitinous terror, a ten-legged devilish decapod, a creepy crustacean crawling closer and closer! ATTACK! OF THE KILLER CRAAAAABS! 

Footnotes: 

1. King "crab" 
2. Porcelain "crab"
3. Hairy stone "crab" 
4. Inspirational tweet 
5. Flower crab spider
6. Another crab spider 
7. Happy face spider
8. Clown face on a green crab spider! 
9. Pubic lice, aka, "crabs" 
10. Halloween crab, spooooky! 
11. Christmas island crabs! 
12. Coconut crab! 
13. Yeti Crabs!
14. Japanese spider crab!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From slimy love unicorns to sexy eight-legged twerking, we’re looking at all the beautiful and bizarre mating habits of all sorts of creatures, gastropods, arthropods, birds, and mammals with our guests Carolina Barlow & Devin Leary.

Footnotes:

1. Snail love dart, aw yeah...
2. Black widow males twerk for love!
3. Cosmophasis umbratica rave! 
4. Twelve-wired bird of paradise video
5. Wilson’s bird of paradise video
6. Six-plumed bird of paradise video
7. Naked mole rat mutant sperm
8. Mouse sperm swim teams 
9. You know what they say about mice who eat yogurt... 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on the show we’re scouring the animal kingdom to look for a new species of animal to cast as the replacement Garfield! Will it be the pygmy bluetongue skink? The gulper eel? Reticulated python? Or another candidate? Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: is Garfield measured more by his laziness, his hatred for Mondays, or his ability to eat an entire tray of lasagna in one bite? Find out with our guests Hana Michels and Joey Clift.

Footnotes: 

1. Pygmy bluetongue skink pokin' out of its burrow!
2. Starfish everting its stomach!
3. Gulper eel caught on camera
4. Tasmanian devil
5. Garfield colored pythons? 
6. Golden pheasant
7. Tiger moth caterpillar
8. Carrion beetle

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I got my brother, Aaron Goldin, to come on the podcast to talk about siblings in the animal kingdom! From siblicide to unstoppable armies of siblings! 

Footnotes: 

1. Baby sand tiger sharks eat each other in the womb! 
2. Tiger salamander cannibal morph! 
3. Baby bald eagles
4. A giant caterpillar?
5. Millipede baby buddy ball! 
6. Black lace weaver spiders at a uh, family dinner... 
7. Copidosoma floridanum wasp caterpillar thunderdome (warning: NSFE, not safe for eating)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While us humans are all trying to figure out our favorite hobbies to occupy our time, animals are already running, crocheting, and baking circles around us! We’re talking bee bakers, web-spinners, carpenters, fake astronomers, and dolphin shenanigans with our guest, Teresa Lee!

Footnotes: 

1. Bee bread! 
2. Bee sorbet! 
3. Webspinner! 
4. Carpenter ants handiwork!
5. Honeypot ants! 
6. Carnivorous stars! 
7. Dolphin vape tricks!

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Reproduction is the key to evolution, which means that mother nature can get a little strange when it comes to sex. We’re talking about strange equipment, bizarre courtship, and fatal attraction with Arden Myrin!

Footnotes:

1. Crane Fly!
2. Echidna! 
3. Echidna penis (NSFW)
4. Bull penis cane? 
5. Whiptail lizards
6. Hanging flies hanging out
7. North American Porcupine!
8. Old world porcupine
9. Brown widows (yes that little guy is a male) 
10. Anaconda breeding ball
11. Dawson's burrowing bees (NSFW: BEE SEX) 

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Today on the show, we’re talking about INTERSPECIES BUDDIES! We’ll talk about the difference between mutualism and commensalism, why every birdy loves a capybara, how the beaches of the Galapagos are a great place for friendship, and the only time you want to be inside the mouth of a giant moray.

Footnotes:

Marine iguana! https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Amblyrhynchus_cristatus_%283838137696%29.jpg

Marine iguana and lava lizard! https://i.pinimg.com/originals/28/f5/aa/28f5aab7039f29b4f33bb950a12c1395.jpg

Marine iguana with a bad case of crabs! https://dhtt.smugmug.com/Other/Galapagos-789/i-NbXhP5D/0/L/P1030305-L.jpg

Capybaras with a bad case of birds! https://www.researchgate.net/figure/FIGuReS-21-26-Capybaras-as-clients-of-cleaner-birds-21-A-disturbed-capybara_fig5_277776494

Ducks walking all over a capybara! 

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5D6lrkc81Js&app=desktop

Moray eel and cleaner wrasse! https://images.fineartamerica.com/images-medium-large/giant-moray-eel-and-cleaner-wrasse-mathieu-meur.jpg

Meat ant eating butt syrup! https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Common_jassid_nymph_and_ant02.jpg/1024px-Common_jassid_nymph_and_ant02.jpg

Dolphins and birds coming together to screw over fish! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FE49xEU_z7g

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Today on the show we’re talking about ridiculous species names, and learning all about the animals behind them. Can you really judge a pigbutt worm by its name? Or a screaming hairy armadillo? Or a lumpsucker fish?

Footnotes:

1. Pigbutt worm:
2. Pigbutt worm face: 
3. Lumpsuckers! 
4. Lil lumpsucker sucking on a finger
5. Lumpsuckers on balloons
6. Lumpsuckers sucking on lumpsuckers
7. Tassled wobbegong
8. Hellbender salamander
9. Screaming hairy armadillo
10. Screaming hairy armadillo, well, screaming
11. Cinereous mourner
12. Cinereous mourner acting
13. Fried egg jellyfish
14. Red-lipped batfish
15. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/p/proboscis-monkey/

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Animal pranks aren’t always just for fun, they can be crucial for survival. We’re going to fall down a web of lies, deceit, and outright mockery. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: you can pick your nose, you can pick your friend’s nose, but can you pick a monkey’s nose? 

Footnotes: 

Portia spider

Iranian spider-tailed viper 

Fork-tailed drongo

Capuchins pranking eachother

Chimps pranking visitors

Octopuses pranking everyone

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why are some animals nocturnal? What evolutionary adaptations do you have to make to be awake during the GRAVEYARD SHIFT with horror expert with Sabina Graves? And what lurks in the ocean… at night? Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question, why is owls? I mean, why… why is owls? 

Footnotes: 

1. The cathemeral fossa
2. Barking gecko mating call
3. Australian greater glider
4. THE TAILS
5. The tarsier
6. Incredible zooplankton
7. Spiny tiger shrimp

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We’re talking animals that are unusually musical, from up in the skies to deep under the ocean. We have a special guest Dajae Williams, an Engineer at NASA, who uses music to educate and inspire, as answer the age-old question: do all birds like Taylor Swift, or just the swifts?

Footnotes:

1. Dajae Williams' website
2. SongHive
3. Musician wren
4. Wood thrush
5. Humpback whale song
6. Blue whale song

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Today on the show we’re going to look at the truth behind viral stories about animals! Which claims are real, and which are dirty lies?

Footnotes:

1. Salmon shark pictures on Twitter?
2. Dwarf lantern shark
3. Pygmy shark
4. Famous orca pregnant again? 
5. Decapitated wolf eel head biting?
6. A live wolf eel
7. Spotted zebra? 
8. Melanistic fox? Cross fox? 
9. Many different fox color morphs
10. Unicorn puppy? 
11. Seal trying to impress a cat? 
12. Margay mimics
13. Orangutan handwashing? 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The animal kingdom is full of devoted parents, whose child rearing skills are incredible, shocking, and gross! Some parents, like our guest Steph Williams, would give you the shirts off their backs, and others would give you the skin off their backs... literally.

Footnotes:

1. Horned marsupial frog
2. Horned marsupial frog with eggs (warning, yucky)
3. Blue poison dart frog with tadpole on his back
4. Suriname toads (warning, trypophobia trigger)
5. Killdeer mating
6. Killdeer faking injury
7. Rhea dad with babies
8. Octopus mothers
9. Cotton topped tamarin
10. Barbary macaque
11. Elephant showing off her baby to rescuers

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What happens when you stick two different animals together and let nature take its course? Some whacky evolutionary mixups! We’re talking scientists who accidentally created a hybrid, how hybridization works in the first place, and the mysteries of animals like the narulga and pizzly. Discover this and more as we and guest Kayla Maria answer the age-old question: how come scientists tried to make a Jesus fish? 

Footnotes:

1. Sturddlefish!!!
2. Geep! 
3. The Narluga
4. The Leopon
5. Pizzly!! 

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Today on the show we’re talking about D-D-D-DANK ANIMAL MEMES, KIDS with Alex Schmidt! Did you know humans aren’t the only ones spreading sweet memes? That’s right, we’re talking about viral birdsong that’s getting retweeted like crazy, otter tupperware parties, and dolphins engaging in the hottest new trend, “shelling.”

Footnotes: 

1. Otter tupperware parties
2. Dolphins shelling! 
3. Tandem recruitment in ants
4. Viral birdsong
5. Sperm whale dialects
6. Baby meerkat eating scorpion
7. Orangutan building nests

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Summary:  This week we're talking about something very important. We’re going to cover the use of dogs in cases of police brutality, the history of how dogs have been used as weapons, and the harm this does to people as well as to the dogs themselves. And at the end, we'll cover some of the positive jobs that dogs can do that are better for people and better for dogs.

Guests: Pallavi Gunalan, Joelle Monique

Footnotes:

1. Police dog bite study
2. Cancer sniffing dogs
3. Little "fairy" penguin
4. Oddball the sheepdog giving a fairy penguin a kiss
5. Supporting Black Lives mailing list
6. Supporting Black Lives Google Drive link

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Catch some Z’s with nap-time transformers, contortionists, animals who barely need a wink, and animals who slept in past their alarm by a few years. Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: how do you sleep floating in the middle of the sea? You’ll be otter-ly surprised with guest Alexis Torres! 

Footnotes:

Dead leaf butterfly

More of the dead leaf butterfly

Malachite sunbird

Malachite sunbird asleep

Sea otter use kelp to babysit

Giraffe sleeping with its head on its butt

Sperm whales sleep VERTICALLY

Viral "drunk" owl

Snowy owl chicks sleeping

Burrowing owl striking an Instagram pose

Desert snail forgot to set its alarm

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on the show, we’ll be talking about a BRIEF HISTORY OF BIRDS. Are there secretly still dinosaurs still lurking among us? How did birds learn how to fly? Why did some birds decide to be so small? Discover this and more as we answer the age old question, is birds dinosaurs? 

Footnotes:

1. Birds is dinosaurs?
2. Archaeopteryx
3. WONDERCHICKEN
4. Sandhill crane
5. Baby blue heron
6. Baby southern ground hornbill
7. Adult southern ground hornbill
8. The hoatzin
9. Inca tern mustache!
10. Inca tern calls
11. Indohyus (whale ancestor) 
12. Bee hummingbird

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Today, we’re going to be playing a little game: see if you can guess which one of these animals we’re about to discuss is more likely to kill you than to cuddle you with Joey Cliff? Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: can you trim your hedges with a crocodile? 

Footnotes: 

1. Striped Eel Catfish
2. The Gharial Crocodile
3. The Basking Shark
4. Blue-Ringed Octopus (if you see this RUN AWAY)
5. Be Wary of the Cassowary
6. The Shoebill Stork is not a Stork (but is kinda a dork)

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We’re talking about animals who are all about the presentation with Katie Cullen! Sequined spiders, mantises with deadly cosplay, fish who prove the devil really does wear Prada, a bird who literally slays on the runway, and the cutest little Billie Eilish loving hyena on the planet. Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: have you ever watched a crab swim? I mean, really watched it? 

Footnotes: 

1. Sequined mirror spiders 
2. These spiders look like jewels 
3. Pine processionary caterpillars form a giant conga line! 
4. Stunning orchid mantis
5. A flower mantis with an emoji on her wings! 
6. Blue glaucus or blue dragon
7. Portugese man o' war is surreal  
8. Yellow boxfish! 
9. Crabs swimming! 
10. Indian bullfrogs look like a crazy sports fan 
11. Indian bullfrog orgy! 
12. Secretary birds stomp down the runway 
13. Aardwolf cubs, the cutest hot topic emos in the world 

Charities to donate to: 

1. https://blacklivesmatter.com/
2. https://peoplesbudgetla.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.