The director of horticulture at Madison Square Park, Stephanie Lucas, spends her days caring for over 300 trees in the heart of New York City. One day in 2022, she saw a callout from NASA giving away seeds that had traveled to the moon. This would be the crown jewel of the park! She and her team worked hard on their application, submitted it, and then waited for two years. Eventually they gave up. Until one day, Stephanie got a call from NASA telling her to check her spam inbox. A week later, a cardboard box arrived at the park. 

The tree - an American sweetgum - has been growing in the park for a year. Lulu and Producerbud Ana went to see it, met Stephanie, and imagined how this little sapling might grow one day. 

If you’d like to see it yourself with the Terrestrials team, come to our Moon Tree Launch Party happening from 4-8 PM on July 16th at Madison Square Park! It’s FREE, open to the public, and full of moon-tree magic: we’ll be showcasing our Moon Tree drawing contest submissions, inviting park-goers to make their own art, and giving folks a chance to meet Songbud Alan (who may or may not have a real half Moon Tree seed). See you there!

We also hear a brand-new poem from New York State Poet Laureate Kimiko Hahn and revisit our episode about astronaut Stu “Smokey” Roosa and the origin story of Moon Trees. 

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What does it really mean to be a dad? In the animal world, fathers have long been painted as aggressive or absent. At best providers and protectors, but certainly not caregivers. And yet for every tale of a lion or chimp dad eating its own young (yikes!), there’s another creature who tells a sweeter story. 

Two HUMAN dads bring us on this DADventure: Dr. Eduardo Fernandez-Duque, who has spent decades studying owl monkey dads in the forests of Argentina, and Michael Feigelson, who once worried he wasn't cut out for the softer side of parenting. 

They introduce us to seahorse dads who get pregnant, poison dart frog dads who give piggyback rides to their tadpoles, Darwin frogs who swallow their eggs to keep them safe, burying beetles who build "corpse cribs," jacana birds who do all the egg-sitting, and stickleback fish who construct intricate underwater nests for their young. Along the way, we learn that nature doesn’t offer just one model of fatherhood. Alongside Mother Nature... there just might be a Father Nature, too.

Special thanks to the Van Leer Foundation for the support of this episode. 

Resources on Animal fatherhood

Human fatherhood 

Talks, films & convenings

Campaigns & global perspectives

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was produced by Tanya Chawla, with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Ana González, Alan Goffinski, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Angely Mercado.

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We're back with PURR-T TWO of our big cats journey, and this time, we’re heading even deeper into the cat-iverse. 

We travel to India, where conservationist Shatrunjay Pratap Singh introduces us to leopards that live among shepherds and ancient temples. Then we head to Colombia, where biologist Laura Lisbeth Jaimes Rodriguez helps us track one of the most mysterious cats on Earth: the jaguar. We meet shapeshifting shamans, forest guardians, and cats so secretive that some scientists spend years studying them without ever seeing one. Finally, we meet the ghost cat of the mountains—the snow leopard—with wildlife biologist Dr. Nyeema Harris.

Along the way, we stumble onto the idea that the world might actually need its scariest creatures, that fear might be one of the most powerful forces keeping our planet in balance.

Special thanks to Luke Hunter at the Wildlife Conservation Society, Shatrunjay Pratap Singh, Laura Lisbeth Jaimes Rodriguez, and Dr. Nyeema Harris.

LEARN MORE:

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was produced by Ana González, with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Alan Goffinski, Tanya Chawla, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Diane Kelly.

HEY GROWN-UPS!
Love the show? Leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and review on your podcast app—it helps curious listeners find us!

Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team!

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Big cats are our most requested animal, but Lulu doesn’t really want to make an episode about them! . She thinks lions, tigers, and their feline cousins are the bullies of the animal kingdom. So Songbud Alan and Producerbud Ana set out to change her mind. 

We head to the Bronx Zoo where big cat expert Luke Hunter introduces us to tigers that cough up furballs and wrestle crocodiles, and lion prides built around mothers, sisters, and grandmothers, who roar not just to intimidate, but to call out to their family. Along the way, we play a game show called The Roar, learn why cheetahs aren’t technically “big cats”, and why orange tiger fur looks green to deer.

By the end, Lulu sees these fearsome animals in a different light. And this is only part one of our first ever two purr-ter!

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was produced by Alan Goffinski and Ana González, with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Tanya Chawla, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. 

HEY GROWN-UPS!
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Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team!

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In the depths of the ocean, a tiny male anglerfish catches a scent and follows it through the darkness. Eventually he finds a glowing, toothy female with a bacterial lightbulb on her head. He kisses her… and never lets go. Their bodies permanently fuse, merging bloodstreams, flesh, and digestive tracts.

Radiolab correspondent Molly Webster brings us the wild story of this eternal kiss. We dive deeper into glowing lures, bioluminescent bacteria, and the biology of two creatures becoming one.

Plus, Alan tells us about the time he broke a world record, and marine biologist Dr. Kory Evans answers our questions about some of the weirdest fish in the sea. 

Big thanks to Molly Webster for bringing us this story. Check out all of her Radiolab stories, but if you want one to start off with, listen to Goo and You about butterflies!

If you have something special you think you can hold a world record in, draw us a picture and email us at [email protected].

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was reported by Molly Webster  and produced by Alan Goffinski with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Ana González, Tanya Chawla, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Emily Krieger. 

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Amy Ray (whose music you might know from the Indigo Girls) was on a walk in the Georgia woods with her dogs when she passed a tree branch and saw hundreds of tiny, white, fluffy creatures doing a synchronized stadium wave. She was mesmerized. 

Turns out, she was looking at woolly aphids - small, defenseless bugs who have somehow figured out how to survive everything the forest throws at them. Resident Bug Correspondent Dr. Sammy Ramsey explains how: from the army of ants fighting their battles, to their power to clone themselves over and over, to their sap-eating ways that make plants scream chemical SOS signals through the air! 

What starts as a story about a fuzzy bug turns into one about a secret harmony running through the whole forest.

Plus, we try aphid poop honey!

Special thanks to Amy Ray and Ozie, and to Dr. Sammy Ramsey, whose new documentary Secrets of the Bees from National Geographic is out now.

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was produced by Alan Goffinski with sound design by Alan and Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Ana González, Tanya Chawla, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. 

HEY GROWN-UPS!
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Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team!

We want to hear from you! Share your thoughts about Terrestrials with us.

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter for bite-sized essays, activities, and ways to connect with the show.
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As one of the most famous cellists of all time, Yo-Yo Ma has spent a lot of time playing music inside. But a few years ago, he decided to take the cello out of the fancy concert halls and into nature, bringing our very own Producerbud Ana along for the ride! 

That brings us to humpback whales. Like Yo-Yo, humpbacks are musical. They communicate through melodies, clicks, grunts, whispers, and bellows. Human beings still don’t fully know what the whales are saying to each other, but for Yo-Yo it sounds just like cello music. So, he had a wild idea: What if he tried to communicate with whales using his cello?

On a very windy December day, Producerbud Ana and Yo-Yo travel to Hawai'i and meet up with hula master, Snowbird Bento, who explains how she uses music to connect with the natural world. Then, they all board a legendary canoe called Hōkūleʻa with local fishermen, seafaring captains, and marine biologists, and Yo-Yo plays his cello, hoping the whales will hear the vibrations and maybe... respond? To find out what happens next, sit back, relax, and join Ana and Yo-Yo on an aquatic adventure.

This was an episode from Our Common Nature, a seven-episode podcast series of Yo-Yo Ma’s musical journey around the country to places where people have deep connections to the Earth. Listen to the Our Common Nature EP

Credits: 

Our Common Nature is a production of WNYC and Sound Postings 

Hosted by Ana González

Additional sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick

Mixed  by Joe Plourde

Fact-checking by Ena Alvarado. Additional fact checking by Sophie Samiee. 

Executive Producers are Emily Botein, Ben Mandelkern, Sophie Shackleton, and Jonathan Bays.

Our advisors are Mira Burt-Wintonick, Kamaka Dias, Kelley Libbey, and Chris Newell

Episode photo by Austin Mann; Episode and show art by Tiffany Pai

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What do loons have to do with courage and community?  In January, we received a letter from two sisters in Minnesota - Jude and Mo. They wrote to us because their city was experiencing a lot of unrest, with immigration agents arresting members of their community and protests ringing loud in the streets as people tried to protect their neighbors. And in the middle of it all, an unexpected symbol began appearing on storefronts, stickers, and even as tattoos: the black and white, migrating waterbird known as the loon. Jude and Mo were curious: why are loons a good symbol of standing strong in the face of adversity?

Loon expert Dr. Walter Piper breaks down the incredible biology of the loon and helps us decode their mysterious calls; storyteller Hope Flanagan brings us Ojibwe tales of how the loon got its famous red eyes; and biologist Dr. Leonardo Chapa Vargas teaches us about loon migration, helping us expand our definition of home. We learn why these loud and eerie birds came to stand for something very powerful: the scrappy resilience of trying over and over again, no matter how many times you get knocked down.

Huge thanks to Jude, Mo and their mom, Natalie, for writing in about loons. Reminder that you can also write in about any creature you’d like to see an episode on! Email us at [email protected]. 

Listen to “The Going Home Star” on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you get your music.

We made special activity sheets for this episode! 

We hope they will help you and your friends, family, students, or neighbors dig more deeply into the world of loons. If you want to share what you’ve made, ask an adult to share it on Instagram and make sure to tag @terrestrialspodcast, or email us at [email protected].

Dig Deeper:

Immigration resource links:

Immigration and Families Resources (National Council on Family Relations)

Resource Hub for Undocumented and Immigrant Families (Center for Migration Studies)

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC Studios. This episode was produced by Ana González, with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Alan Goffinski, Tanya Chawla, Joe Plourde and Natalia Ramirez. Factchecking by Angely Mercado.

Support for Terrestrials is provided by the Simons Foundation, the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, and the John Templeton Foundation.

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Middle schooler, Aanya, has an up-close encounter with a squirrel in the school yard, which leads her to an obsession with one of North America's most common critters. She tells host Lulu Miller all about the overlooked superpowers of squirrels, including one squirrel who lives way up in the Arctic, where the weather gets so cold the squirrels who live there drop their body temperatures down below freezing and somehow, miraculously, survive.

Host Lulu travels to Alaska to meet one of these squirrels as it sleeps, and Lulu talks with biologists Dr. Kelly Drew and Dr. Brian Barnes about why this humble squirrel holds potential for treating Alzheimers, brain injury, and even helping astronauts hibernate on the long journey to Mars.

Check out the making of this episode here! Video by Amy Pearl. 

This episode features a song with a cameo from Chicago-based musician Tasha. Check out our songs page for 'On The Other Side (ft. Tasha)' and more new singles every week.

Special thanks to Aanya and her mom Roli for bringing us this story, and to Amy Loeffler, Clara Goulet, Loi Goulet, Ellie Bell and Ferris Jabr, the writer who first made the “pop-squirrel" joke. We came across it in a wonderful article he wrote in Scientific American. Also, check out this Wired article by Brendan I. Koerner for more on arctic ground squirrels.

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC Studios. This episode was produced by Ana González, Mira Burt-Wintonick, Alan Goffinski, Joe Plourde and Lulu Miller, with help from Tanya Chawla, Sarah Sandback and Valentina Powers. Fact checking by Natalie Middleton. Transcription by Caleb Codding. 

Our advisors are Ana Luz Porzecanski, Andy J. Pizza, Anil Lewis, Dominique Shabazz, Liza Demby, Princess Daazhraii Johnson and Tara Welty.

Learn more about storytellers, listen to music, and dig deeper into the stories you hear on Terrestrials with activities you can do at home or in the classroom on our website, Terrestrialspodcast.org.

Badger us on social media: @radiolab and #TerrestrialsPodcast or by emailing us at [email protected].

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How rested would you feel if you took 10,000 naps a day? Chinstrap Penguins in Antarctica spend their days taking MICRONAPS, each around 4 seconds long. To learn why, Lulu meets one (played by Songbud Alan), who explains how micronaps help them conserve energy and protect their babies from “sky pirates”!  Then, in a badgermania, penguin scientists Dr. Eric Wagner and Dr. Dee Boersma answer your questions! Why are penguins black-and-white? Why is their poop pink? What might they dream about? And we learn that what may look like laziness… turns out to be an evolutionary superpower. 

Don’t sleep on these articles, maybe read them before your next nap:

Read about chinstrap penguin naps here, and here, and here. 

Learn why penguin poop is pink and how it may be helping cool the climate!

Read about how neurons help flush waste out of the brain during sleep.

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC Studios. This episode was produced by Ana González, with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Alan Goffinski, Tanya Chawla and Joe Plourde. Factchecking by Sophie Samiee.

Support for Terrestrials is provided by the Simons Foundation, the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, and the John Templeton Foundation.

HEY GROWN-UPS!
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Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team!

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