By Katherine Shaw
A podcast about living, extinct, and imaginary animals!
Thanks to Luke for suggesting this week's topic: Smilodon, the saber-toothed cat, AKA the sabertooth tiger! Further reading: Did sabertooth tigers purr or roar? The double-fanged adolescence of saber-toothed cats We don't know for sure what Smilodon looked like, but it might have been...
Thanks to Richard from NC, Pranav, and Alexandra for their suggestions this week! Further reading: ABA Rare Bird Alert One Reason Migrating Birds Get Lost Is Out of This World Inside the Amazing Cross-Continent Saga of the Steller's Sea-Eagle A Vagrant European Robin Is Drawing...
Thanks to Joel and Mary for suggesting some really interesting woodpeckers this week! Further watching: Rare woodpecker thought extinct spotted in Ohio The green woodpecker really likes to eat ants [picture by Remyymer - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=65008314]: The white-headed woodpecker looks...
Thanks to Pranav, Isaac, and an anonymous listener for their suggestions this week! Let's learn about some animals that inspired three Pokemon. Sandshrew: Possible Sandshrew inspirations: Drowzee: Possible Drowzee inspiration: Fennekin: Undoubted Fennekin inspiration: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw. This week...
Thanks to Nathan-Andrew for suggesting giant ichthyosaurs! Further reading: Paleontologists unearth what may be the largest known marine reptile Ruby and some other scientists with the ichthyotitan fossils [photos taken from this page]: How the pieces fit together: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m...
Thanks to Max for suggesting Titanoboa! Further reading: Largest known madtsoiid snake from warm Eocene period of India suggests intercontinental Gondwana dispersal This Nearly 50-Foot Snake Was One of the Largest to Slither on Earth Meet Vasuki indicus, the 'crocodile' that was a 50ft...
Thanks to Khalil for suggesting the horny toad, also called the horned lizard or horned toad! Further reading: The Case of the Lost Lizard The Texas horned lizard: Texas Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma cornutum) The rock horned lizard [photo taken from article linked above]: Show transcript: Welcome to...
Thanks to Elijah and an anonymous listener for suggesting that we talk about some more species of praying mantis! Further reading: The luring mantid: Protrusible pheromone glands in Stenophylla lobivertex (Mantodea: Acanthopidae) Dragons and unicorns (mantises) spotted in Atlantic forest Citizen scientists help discover...
Thanks to River for suggesting this week's topic, the pufferfish! Further reading: Grass puffer fish communicate with each other using a non-toxic version of their deadly toxin Mystery pufferfish create elaborate circular nests at mesophotic depths in Australia Pufferfish, puffed: A starry puffer, un-puffed [picture...
Thanks to Carson, Mia, Eli, and Pranav for their suggestions this week! Further reading: RNA for the first time recovered from an extinct species Study finds ongoing evolution in Tasmanian Devils' response to transmissible cancer Tasmanian devil research offers new insights for tackling cancer...
Thanks to Will and Måns for their suggestions this week! Let's learn about some mystery bovids, or cows and cow relations! Further reading: A Book of Creatures: Songòmby Kouprey: The Ultimate Mystery Mammal A musk ox (top) and a wild yak (bottom): A young...
Thanks to Ari for suggesting this week's episode, about the peacock! Further reading: Peacock tail feathers shake at resonance and hold eye-spots still during courtship displays Indian peafowls' crests are tuned to frequencies also used in social displays An ocellated turkey (not a peacock...
Let's look at some of the most interesting animals discovered last year! Further reading: Newly-discovered ‘margarita snails’ from the Florida Keys are bright lemon-yellow Tiny spirits roam the corals of Japan—two new pygmy squids discovered Strange New Species of Aquifer-Dwelling Catfish Discovered in India Bizarre...
Sorry to my Patreon subscribers, since this is mostly a rerun episode from April 2019. It's a fun one, though! The teensy pumpkin toadlet [photo by Diogo B. Provete - http://calphotos.berkeley.edu, CC BY-SA 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6271494]: The electromagnetic spectrum. Look how tiny the...
Thanks to Jason for suggesting this week's topic, the bison! Further reading: New research documents domestic cattle genetics in modern bison herds Higgs Bison: Mysterious Hybrid of Bison and Cattle Hidden in Ice Age Cave Art A cave painting of steppe bison and other...
Thanks to Pranav for suggesting this mystery big cat this week, the marozi! Further reading: From Black Lions to Living Sabre-Tooths: My Top Ten Mystery Cats Spotted Lions A young lioness who still has some of her cub spots: Subadult lions who still have a...
Thanks to Chuck for suggesting this week's topic, a weird little deer called the muntjac! Further reading: Dam Project Reveals Secret Sanctuary of Vanishing Deer Wildlife camera trap surveys provide new insights into the occurrence of two threatened Annamite endemics in Viet Nam...
Let's take a look at some new findings about the temnospondyls this week! Further reading: Ancient giant amphibians swam like crocodiles 250 million years ago Fossil of Giant Triassic Amphibian Unearthed in Brazil Kwatisuchus rosai was an early amphibian [picture taken from article linked...
Thanks to Oz from Las Vegas for suggesting this week's topic! Further reading: Bobi, the supposed 'world's oldest dog' at 31, is little more than a shaggy dog story Greenland sharks live for hundreds of years Scientists Identify Genetic Drivers of Extreme Longevity in...
Thanks to Wilmer and Carson for suggesting we revisit the dodo! Further reading: Dodos and spotted green pigeons are descendants of an island-hopping bird On the possible vernacular name and origin of the extinct Spotted Green Pigeon Caloenus maculata Giant, fruit-gulping pigeon eaten into...
Thanks to Murilo for suggesting this week's episode about the sawfish and the sawshark! Further Reading: Sawfish or sawshark? Two New Species of Sixgill Sawsharks Discovered Do not step: The underside of a largetooth sawfish [photo by J. Patrick Fischer - Own work, CC BY-SA...
Welcome to 2024! Let's learn about some exciting new discoveries in our own family tree! Further reading: 476,000-Year-Old Wooden Structure Unearthed in Zambia Mysterious 300,000-year-old skull could be new species of human, researchers say Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate...
Apologies to patrons for redoing an old Patreon episode, but I have a cold and it's the holidays. The noble emu: A baby emu (picture from this site, which has lots of good info about emus and lots more great pictures): Show transcript: Welcome...
Thanks to Morgan for suggesting this week's topic, the Antarctic Death Star! Further reading: Giant Monster Starfish ALERT Echinoderm Tube Feet Don't Suck! They Stick! Bodies of Starfish and Other Echinoderms Are Really Just Heads, New Research Suggests The Antarctic death star [from first link...
Thanks to Dean, Mia, and Lydia for their suggestions this week! The tayra looks kind of like a canid but is a mustelid [photo by Bob Johnson - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=85291909]: The bush dog looks kind of like a...
This week we're going to talk about stories of scientists, explorers, and other modern people eating meat from long-dead extinct animals. Did it ever really happen? Check out the great new podcast Herbarium of the Bizarre! I highly recommend it even...
Thanks to Eva for suggesting the adorable volcano rabbit this week! Further watching: American Pikas Calling Out The volcano rabbit is not a volcano but it is a very small rabbit: The volcano rabbit is SO CUTE: The American pika looks kind of like its...
This week we learn about two tiny owls! Thanks to Elizabeth and Alexandra for their suggestions! Further reading: Burrowing Owl Elf Owl The burrowing owl is tiny but fierce [photo by Christopher Lindsey, taken from page linked above]: The elf owl is also tiny but...
Thanks to Hannah, who suggested sheep as this week's topic! We'll also learn about a few other hoofed animals, including the weird giraffe relative, sivatherium. Further reading: The American Jacob Sheep Breeders' Association What happened with that Sumerian 'sivathere' figurine after Colbert's paper...
This week we're going to learn about some fish that feature warm-bloodedness! Thanks to Eilee for suggesting the moonfish, or opah. Further reading: Are all fish cold-blooded? The Opah Fish Is Warm-Blooded! Basking Sharks Are Partially Warm-Blooded, New Research Suggests Megalodon Was Partially Warm-Blooded, New...
Happy Halloween! We have a super spooky episode for you this week, a full five out of five bats on the spookiness scale, all about the not-deer of modern folklore! Join our Patreon and get bonus episodes and other perks! You...
Thanks to Will and Henry for their suggestions this week! This episode is two bats out of five on the spookiness scale for monster month, so it's only a little spooky. Further reading: Does the Bunyip Really Haunt the Australian Wetlands? A map...
It's another spooky episode (three out of five bats on this year's spookiness scale), with suggestions from Will and Pranav! Further reading: Tracking the Swamp Monsters Further watching: The Harlan Ford Footage (Honey Island Swamp Monster) A crab-eating macaque: A plaster cast purportedly from the Honey...
Thanks to Pranav for suggesting one of the monsters we're talking about this week! This episode is rated three out of five bats on our spookiness scale. Further reading: The Return of Spring-Heeled Jack Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host,...
Thanks to Anbo for suggesting Australopithecus! We'll also learn about Gigantopithecus and Bigfoot! Further reading: Ancient human relative, Australopithecus sediba, 'walked like a human, but climbed like an ape' Human shoulders and elbows first evolved as brakes for climbing apes You Won't Believe What...
Thanks to Max for suggesting one of our slightly spooky amphibians this week! Further reading: New crocodile newt discovered in Vietnam Further watching: Brave Wilderness Giant Screaming Frog! The new Halloween-y crocodile newt discovered in Vietnam [photo by Phung My Trung and taken from the...
Thanks to Mia for suggesting the black rhino this week! We'll also learn about other rhinos and their relations, including a mystery rhino. Further reading: Photos suggest rhino horns have shrunk over past century The Blue Rhinoceros - In Quest of the Keitloa A...
This week let's learn about some astonishing giraffes and zebras that don't look like you'd expect! Further reading: See the Rare, Spotless Giraffe Born at a Tennessee Zoo Giraffe Conservation Foundation Brights Zoo A tale of two zebras: South African photos used in misleading posts...
Thanks to Clay for suggesting this week's topic, psittacosaurus! Thanks to Will for a correction about kangaroos too. Don't forget to check out the great podcast I Know Dino for all the best big dinosaur info! Further reading: What dinosaurs’ colour patterns say...
This week we finish out Invertebrate August with some mysterious jellyfish, including a suggestion by Siya! Further reading: Mystery giant jellyfish washes up in Australia New jellyfish named after curious Australian schoolboy Mysterious jellyfish found off the coast of Papua New Guinea intrigues researchers Newly...
Thanks to Tobey and Anbo for their suggestions this week! We're going to learn about some giant invertebrates! Further reading: The Invasive Giant African Land Snail Has Been Spotted in Florida A very big shell: The giant African snail is pretty darn giant [photo...
Thanks to Murilo and an anonymous listener for their suggestions this week! Further reading: The ‘sheep’ that can photosynthesize Meet the ‘mold pigs,’ a new group of invertebrates from 30 million years ago A leaf sheep: Shaun the sheep: A mold pig: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals...
Thanks to Eilee for suggesting the sea louse this week! Further reading: Secrets of the Whale Riders: Crablike ‘Whale Lice’ Show How Endangered Cetaceans Evolved Parasite of the Day: Neocyamus physeteris A whale louse [By © Hans Hillewaert, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19259257]: The salmon sea...
Is it an invertebrate? Is it a vertebrate? It's the Tully monster! Further reading: 3D Tully monster probably not related to vertebrates Has the "Tully monster" mystery finally been solved after 65 years? Possibly what the Tully monster looked like while alive: Show transcript: Welcome to...
This week we have our annual updates and corrections episode, and at the end of the episode we'll learn about a really weird clam I didn't even think was real at first. Thanks to Simon and Anbo for sending in some...
Thanks to Zachary and Anbo for their suggestions this week! Let's learn about some shrimp! Further reading: This is why the pistol shrimp is immune to its own powerful shock waves The Symbiotic Relationship Between Gobies and Pistol Shrimp An eastern ghost shrimp: A snapping...
Thanks to Kari for suggesting this week's topics! Definitely check out her book Butt or Face?, which is funny and has lots of animal information! Further reading: Butt or Face? by Kari Lavelle GBIF: Araneus praesignis [the spider pictures below come from this...
We're kicking off July with a beautiful butterfly that does horrible things to ants! Further reading: UK Butterflies - Large Blue The large blue butterfly (picture taken from page linked above): Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw. I recently realized...
Thanks to David for this week's suggestion, the piranha! Further reading: Florida wildlife officer's fish seizure nibbles at illegal piranha sales How Teddy Roosevelt Turned Piranhas into Ferocious Maneaters The beautiful butterfly peacock bass (not a piranha): The red-bellied piranha (By H. Zell - Own...
Thanks to Liesbet, Simon, and Thea for their suggestions this week! Let's learn about some birds! Further reading: Blue Tits and Milk Bottle Tops Ravens parallel great apes in flexible planning for tool-use and bartering Further watching: A Raven Calling [this is a great video...