For the second and final week of the MaxFunDrive, we're answering your questions and sharing your stories! We share some deeply personal intimate details like our inspirations behind the podcast, what the journey has been like to make it over the last 3 years, and how much ham we could eat in one sitting.

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Join Ellen & special guest, archaeologist and cryptid enthusiast Elliot Helmer, on a search for the truth about our most mysterious neighbor: Bigfoot. We discuss hominid evolution, cryptid ecology, the importance of oral history and traditional knowledge, and what Bigfoot can teach us about ourselves and our own relationship with nature wherever you fall on the spectrum of skepticism.

 Visit the Black Trowel Collective to learn more about & support their mutual aid initiative for archaeology students, as well as the Na'ah Illahee Fund to  support their organization's work regenerating Indigenous communities.

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Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's re-broadcast of an episode from August of 2020, Ellen explains why emus don't bother flying and Christian dives into the mysterious world of the cryptic whale shark. We discuss the evolution, de-evolution and re-evolution of flight, an actual military war between humans and birds resulting in a victory you might not expect, and eyeballs covered with teeth.

Send in questions for our upcoming Q&A episode to [email protected] or message us on social media! Follow Just the Zoo of Us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

Cover photo: cpaulfell (emu) & Chainarong Phrammanee (whale shark), via Getty images

Join Ellen & special guest, conservationist and podcaster Jack Baker,  for a review of the charming and humble pangolin! We discuss how the pangolin’s unique adaptations tip the scales in favor of this walking pinecone and what challenges they face in the world today.

Check out Pangolin: The Conservation Podcast and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn!

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Cover photo: 2630ben via Getty images

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's sixteen-legged episode, Christian weaves a web of truth about the Joro spider & Ellen pulls no punches with the day octopus. We discuss what the media hype gets wrong about the Joro spider,  how to eat cephalopod ink & why octopuses and their "swift, explosive motion" are complete reef menaces.

If this podcast has had an impact on you or your life, we want to hear from you! Send in your story or just tell us what this show means to you by emailing [email protected] OR leave a voice message at (323) 601-8719. We’re working on some special episodes coming up soon, and you just might hear your message shared on the podcast! 

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Cover photo: Arrlxx via Getty images (Joro spider) & slowmotiongli via Getty images (day octopus)

Join Ellen & special guest, entomologist and animal scientist Shakara Maggitt, for a review of the gentle giants of the insect world: phasmids! You may know them as stick bugs, leaf insects or any of their other many common names.  We discuss learning to love bugs, what makes the abundantly diverse stick bug family so weird and wonderful, and even why you might want to consider incorporating bugs into your own culinary repertoire.

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Cover photo: Chris Rogers via Getty images

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's episode, Ellen wallows in the unique charm of the babirusa & Christian gives us a look into the mysteries of the Greenland shark. We discuss teeth mutiny, Icelandic food, and life in the slow lane.

 If this podcast has had an impact on you or your life, we want to hear from you! Send in your story or just tell us what this show means to you by emailing [email protected] OR leave a voice message at (323) 601-8719. We’re working on some special episodes coming up soon, and you just might hear your message shared on the podcast! 

Follow Just the Zoo of Us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

Cover photo: Ellen Weatherford (babirusa), dottedhippo via Getty images (Greenland shark)

Join Ellen & special guest, fellow animal science podcaster and Cool Bug Appreciator Katie Goldin, for a review of the spectacular and delectably devious cuckoo wasps! We discuss what makes these glittering jewels of the insect world such perfectly crafted little menaces terrorizing a wasp nest near you in this exhilarating exposé of espionage, exploitation, and exoskeletons.

Katie Goldin is the host of Creature Feature, which can be found wherever you get podcasts. You can also follow Katie on Twitter!

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Cover photo: Ines Carrara, via Getty images

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's especially odoriferous episode, Christian gives high marks to the Egyptian vulture and Ellen gives props to the grandstanding, handstanding eastern spotted skunk. We discuss where the pharaoh's chicken ranks in the scavenging pecking order,  how to ACTUALLY get rid of the smell from a skunk spray using chemistry,  and why it's important to appreciate even our stinkiest friends.

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Cover photos: Byrdyak via Getty images (Egyptian vulture) & Weber via Getty images (spotted skunk)

Join Ellen & special guest, conservation biologist Dr. Christine Wilkinson, for a review of the oft-maligned powerhouses: hyenas! We discuss the diversity of the hyena family, eating bones, girlbossing, how pop culture has missed the mark on hyena representation, and compassionate conservation.

Follow Christine on Twitter and check out their website for more!

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Cover photo: David O'Brien via Getty images