The comedy nature podcast for more than just nature nerds. A really wild show for grown ups, each episode looks at stories and science from across the natural world and also pits a host against a listener suggested species of animal to decide how many they could take in a fight.
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The podcast How many geese? is created by Jack Baddams & Roddy Shaw. The podcast and the artwork on this page are embedded on this page using the public podcast feed (RSS).
In a masterpiece of editorial writing from Master Shaw, he rounds out the finale of season 9 with a deep dive into nature's finales - lost species and endlings. We're also setting foot into uncharted territory as we welcome the first Great Ape into the fight arena, as we make war (not love) with those promiscuous primates - the Bonobos.
We finish our calibration with Green Feathers by looking at which bird has the whitest white feathers known to science before getting our James Cameron on and mulling over which animal we'd want to be turned into an Avatar of...
Get your digital window to the natural world here with Green Feathers - https://www.green-feathers.co.uk
Need more geese? Check out our Patreon! Come join the flock for extra episodes - https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
We're running around like headless chickens this week as the penultimate episode for Season 9 takes a trip to mid century America and meets a most unlikely celebrity - Mike the headless chicken.
Roddy does battle with one of the most fearsome fish in freshwater in the Asian Arowana, Jack busts some myths on penguins for our sponsors Green Feathers and we get our best Hollywood agent acts on as we hire animals for their sound effects.
Get your digital window to the natural world here with Green Feathers - https://www.green-feathers.co.uk
Need more geese? Check out our Patreon! Come join the flock for extra episodes - https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
Something a little different for you today listeners, as we're delving into the uncomfortable truths surrounding bird feeding and whether it's the right thing to do...
For more reading on the subject, you can download this excellent paper that talks about the potential ecological impacts of bird feeding here: www.researchgate.net/publication/353996228_Killing_with_kindness_Does_widespread_generalised_provisioning_of_wildlife_help_or_hinder_biodiversity_conservation_efforts
This segment is from our Patreon show. Subscribe for £3 a month for bonus episodes here: www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
It's time to salute the flag and sing your national anthem with gusto listeners, as Roddy takes us on a tour of some of the world's national animals. Quizmaster Shaw is hosting Geese's answer to Eurovision as he unleashes an iconic animals Euroquiz upon your ears.
In today's fight we welcome Patreon member Tom Hone into the ring, as he tag teams with Roddy in the frozen wastes of the Antarctic Ocean to do battle with a fearsome feathered foe from the high seas.
Our Green Feathers segment looks at how feathers were integral to the foundation of some of the biggest conservation groups on the planet before we go all DIY SOS and build an animalistic construction team for all your property building needs.
Get your digital window to the natural world here with Green Feathers - https://www.green-feathers.co.uk
Need more geese? Check out our Patreon! Come join the flock for extra episodes - https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
Ready the tea leaves and polish your crystal balls, we are discussing divination with doves and dodos as Jack takes us through the ancient practice of bird augury - beginning in the most unlikely of places, and with a snail...
But that's not all of course as Roddy does battle with a hellish giant of the deep - the deep sea isopod - and the pair discuss which animals would make the best gang for a dream blunt rotation.
That's not all of course as our sponsored segment with pals at Green Feathers sees the hosts chat through some of the biggest feathers in the bird world.
Get your digital window to the natural world here with Green Feathers - https://www.green-feathers.co.uk
Need more geese? Check out our Patreon! Come join the flock for extra episodes - https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
In a throw back to when we disarmed the bat bomb in Season 5, we are donning our combat gear and heading to the front lines to look at how and when animals have been involved in war throughout history. With everything from a cat receiving an award for gallantry, to battle dolphins, through to how modern conflict is - in some instances - helping preserve parts of the natural world, we uncover the goose juice in some of history's darkest times.
Then it's time for the fight segment as Roddy does battle with one of nature's flattest foes; the terror of trypophobics everywhere - the Suriname Toad.
And after all that excitement, we round off by getting behind the control panel of evolution to answer what one thing would we change to tweak evolution's outcomes.
Get your digital window to the natural world here with Green Feathers - https://www.green-feathers.co.uk
Need more geese? Check out our Patreon! Come join the flock for extra episodes - https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
BOOM! Today's episode is blowing biology wide open as we take a look at exploding animals and why some species have evolved the most hardcore defensive behaviours on Planet Earth.
Our journey into the world of feathers continues as we hop in the goose time machine to look back to their origins and see what the dinosaurs were dressed in. Then it's time for our fight segment where we welcome Patreon member Nellie nto the ring to help Roddy tackle the fluffiest combatant that's ever stepped into the arena - Chinchillas.
And, after all that excitement, we blow off some steam at a party with the animals as we answer the question - which animal would be the best at fancy dress?
Get your digital window to the natural world here with Green Feathers - https://www.green-feathers.co.uk
Need more geese? Check out our Patreon! Come join the flock for extra episodes - https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
Listener, what's the craziest thing you've found growing where it shouldn't...?
Whilst you get to leaving your answers in the comments, Roddy is taking us all through some of the wildest things that
Then it's time for another feather segment with our pals Green Feathers, where we go all shmancy and don our Eider down jackets to learn about the extraordinary feathers (and prices) that these ducks are responsible for.
Then it's our fight segment where the feathers will literally fly as Roddy does battle with the terminator finch hell bent on making us all have to deal with cherry stones - the Hawfinch. Then we atone for our wildlife brawling sins by putting our minds to a question on thinking outside the box to develop a new conservation strategy...
Get your digital window to the natural world here with Green Feathers - https://www.green-feathers.co.uk
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running! Come join the flock for extra episodes - https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
WE. ARE. BACK - and season nine (NINE!) is off to a flying start as Jack takes us through just what all those salmon hat wearing orcas were up to in the news - and used the topic to ask questions about culture in other creatures. If the fashion news of the century passed you by, then you can take a look at them strutting their salmon-y stuff here.
Then, in our new sponsored segment - where we'll be featuring all things feathers this season - Roddy gets us started by taking a look at just what even is a feather, before going on to the classic goose juice and doing battle with one of nature's wonders - the weta.
And it wouldn't be HMG if we didn't tackle a listener question - so we're off to Hogwarts to figure out just what our patronus would be... ... .. kind of
Get your digital window to the natural world here with Green Feathers - https://www.green-feathers.co.uk
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running - come join the flock for extra episodes and your chance to be on the show - https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
We are popping up on Christmas eve to share a sneak peek (sneak hear?) of our Christmas special which has just dropped over on the Goose Patreon!
The full episode covers everything from 14th century Sardinian Queens, to Octopi on Christmas cards and a recasting of some nativity guests with wildlife's wisest wonders! (IS this the one time we will accept a chimp??)
Sign up by the 10th of January and get 20% off your first month with coded "G00SE" - just head to www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
Have a very Merry Christmas and we will see you in the New Year
Join us before the year ends as we doff our caps and bend the knee in a chat with Peter Kaestner - ex American diplomat and man who has seen more bird species than anyone else in the world!
Peter takes us through the world of bird watching at the elite level, and how his love for birds led him to a career that saw him serve his country and travel the globe in search of birds. With a life thoroughly well lived, his story to see his 10,000th bird species is nothing short of Hollywood ready!
(This could also be the first podcast interview live interrupted by the appearance of a bird - and what more fitting guest for it to happen with!)
A massive thanks to Peter for all his time, and to the team at Birdfair for brining us together in the first place.
For more How many geese? head over to the Patreon at www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
Cundinamarca antipitta (Grallaria kaestneri) recording courtesy of Ross Gallardy, XC354319. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/354319
Much like the sun setting on a seaside town, season 8 draws to a close with the raucous cries of seagulls as we take on a newspaper article that set out to find Britain's hardest gulls. It wouldn't be How many geese? though if we didn't meander to Melbourne or detour to Darwin, and true to form our friends down under have their own tales to tell of tackling seaside seagull shenanigans in trying to keep snacks on the shoreline safe*.
That's not all, as Roddy fights a bird so obscure that not only was Jack unaware of it....but it might not even exist at all!
We learn about a photographer who truly went above and beyond the call of duty with MPB, and BOS UK keep us up to date on orangutan shenanigans as we check in on the show's swinging son Bumi.
Lastly, a magnificently crafted listener question sees us assemble a team of earth's finest to defend the world from planetary attack - with none other than a certain pygmy superstar being called upon to unite the team.
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running - come join the flock for extra episodes and your chance to appear on the show! https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
In need of camera gear? You can check out our show sponsors MPB Here http://www.mpb.com/
To learn more about the work BOS UK do to save orangutans, and adopt your very own, head over to https://bos-uk.org/bumi-geese/
(*DMs are open on the Instagram page for whoever can get more alliteration in a show description for us)
I can guarantee to you listeners that the start of this week's episode is going to leave you completely baffled as to where it's going, as Roddy embarks on an exploration of what on earth dry cleaners are and the sorcery that goes along with their dark arts. But, stick with us, and we promise it eventually finds its way back to the nature vibe as we explore the world of cleaning behaviour in the animal kingdom. (see what he did there?)
If that wasn't enough then there's also photography tales from the deep from a man who spent 24 hours underwater to take a picture of some mating fish whilst trying to avoid getting eaten by sharks, there's casting an animal Napoleon for which species would be the best at conquering Europe and we have one of our Patreon friends along for today's fight segment - as Roddy is joined by Ann to throwdown with the super serpent that is: the Anaconda.
In need of camera gear? You can check out our show sponsors MPB here http://www.mpb.com/
To learn more about the work BOS UK do to save orangutans, and adopt your very own, head over to https://bos-uk.org/bumi-geese/
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running - come join the flock for extra episode and your chance to appear on the show! https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
How many geese? has seen its fair share of drugged up animals - from the Hollywood sensation that is cocaine bear, through to Pablo Escobar's cocaine hippos - but in this episode we're here to see the effects of things slightly more "over the counter" as Jack takes us through the impact of excess anti-depressants on the environment. If you've ever wondered about the internet claiming "they're turning the frigging frogs gay", this ones for you!
Also in this episode, Roddy fights a the red triangle slug, Jack recaps a drunken moose and the pair discuss which animal would make the best hitman...
In need of camera gear? You can check out our show sponsors MPB here http://www.mpb.com/
To learn more about the work BOS UK do to save orangutans, and adopt your very own, head over to https://bos-uk.org/bumi-geese/
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running - come join the flock for extra episode and your chance to appear on the show! https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
Cast your minds back Goose fans and you may well remember an episode entitled "Hot bear summer", where our own Roddy Shaw went on a mission to prove that Antelope were animals worth our attention and shouldn't just be consigned to being eaten by a big cat on a David Attenborough show. The conclusion of his mission was that they were indeed incredibly dull, and so proclaimed them one of the most boring animals on the planet.
Well, fast forward to today's episode and Jack has brought him to the Watatunga Wildlife Reserve to meet someone who will show him the error of his ways. We sit down with operations manager Molly Ruder who tells us all about one of the most fascinating zoos/safari parks/reserves/we-don't-really-know-what-it-is in the country...
Massive thanks to Molly and the team at Watatunga, you can check them out here: www.watatunga.co.uk
In need of camera gear? You can check out our show sponsors MPB here http://www.mpb.com/
To learn more about the work BOS UK do to save orangutans, and adopt your very own, head over to https://bos-uk.org/bumi-geese/
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running - come join the flock for extra episode and your chance to appear on the show! https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
We've accidentally curated an episode laden with slime as we talk all things deep sea and mucus!
Following last week's chat that went to the roof of the world in search of how yak's can live so high, we've done a full 180 and are going deep, deep DEEP down in the sea to understand why life there is just so difficult and hear about some of the crazily named fish that call the ocean depths home.
Sticking with the (genuinely accidental) theme, Roddy fights a lungfish, Jack recaps what it takes to photograph a coelacanth in the MPB segment and we possibly bite off more than we can chew in trying to work out which animal has the snottiest nose...
It's not all slime and sea though - as we stick firmly to dry land in checking in on our adoptive son Bumi the orangutan courtesy of BOS UK
In need of camera gear? You can check out our show sponsors MPB here http://www.mpb.com/
To learn more about the work BOS UK do to save orangutans, and adopt your very own, head over to https://bos-uk.org/bumi-geese/
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running - come join the flock for extra episode and your chance to appear on the show! https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
HMG gets high as this episode sees us heading into the mountains to meet one of the maddest animals you've all heard of but never given a thought to - Yaks.
Today's episode also sees us invite our first listener on the show! Patreon member Beth joins Roddy in battle against the world's wildlife as she steps into the ring in a tag team bout against the Greater Hedgehog Tenrec.
And if all that wasn't enough, then we've got drunken Mountain Gorillas, a misbehaving Orangutan and a debate to decide which bear is best...
In need of camera gear? You can check out our show sponsors MPB here https://www.mpb.com/
To learn about the work BOS UK do to save Orangutans, and adopt your very own, head over to https://bos-uk.org/bumi-geese/
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running - come join the flock for extra episodes and your chance to appear on the show! https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
For the past seven seasons, How many geese? has flourished atop the twin foundations of whimsy and shenanigans. Well, Jack has decided that season eight is when that comes crashing to a halt - as he blasts through our whimsical bedrock and holds a mirror up to us all to have us question what makes a society... and can utopias exist? He does this, in true Goose fashion, through the medium of some research on rodents in the 20th century. You will never look at an influencer the same again once you've heard what he's uncovered...
It's not just existential philosophy though (hooray!) as we also consider what animals deserve hands and Roddy's arena challenger is sent in by someone who perhaps knows too much...
In need of camera gear? You can check out our show sponsors MPB here https://www.mpb.com/
To learn about the work BOS UK do to save Orangutans, and adopt your very own, head over to https://bos-uk.org/bumi-geese/
Need more geese? Our Patreon is up and running - come join the flock for extra episodes and your chance to appear on the show! https://www.patreon.com/howmanygeese
We're back! A new season is dawning in Gooseland as we kick off series 8 with a banger. We stumble across lots of awesome people in making this show, and when we heard the stories that one of them had to tell, we knew we needed to get him on the show. Enter Ben Callison - CEO of Borneo Orangutan Survival UK, builder of hurricane proof tiger enclosures and carer of one-armed Kangaroo boxers. We sit down with him to learn about how his career unfolded and sending Orangutans to school is helping to return them to the jungle.
To check out the work of BOSUK, hit the link here: www.borneoorangutansurvival.org
Our Patreon is up and running which you can sign up to here- with 3 special episodes available for subscribers to listen to and a new one every month!
It's the second part of our live Global Birdfair specials and we're coming out swinging as we try to answer the ultimate question - what is the worst bird in the world?
But we couldn't hope to answer such a question alone, so we've called in the expert when it comes to cretinous creatures and are joined by our pal Alice Vassallo off "Asshole Animals with Alice".
There's 16 species up for discussion, but only one will be left spitting feathers when we present it with the trophy for being atrocious...
Make sure to check out Asshole Animals with Alice by clicking here!
You can find more info on the Global Birdfair at www.globalbirdfair.org
Our Patreon is up and running which you can sign up to here- with 3 special episodes available for subscribers to listen to and a new one every month!
How Many Geese has been on the road again listener, this time pitching up at the UK’s biggest nature festival – Global Birdfair!
For this episode, we’re bringing you two chats we had with some very cool people.
Up first is naturalist, TV presenter and time traveller – the legendary Nigel Marven. He’s been sprayed in the eyes by spitting cobras, he’s free-dived with Great White Sharks and, most impressively of all, he’s tracked down some of the most fearsome creatures from prehistory. We sit down with Nigel to hear all about how he became the British Steve Irwin and his adventures across the planet, and through time…
The second part of our Birdfair bonanza sees us sit down with Axel and Ario Driolo, a pair of brothers who have been on an extraordinary journey following the migration routes of birds that move from Africa to Europe each year. Along the way they have been living out of their 4x4s as they capture the sights and sounds of Germany, Spain, Senegal, Morocco and others to turn into amazing virtual reality experiences to connect local people to the wonders of the birds on their doorstep.
A big thank you to Global Birdfair for having us – you can find more details about them here: www.globalbirdfair.org
Nigel Marven: www.nigelmarven.com
Sounding Wild: www.soundingwild.com
Our Patreon is up and running which you can sign up to here- with 2 special episodes already available for subscribers to listen to and a Birdfair special coming soon!
Roddy and I often reflect on where this silly little show has taken us as we've found ourselves in increasingly absurd places over the years. Standing in a top secret warehouse in Liverpool, holding 2500 year old Ancient Egyptian animal mummies was one of those times.
Join us as we're welcomed to the vaults of the National Museums Liverpool by Ashley Cooke, their Lead Curator of Antiquities. Hear all about why the Ancient Egyptians were so hooked on making mummies from the animals around them, what it all meant and how tens of thousands ended up getting shipped back to the UK to be ground up and used as fertiliser...
Our Patreon is up and running which you can sign up to here- with 2 special episodes already available for subscribers to listen to!
You can check out our photography pals mpb here
This episode was also sponsored by Birdfy, check them out at https://www.birdfy.com/?ref=howmanygeese
Gather the hive and listen in - we're buzzing into your ears with a whole episode on bees! We've travelled to the World Museum in Liverpool to meet bee expert Leanna Dixon for an awesome apine* hour, and just in the nick of time too - as it was world bee day on the 20th May. With everything from the bumbling to the buzzing, we cover carpenter, mason, honey, pantaloon and even VULTURE bees!
Our new Patreon is up and running which you can sign up to here - new bonus episodes coming every month, and two lucky subscribers will be drawn to join Roddy in some extra special fight sections next season!
You can check out mpb photography here
This episode was also sponsored by Birdfy, check them out at https://www.birdfy.com/?ref=howmanygeese
*bovine. equine. apine. it's a real world I swear...
Listeners, there's no other way to put this than simply saying that you are in for one of the finest episodes of How Many Geese? that there has ever been. We're down to Joseph's Amazing Camels to meet Daisy Fossett on her very unusual farm. to learn all about the truly wild world of being a camel farmer/trainer/chocolatier/(add your own mad profession here).
Our new Patreon is up and running which you can sign up to here- with Monday marking our first members exclusive episode dropping.
You can check out mpb photography here
This episode was also sponsored by Birdfy, check them out at https://www.birdfy.com/?ref=howmanygeese
We've travelled up to Scotland to visit Europe's biggest penguin pool - why? Because it's none other than World Penguin Day!
Join us as we head to Edinburgh Zoo to meet the people behind the penguins and learn about the home of over 130 Antarctic avians, including none other than Major General Sir Nils Olav III, Baron of the Bouvet Islands - officially the world's highest ranked military penguin. We also go behind the scenes at the zoo to learn more about their scientific work with genetics to study penguins on some of the most remote islands in the world.
We also take a quick detour with our new show sponsors MPB photography to learn about the world of wildlife photography and see - being World Penguin Day - how one photographer got very up close with a penguin... ... .though not entirely of the penguin's making!
And lastly, in an episode more dedicated to the letter P than anything else, we are delighted to be launching our new Patreon which you can sign up to here
A huge thank you to the team at Edinburgh Zoo for making this episode possible.
You can check out mpb photography here
This episode was also sponsored by Birdfy, check them out at https://www.birdfy.com/?ref=howmanygeese
Order in the courts!
Today we're hopping back into the Goose Time Machine as Roddy tells us all about the many and varied times throughout history that animals were put on trial. PLUS
- we have an update on our team up with Birdfy as we commence Operation Parakeet
- we work out what the best radioactive animal would be to be bitten by
- Roddy gets a sense of Déjà vu as he does battle with a very specific (and very famous) groundhog.
This episode was sponsored by Birdfy, check them out at https://www.birdfy.com/?ref=howmanygeese
Check us out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
If you're feeling extra generous and want to help support the show, consider leaving us a tip at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
It's calcium o'clock at Goose HQ as we talk all things milk in How many geese's very first PREQUEL episode, diving deep into dairy and marvelling at just what makes mammals so....mammal-y. We're not skimming on this episode either, as we go from milk's origin right up to a recent evolutionary step in (none other than our very own) human kind that makes us completely unique among our mammalian family in how we deal with milk.
We then welcome new sponsors Birdfy to the show, fix all of Britain's public transport infrastructure via the animal kingdom, and of course unpack how many village weaver birds...are too many village weaver birds.
Check us out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
If you're feeling extra generous and want to help support the show, consider leaving us a tip at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
This episode was sponsored by Birdfy, check them out at https://www.birdfy.com/?ref=howmanygeese
Today we're diving into one of the most badass ways of fighting back against the overexploitation of the seas as technology teams up with nature with some pretty awesome outcomes. Meet the Ocean Sentinels tracking down illegal fishing vessels down in the Southern Oceans in one of the coolest bits of research we've ever covered.
There's a slight change to the genre in today's fight as Roddy has to do battle with a BILLION insects before we head back to the ocean to recast the Pirates of the Caribbean characters as animals...
Check us out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
If you're feeling extra generous and want to help support the show, consider leaving us a tip at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
With the Academy Awards behind us, the world may be moving on from awards season... but Team Goose is here to deliver one more trophy as we take a look and present the award for one of the most insane movies you've probably never heard of - 1981's "Roar"! It's lions, lions and more lions as we look at one couple's passion project that got A LITTLE out of hand.... just ask the seventy members of cast and crew who got injured on set by their clawed co-stars!
It's not just the chaos of collaborating with cats though, as we also answer the question what five animals would we choose to kickstart life on an island and Roddy faces one of his ....roundest challengers yet - with the American Woodcock.
Check us out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
If you're feeling extra generous and want to help support the show, consider leaving us a tip at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
It's time to man the harpoons as we hop in the Goose Time Machine and set the dial back to the early 1900s to meet a very special Orca with a fascinating relationship with the local whalers.
Our Birda chums shine the spotlight on one of the biggest birds in the world as we soar with the Andean Condor, before a child forces Roddy to do battle with Leopards. We round out the show with the question on everyone's minds as we work out what our chosen animal would be to use as the vehicle on Mario Kart's infamous Rainbow Road...
Check us out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
Check out Birda the show sponsors here https://birda.org/
If you're feeling extra generous and want to help support the show, consider leaving us a tip at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Grab your nearest Gregorian and summon up a sharpie - we've got some key dates for your calendar this week as we ask the question: why do some days have names?
Not just Christmas, Halloween or Valentine's, we're talking World Marmot Day, World Pangolin Day and ... International Talk Like a Pirate Day? We dive deep into the calendar of the bizarre to go on a journey of all the strange days that are out there, looking at the many environmental days you've never heard of and end up trying to redeem a group of animals we've maybe been a bit harsh too. We're here for the hooved this week as we analyse antelopes, all thanks to that well known international holiday - World Hirola Day.
It's not just a crusade through the calendar of course as we set out to identify the best animal gym buddy (animal knowledge high, gym knowledge low) and Roddy takes up arms against the Arabian sand boa.....or does he?
Incidentally, taking up arms is THE most mocking way you could describe fighting a snake..
And our show sponsors Birda take us back to Australia aka Nature's Thunderdome as we take a trip to the Barking Owl.
Check us out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
Check out Birda the show sponsors here https://birda.org/
If you're feeling extra generous and want to help support the show, consider leaving us a tip at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
As the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to falter, your pals at "How Many Geese?" are here to offer you an alternative. Suit up to meet our radioactive team of superheroes as we introduce Wales' nuclear sheep, Bavarian boar and Mutant Turtles as we turn off the lights to see which animals are glowing in the dark.
Continuing our superhero theme, our pals Birda introduce us to their very own Hawkeye as we get acquainted with the Arrow-marked Babbler before Roddy tackles the sea's sharp-toothed master of camouflage, the Tasselled Wobbegong. And finally, every superhero needs their supervillain, and we get asked what invasive species we would introduce to our arch-enemy's desert island to make their life a misery...
Check us out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
Check out Birda the show sponsors here https://birda.org/
If you're feeling extra generous and want to help support the show, consider leaving us a tip at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Love is in the air and so too is Season SEVEN as we return to the mics refreshed and renewed for a Valentine's Day special - only.... not quite the most romantic one it turns out!
Looking to show love is all around us, Roddy tried to find the cute and loving side of creatures the world deems weird (see: not you sea otters), except it didn't quite go to plan as we hear how love in the animal kingdom takes many strange (and sometimes terrifying) forms. It's not just scary animal sex though, as we also hear the story of how one zookeeper's commitment to the job helped save an endangered crane species. And do we mean - commitment.
Sticking to the Valentine's theme, we're asked the age old question of snog, marry, avoid - insects, mammals, birds - and our show sponsors Birda take us to look at some lovey dovey doves with a double feature special in the diamond and bleeding heart doves.
...... .... oh and also Roddy fights an African Spurred Tortoise. In the 90s. We kind of ... drifted from the theme for that one...
Check us out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
Check out Birda the show sponsors here https://birda.org/
If you're feeling extra generous and want to help support the show, consider leaving us a tip at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
We're back in your ears to kick off 2024 with the episode that was meant to close out 2023 - it's the end (beginning) of year special! So sit down, ignore your resolutions and get ready to listen to what happens when we lose a handle on the conversation...
A seemingly straightforward audience question takes us over half an hour to sift through, as we try and work out which animal would claim the title of Highlander - there can be only one! Let it never be said we are anything other than thorough, as we develop our very own knock out tournament for some of the greatest combatants in animal fighting history.
Of course, it wouldn't be How many geese? without an animal fight - but we're peeling back the curtain to show they don't always go to plan. We welcome the Titan Triggerfish into the arena and wrestle with everything from plasticine to Pythagoras as Roddy tries to form a plan to fight it!
Lastly, we're letting you know courtesy of Birda to check out the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch - and help take part in vital citizen science for listeners in the UK. Download Birda for free, wherever you get your apps.
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
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Our time in Mexico comes to an end with the final episode of the expedition! We park our usual animal heavy chat to speak to Dr Kathy Slater (Mission Mexico: Welcome to the Jungle guest) about the communities who live around the biosphere and the threats it is under. Dare we say it - but we get serious for possibly the first time ever on the show!
Firstly, we talk to Kathy about the honey production which many local communities are engaged in, and her work alongside local NGOs to help them move away from unsustainable agriculture practices. It's not just Kathy we speak to about the honey though - as we interview one of the local Mexican staff members Esteban about his own hives and what it's like producing honey... alongside wildlife... ... in a drought.
The other big topic while we were on expedition was the "Tren Maya" train project that was being constructed. While we haven't mentioned this in the earlier episodes, this mammoth construction project was hard to avoid in Calakmul. Kathy helps explain a bit more about the train and offers some insight to the impact it could have to the region. Do read up on it - which has recently featured in the Natural History Museum Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.
Finally, rest assured there's still some Jack and Roddy chat squeezed in - as we round up our success in seeing our Big 5, Jack gives his bird breakdown and we have the most grown up conversation we've ever recorded as we reflect on our time in the forest...
For more information on Operation Wallacea, check out www.opwall.com
To support the show by leaving us a donation, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Follow our Instagram page for updates here www.instagram.com/howmanygeese
Today's episode is spreading it's weird fleshy wings and echolocating into your ears as we delve into the frankly absurd world of the bats. We've woken up a trio of guests from their daytime slumber to lift the lid on the superpowered world of bats and bring us face to face with one of the largest species in the Calakmul jungle.
Oh and yes, don't be fooled by the early outtro. For those who want a real insight into just how crazy you get in the jungle, stick behind after the end to hear HMG reporting live from a fashion show in the middle of the forest...
For more information on Operation Wallacea, check out www.opwall.com
To support the show by leaving us a donation, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Follow our Instagram page for updates here www.instagram.com/howmanygeese
We are swimming, sliding and hopping into your ears this week as we head out under cover of darkness to look for all things herpetological - aka reptiles and amphibians. With the help of blacksmith-come-herpetologist Stuart and PhD student Fred, we dive into the scaly world of reptiles and (the permanently moist world of) amphibians.
As ever though, that's not all! We answer that classic jungle question of what animal would you choose to be your karaoke partner and check back in on Private Jamie Hartup from the frontlines of the (his?) war against the ants. Will humanity ever know peace?? Thankfully though, if anything can hoover up ants - it's the herps!
For more information on Operation Wallacea, check out www.opwall.com
To support the show by leaving us a donation, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
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Today's jungle diary has got us all a-flutter as we explore the world of tropical butterflies. With the help of entomologists Liz and Holly, we're learning about why they're such important indicators for the health of the forest and heading out on a survey to get our hands on some ourselves.
Also in today's episode we join Private Jamie Hartup to get his report from the frontlines of the Ant War, unpack some of our halfway wildlife highlights, decide which Mexican animals would make good video characters, and start to panic that the podcast may never actually get finished when we notice the humidity is starting to corrode our kit...
For more information on Operation Wallacea then check out www.opwall.com
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
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The Mayan journey continues as Jack and Roddy move deeper into the Mexican jungle and set up shop at a new camp that is not without its (small and very, very well organised....) challenges - as they reach the Western front of humanity's battle with a colony of leaf cutter ants! But before they fall prey to the colony, it's time to get the flock together and head out looking at our feathered friends - as this week we're all about birds.
Learn about the different surveying methods used to study them, as well as that most crucial of scientific questions - WHY bother with birds?! And in a turn of events no one could have predicted when How many geese? started, Jack and Roddy sit down with local eco guide Ezekiel to talk not just birds - but learn some Mayan language along the way!
For more information on Operation Wallacea, check out https://www.opwall.com/
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, pelase visit https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
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Part three of our journey into the Mexican jungle and today, we're focusing on the big, fluffy stuff. It's an absolute mammal-fest this episode as we delve into some of the jungle's most famous residents. Find out the difference between Jaguars and your Jaguarundis, which mammal is the Mafia boss of Mexico and why monkeys are such dicks to each other.
We've then got an extra treat at the end as we sit down with expedition medic Dr Stefan Hudson to hear all about he looks after the weirdest mammal of all - us.
For more information on Operation Wallacea then check out www.opwall.com
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Follow our Instagram page for updates here www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
Our Mexican adventure continues as today's episode sees us getting to grips with one of the most important aspects of the Calakmul jungle - the Mayans. Come with us as we explore the ancient city of Calakmul and the ruins of Hormiguero with Holly Cunningham as our guide. From blood sacrifices to Belugas of the underworld, this is the closest you'll get to a How Many Geese? history channel.
We then list which animals make our Mexican Most Wanted before making time to answer one of your listener questions because, even if we're severely dehydrated and getting bitten to death by mosquitos - we'll still make time for you, dear listener.
For more information on Operation Wallacea then check out www.opwall.com
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Follow our Instagram page for updates here www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
Come with us deep into the heart of the Mayan jungle as we embark on a once in a lifetime expedition into Mexico’s Calakmul Biosphere Reserve.
Joining the Operation Wallacea team, we head out with scientists and locals to get under the skin of Calakmul, learning about the scientific work being undertaken, the history of the forest and the threats it faces.
In this first episode, we’re getting to know where exactly we are and why it’s so special. Head scientist Dr Kathy Slater explains why Calakmul is so important and captivating before Jamie Hartup opens our eyes to some hardcore jungle trees. We also have a live animal gatecrash a recording session and come face to face with the most bizarre animal either of us have ever seen… in a just as unlikely place.
So make sure you’ve packed plenty of water and follow us into the forest as we encounter some of the most extraordinary animals (and people) and planet Earth…
For more information on Operation Wallacea then check out www.opwall.com
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
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Ahoy sailors! All aboard the good ship HMS Goose as your favourite nature podcast sails into uncharted waters for a meeting with the creatures of the deep. We've travelled down to the Royal Navy's central command base at Whale Island to meet marine biologist Harriet, whose job it is to tell us all about the ocean's weird world beneath the waves....
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Follow our Instagram page for updates here https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
Greetings ant fans! Today's episode is acting as a super colony of ant facts with Roddy as its queen as we dive into a group of animals we've been in awe of on the show for quite some time. Strap in as we learn about the most sophisticated and fearsome civilizations on planet earth and why ants are the ones running the world. Our pals Birda also introduce us to the Ruddy Woodcreeper of Central America and Roddy needs your help in doing battle with one of the cutest animals alive - the Red Panda.
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Follow our Instagram page for updates here https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
We've done Australia at war with the emu, we've done artists in love with wombats, but strap in for one of the maddest mash ups of humans and animals from history as we look at how THE ACTUAL US GOVERNMENT had a plan to weaponise bats in WW2... move over Oppenheimer, we're talking bat bombs!
Then join us as we say hello again to Hollywood in our Birda segment - looking at the Red Tailed Hawk which you may not have seen, but we almost guarantee you'll have heard. Meanwhile, we have a matrimonial special for the fight segment as we bend the rules to accommodate a suggestion delivered to us IN PERSON at a wedding (invite us to your wedding and we can talk special features...) before lastly diving into bed with literature as we give a suitable goose spin to Kafka's Metamorphosis.
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Follow our Instagram page for updates here https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
After some spectacular summer specials with guests, we're back with just Roddy and Jack on the mics for an episode that returns to the purest of goose roots and looks at a weird animal you've (probably) never heard of before - Australia's own antechinus (..... .... antechini?).
Then, get comfy with going across the pond as all things goose begin to point towards Mexico - Birda takes us across the Atlantic to look at the Rufous Hummingbird, and Roddy does battle with the Horseshoe crabs of Delaware bay (though, perhaps unsurprisingly, NOT on their home turf...)
Lastly, where would we be without your questions as we answer what animal would make the best doctor? (The NHS may be in crisis, but don't look to this answer for help...)
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Follow our Instagram page for updates here https://www.instagram.com/howmanygeese/
Ladies and Gentlemen, please take your seats in the auditorium as tonight's performance from the Goose Philharmonic is set to begin!
Join us in welcoming composer Kain Ravaei to our first transatlantic episode (via the power of internet) as he takes us through both his work and the wider world of wonderful orchestra. Looking at how classical music can help conservation awareness, Kian's new piece "California Suite" addresses the unique qualities of a particular birdsong, from the flowing tune of Least Bell’s Vireo to the rapid chirps of the California Black Rail. The pieces are modelled after the musical tradition of Baroque dance suites, such as those by J.S. Bach — but with a modern, conservation-minded twist.
.....but we also use the opportunity of having a bona fide classical composer on the mics to answer some of the more musical questions we've been sent in the past, all of course with a goose spin, including recasting an entire orchestra with mother nature's maestros.
Plus - we ensure our time across the pond is all encompassing by taking a look at a real bird brainbox for Birda, the California Scrub Jay. To download the free app, head to https://birda.app/how-many-geese
You can check out Kian's music at his website https://kianravaei.com and listen to the California Suite in full on his Youtube page
To support the show by leaving us a donation, please visit www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
It's time for our now apparently annual tradition of bringing you a How Many Geese? Slimbridge Summer Special!
A whole year to the day that that made our first visit to the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust's flagship reserve in Gloucestershire - we returned with our attentions set firmly on the amphibious. Join us as Kay Baxter, Living Collections Supervisor for the ectotherms, takes us on a behind the scenes tour of Slimbridge's assortment of frogs, toads, newts, salamanders and everything else in between.
Plus - we delve into the simultaneously rarest AND cutest bird we've ever tackled with our pals Birda, as the Spoon-billed Sandpiper is our Birda of the week.
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
For more on the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, check them out here: https://www.wwt.org.uk/
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
On this, the anniversary of the first scientific paper documenting the theory of evolution being presented to the world, we talk about the man that made it all happen. And no, not that one.
Today's episode is dedicated to shining a light on one of biology's most overlooked figures as we celebrate the life and times of Alfred Russell Wallace - who came up with the theory of evolution by natural selection completely independently of Charles Darwin.
Then, we buckle up for our first trip to the thunderdome with our pals Birda before Roddy gets into a battle with one of the most obscure animals on the planet - the Solenodon.
And finally, we answer the question on everyone's lips. Where in the world have we gone? And what, exactly, are we doing here...?
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Today's episode is going all Mythbusters as we take on some of the most outrageous animal facts to grace the internet. Our Birda buddies are talking about Jack's worst bird in the world (the Cormorant) before Roddy does battle with the King of the Avian World; the Harpy Eagle. And finally, we round up the show with your classic "What would a goose do if it had a time machine?" chat.
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Today's episode is taking on a question that some of the finest minds across human civilisation have put their minds to - what the hell is going on with eels?! Plus; it's hammer time with Birda as we go south of the equator to meet the Hamerkop, debate what animal legs would make the best replacement for our own.. whilst it all gets a little meta in Roddy's fight with the Sarcastic Fringehead.
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
What's in a name?
Well, today's episode aims to find out just that as we explore the animals that are named after people and if it's really a good idea to be doing it after all. We find Birda skulking around in the reeds to tell us about Clapper Rails before Roddy defends the UK's Ribena stocks against hordes of Wrinkle-faced Bats. Then we put our dancing shoes on for our listener question as we work out which animal we'd choose as our "two" to tango.
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Today's show offers you a glimpse into podcast future as Roddy asks artificial intelligence to write an episode of How Many Geese? Our feathered friends Birda are tearing out the sky at over 200mph to talk Peregrine Falcons, we discuss which animal will be behind a coup of Planet Earth and it's the Huntsman Spider's turn to enter the HMG battle arena.
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Today's episode is evolving before your very eyes as we get our Darwin (and Wallace) on to explore animals that are changing at lightning speed. Our Birda of the week this week has made a special journey from the opposite side of the world as we welcome Arctic Tern, before Roddy does battle with the Fiddler Crabs. And we round the show off with a bumper question as we answer - what animals would make the best roadtrip buddies?
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Today's episode has overthrown the captain and changed course for life on a tropical island as we explore the Mutiny on the Bounty and its repercussions for one iconic animal. Also in this episode - Birda takes us south of the Equator on a search for one of the world's most hardcore geese, we discuss what animal would make the worst emotional support companion and Roddy does battle with the lemur from your nightmares; the Aye-Aye.
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Today's episode has been cryogenically stored to safeguard all its information on the importance of Frozen Zoos and how they're helping modern day conservation work. We look at how cloning is bringing species back from the brink, get to know which animal is one of the most inbred in the world and take heart from the fact that extinction may not have to be forever...
We then take our Birda segment across the pond to meet the industrious Acorn Woodpecker before Roddy enters the ocean to do battle with a leviathan of the deep - the Leatherback Turtle. And finally, as any good podcast should, we round off by working out with animal would make the best teen babysitter for our non-existent children...
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
All aboard Roddy's weird & wonderful mystery tour as we explore some bizarre creatures living their best lives in the most extraordinary ways... and yes, most of it is in the sea. We team up with Birda again, this time to look at one of the most accurately named birds on planet Earth - the Dipper. And before we finish off deciding which animal would make the worst replacement for the Easter Bunny, Roddy has a rumble with a band of Badgers on the mean streets of London...
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Today's episode has passed through the gastro-intestinal tract of a Tuna to be delivered straight to your ears as we explore the world of unusual things found inside animals. We take a look at some high flying birds with our new pals Birda, as well as exploring what the world would look like if human jobs were replaced by geese. And we finally answer the age old question of; just how many Bruno's Casque-headed Frogs could you take in a fight?
To learn more about our partners Birda and download their free birdwatching app, visit their website at https://birda.app/how-many-geese
To support the show by leaving us a donation to help keep growing the podcast, please visit: www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Seasons greetings and Feliz Navidad listeners! Join us as HMG goes all in one of Christmas' favourite animals - the Reindeer. When did they become so hardcore? And what's the reason Rudolph had a red nose?
Then we meet our festive foe, the Common Basilisk, before we get down to your questions about animal arboreal ornaments and which species would be most likely to return a gift...
We've delved into the HMG vaults for today's series finale as we've put together an episode featuring a couple of our favourite segments that we've been sitting on for a while now that just didn't have a home. Join us as we cast animals as the seven deadly sins and virtues before exploring the surprisingly baffling world of animals whose name begins with the letter U...
Today we're looking into one of the greatest competitions in the sporting calendar - the annual Man vs Horse marathon in Wales. We explore the story, the history and just how it's possible for humans to compete with horses over long distance. Then we get back to our own human vs animal trial by combat segment as Roddy does battle with the Southern Elephant Seal before answering the question of - which animal would make the best lawyer?
Today we're putting 3 of your favourite animals on trial as we uncover their darker sides. For too long has the world been fooled by the cute and cuddly personas of Sea Otters, Ducks and Dolphins and we're about to open your ears to some of their brutal behaviours that Disney conveniently leaves out...
Nature brings all its animals rolled into one for our fight segment as Roddy does battle with the Platypus before we stay on the fighting theme by answering which animals would make the best Pokémon...
We're stepping into our hazmat suits and picking up our Geiger counter as we take a step into the world of nuclear seagulls and toxic ducks. If that isn't enough avian danger for you, Roddy comes face to beak with the mighty Goliath Heron in today's animal rumble before we lay down our swords with the animal kingdom to work out which species would make the best wingman...
Today's episode is walking with giants as we enter the realm of the biggest organisms on earth. From colossal snakes to humungous fungus, join us as we dive into a world that'll leave you feeling pretty small by the end of it. Roddy takes on the Leopard Gecko in today's animal fight before we answer once and for all - which is better, penguins or monkeys?
Find us on Instagram at @howmanygeese and support the show with a donation at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
Ever wondered what the Victorian Pre-Raphaelite art movement had in common with a marsupial from the other side of the world? Well thank God we're here to answer all your burning questions as we look into one of the most peculiar animal obsessions on record. Once we've recovered from that bout of marsupial madness, Roddy does battle with the formidable Portuguese Man o' War before pondering which animal seems like it's been home schooled...
Find us on Instagram at @howmanygeese and support the show with a donation at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese
It's part two of our special collaboration with the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour and we're exploring those organisms that give each other a helping hand to get through the trials of life. Whether it's help finding food or looking for a place to live, these symbiotic species are going to make you re-evaluate your own friendships.
We continue the affectionate vibes by answering which animal would make the best spooning partner but only after we've worked out how many Capybara really are too many Capybara.
For more about the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour who we partnered with to make this episode, visit their website at: https://www.asab.org/
How does a Cuckoo know it's a Cuckoo? What's the easiest way to get a Nobel Prize? And just how inanimate is a tortoise?
It's Biology Week everyone and school is in session as we team up with the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour to talk all about the science of animals doing what animals do.
Come for the ethology chat, stay for the parts where we work out which animal would make the best chef & how many Arctic Terns we'd take in a fight...
For more about the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour who we partnered with to make this episode, visit their website at: https://www.asab.org/
Note on Konrad Lorenz:
Konrad Lorenz was one of the major founders of ethology and is famous for his work on imprinting geese, as mentioned in this podcast. However, there are also elements of Lorenz’s work that have been called into question in recent years, mainly in relation to his use of Nazi-type terminology and potential ideologies in relation to some of his work and extrapolation to human behaviour. We wanted to bring this to the attention of our listeners, as it raises important questions around the influence of society and individual bias on the development of scientific understanding. If you would like to read more about this you can read an article in Animal Behaviour about Lorenz here.
We're venturing into the great outdoors for this episode as we take the podcast into the field for the first time EVER. And what better place to do it then the home of the goose - the headquarters of the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust at Slimbridge. Reserve warden Scott Petrek is on the show to tell us all about Slimbridge's gambling swans, Hawaiian geese and spill the deets on the biggest soap opera in bird land...
All aboard the Beetle Bus everybody, as we're packing our bags and migrating north for our first ever episode recorded on location. For this special Insect Week episode, we've been summoned to the National Museum of Scotland collection centre by curator of entomology Ash Whiffin to atone for our crimes against the insects. To repent our sins for overlooking them in previous episodes, we asked Ash if she'd help us explore their world. From working out which insect would be the best lover to visualising Roddy in skin tight lycra, you won't wanna miss this..
The "How many geese?" Hall of Fame is littered with legends. From Pablo Escobear, to Cash Rat via Alex the Parrot - the pantheon is steeped with greats. In today's episode, a new animal takes its seat amongst the greats as we regale you with the Ballad of Ken Allen. Plus - what's the best animal you could show up with as a date to a wedding to impress your family? And how many coconut crabs could you take in a fight...?
Today we're learning what happens when the wolves of the sea go hunting for the biggest animals to ever live as we react to some truly wild tales of Orcas taking on Blue Whales. Plus - we go all Nick Fury and assemble our animal team of Earth's Mightiest Heroes & we work out how many Shrikes we could take in a fight...
Today we're exploring the near misses that the UK has had with invasive species, fighting weasels and asking - what animal should you take into a boardroom...?
Today's episode is following in the wake of Pablo Escobear and exploring other animals that have caused chaos. Plus - which animal should be cast as the next 007 and how many Sea Lampreys could you take in a fight...?
Today's episode explores which animal is terrorising some of Europe's most famous cities. We also ask which fantasy animal would have the biggest impact on our real world ecosystems? And - how many pelicans could you take in a fight?
Today's episode takes a look at a headline tailor made for this podcast, talks about the oldest spider in the world, recasts the Spice Girls as animals and works out how many Slow Loris it could take in a fight...
Support the podcast here - Help the geese
We're talking bird brains in this episode as we meet one of the smartest animals to ever live. Plus - which animal would be the best to help you dispose of a body and how many manatees could you take in a fight...?
If you fancy dropping us a donation to support the podcast then please do head on over to www.buymeacoffee.com/howmanygeese - thank you!
Today's show is learning lessons from history as we explore the times that animals were released into an ecosystem to solve a problem... before going on to become massive problems themselves.
Time to lawyer up as we head to the courts & hear about when a monkey sued a British wildlife photographer over a copyright claim. Plus - death defying squirrels, mind games with the emperor and which animal would be the most help on a quest to Mordor?
Today's episode is freshly thawed from the the Siberian permafrost to bring you up to speed on de-extinction and whether we might one day see Mammoths roam the Earth again. Plus, we work out what animal would make the best dictator and Roddy draws up another convoluted battle plan as we welcome our first invertebrate to fight club: the Common Octopus
Today's episode tells the tale of two of the most incredible extinct species you've never heard of, gets into a fight with a nerdy crocodile and evaluates how successfully a snake could apply suntan lotion...
It's Lou part 2 as we explore myths, legends and why some animals have all the luck in the world with tattoo artist Lou Hopper. Plus we decide which animals would run which stalls at a Medieval fair and Lou and Roddy take on a swimming pool full of Tiger Sharks...
Today's episode welcomes tattoo artist and nature nerd Lou Hopper into the goose flock as we answer such questions as: what the worst animal would be to have to tattoo? How many Binturong would it take to crush a human? And just what are the hidden alien animals that have been living among us?
Fear the reaper as we enter the world of the necrobiome. Listen to the literally shocking story of how a lightning storm that felled an enter herd of reindeer on the Norwegian tundra gave rise to a unique ecosystem. Plus - what animal family would take home the most medals at the Olympics & how many baboons could you take in a fight...?
We're back and wasting no time in smuggling illicit animal facts across the border as we tackle such issues as: Columbia's hippo problem, what happens if you get a fruit fly drunk & meet the black bear that ate $15 million dollars worth of cocaine...
We're back for a special Festival of Nature bumper edition of 'How many geese?' - delving into Nature's own festivals to find her mad mass gatherings. Then we turn our attentions to your important questions on animal sexiness, size & bank heist capabilities. Plus, the humble pangolin takes one more step to extinction as this week's nomination to animal fight club...
Today's episode is burrowing into your ear as we enter the world of parasites. Tuck your trousers into your socks as we talk lice that eat tongues, barnacles that hack crabs and slave making ants. Plus - we reminisce about the most remote places we've ever been and ask: how many orca could you take in a fight?
Today's episode enters the mythical, blurrily photographed world of big cats on the loose in the UK. Are they out there and just who is taking up the mantle of tracking them down?
Plus - the Aardvark is inducted into animal fight club and what's the biggest animal you could tape to a lamp post?
In this episode we go to war with the animals more than ever, as we tell the cautionary tales of countries that have waged war on their feathered foes. Plus - Roddy battles beavers and we discuss whether the biggest shark to ever live might still be lurking out there...
Part 2 of our deep dive into age enters the world of the ancients. What are the oldest living things in the world? Which animals have unlocked the secrets of immortality? And, most importantly, what's going on with bats?!
"How many geese?" is aging before your very eyes/ears. In this first installment of our two-parter about old animals we dive into - what's the oldest thing you've ever eaten? Did Churchill really have a parrot that swore at Nazis? And, of course, how many asps could you take in a fight?
Sound credit:
florianreichelt - snarling snake
"How many geese?" ventures into treacherous waters to discover how whales have been doing battle with boats for 200 years. Also, what is going on with America's fluorescent pink flying squirrels? And have your eyes opened to the beauty of the Smew only to work out how many you could take in a fight to the death...
Sound credits:
Smew - Jarek Matusiak
"How many geese?" embarks on its maiden voyage into the world of nature by asking the really big questions. Like, what animal would you eat to take its superpowers? Is Japan really using robotic wolves to fight off bears? And just how many otters could you take in a fight?
Sound credits:
Water frogs - Reinsamba
Quail - Dobroide
Otters - Soundbytez
Wolves - ylearkisto
En liten tjänst av I'm With Friends. Finns även på engelska.