Creature Feature

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/

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Today we’re talking about PETS with Dr. Lisa Lippman and Richie Redding! When did humans decide to own pets? Do we own pets, or do pets own us? We’re also going to go into depth on animals, coronavirus, and zoonotic diseases, and how you can protect yourself and your pet. Discover this and more as we answer the age old question, should we be making dog arcades?

Footnotes: 

1. History of pet ownership
2. Domestication of dogs
3. Farmers brought their dogs with them when migrating
4. The evolution of domesticated cats
5. Dog visitation therapy
6. Enrichment for older dogs
7. Researchers made a dog arcade
8. Enrichment techniques for your dog
9. Olfactory (smelly) enrichment for cats

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Today I'm joined by particle physicist Daniel Whiteson to talk about RADIATION! What does it do to humans? How have animals adapted to radioactive contamination? Also: killer bananas!?!

Footnotes: 

1. Birds Adapting to Chernobyl
2. Study on Chernobyl's Birds
3. Chernobyl Wildlife 30 Years Later
4. Tardigrades Have Radiation Shields! 
5. How Tardigrades Might Help Human Cells
6. Conan the Bacterium

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Today we’re talking about introverts! Fish who want to stay inside all day and play Fintendo, an animal who doesn’t want to see anybody right now, in fact, it’s completely ditched its eyeballs, and spiders who should be called shy-ders, because, well, they’re very shy.

Footnotes: 

1. Aquarium in Tokyo needs your help to socialize eels! 
2. Garden eels getting facetimed
3. European conger
4. That's a moray! 
5. The electric eel (which is not an eel)
6. The golden mole (which is not a mole)
7. The wrap around spider (which is not a tree branch)
8. The bird dropping spider (which is not a bird dropping) 

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Today on the show: INVASION OF THE MURDER HORNETS! I’ll also be talking with Alex Schmidt about two of the world’s other most notorious invasive species, a big toad with a bad attitude, and an adorable little fuzzy noodle who just loves to kill things! Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: how many decapitations a minute can the murder hornet do?

Footnotes: 

1. Murder hornet! 
2. Japanese Honeybees Roasting Murder Hornets to Death
3. Alien Cane Toad Call Via the Western Australia Museum
4. The Unstoppable Cane Toad
5. The Northern Quoll
6. Australian Water Rats Dissecting Cane Toads (Yay?) 
7. The Adorable Invasive Indian Mongoose
8. The Amani Rabbit

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Today we're admiring some particularly devilish animals, like the Dracula parrot, a very gothic gastropod, a satanic gecko, bleeding plants, exploding trees, and a beetle with a biblical reputation. Discover this and more while we, and out guest Megan Salinas, answer the age-old question: can humans and birds unite over our love of fashion? 

Footnotes: 

1. The Dracula Parrot is a Gothic Icon
2. Dracula Parrot Call Sounds Like a Creaky Door on a Cold Stormy Night
3. Goth Snail
4. Long Wattled Umbrella Bird
5. Umbrella Birds have PRESENCE
6. The Bare Necked Umbrella Bird
7. The Desert Bloodwood Tree, You Know, Bleeding
8. Monkey No Climb Tree and Seed Pumpkin
9. Explosive Seed Pod
10. Bleeding Tooth Fungus
11. Devil's Beetle
12. Flamingo Satanic Ritual, or a Nice Family Dinner? 
13. SATANIC LEAF TAILED GECKO!
14. A Leaf Tailed Gecko Showing Off Red Tongue (featured in episode art)

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Today we’re gonna CREATURECISE! We’re gonna see some of the most impressive animal athletic feats! Woodcocks love to boogie! Dung beetles are gymnasts! Bats do crunches every time they pee! Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: Are dolphins jerks? 

Footnotes:

Woodcock dancing:

Chameleon video to soothing classical music: 

Dance of the dung beetle: 

Baby bat learning to backflip and pee! 

Klipspringer jumping around:

Copepods swimming: 

Impressive copepod jump: 

Spinner dolphins!!

Fishing spiders walking on water:

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Today on the show, we review the Animal Crossing game from a scientific perspective. We’ll be fact-checking some Blathers facts about evolutionary biology! Can goldfish grow bigger than a foot? Do they have teeth in their throats? Can tarantulas shoot butt hair at you? Discover this and more as we answer the age old question: what is Blathers the owl hiding? We attempt to answer all these questions with our guests Maggie Mae Fisher and Adam Ganser.

Footnotes: 

1. GIANT GOLDFISH
2. Pharyngeal/Throat Teeth! Yikes! 
3. Bitterlings Spawning Using a Mussel (video)
4. Coconut Octopus (Video)! 
5. Spider Shooting Urticating Hairs
6. Mantis Attacking Hummingbird Video (WARNING: anti-bird content. Hummingbird does get saved in the end though). 
7. A Nice Detailed Coprolite (Fossilized Dung!) 
8. Dunkleosteus Fossil
9. Megacerops Reconstruction
10. Diplodocus's Ridiculous Proportions
11. We got Creature Feature T-Shirts! 

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 We’re gonna talk about some goat invaders, macaque riots, and what pandas are up to with some added...privacy. Discover this and more as we answer the age-old question: when you let penguins take over an aquarium, what’s next? The world?? 

Footnotes:

1. The Vaquita
2. The Sea Shepherds Mission to Protect the Vaquita in Danger
3. Goats Taking Over Welsh Resort! 
4. Macaques Brawling in  Lopburi, Thailand
5. Sika Deer Painting the Town Red
6. Some Zoo Animals Miss Us! 
7. Pandas Finally Got It On
8. The Tiger who got Covid
9. KITTENS VISIT AQUARIUM! 
10. Elephant Visits Sea Lion
11. PENGUINS HAVE TAKEN OVER! 

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