Homo sapiens joined the story of life on Earth just 300,00 years ago.  So when and how did we start making music and creating languages? In this episode, we explore these signature sounds and discover how they just might be rooted in listening.

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

Mentioned in this episode:

Subscribe to Amy's newsletter, Letter to Earthlings at https://letterstoearthlings.substack.com/

Elephants communicate through a variety of calls, trumpets, and rumbles. But despite being some of the largest land animals on Earth, elephants  can also be incredibly quiet. In this episode, we open our ears to  elephants and discover how listening may play a key role in saving them.

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

Mentioned in this episode:

Subscribe to Amy's newsletter, Letter to Earthlings at https://letterstoearthlings.substack.com/

Modern humans emerged into a world filled with and shaped by elephants. But for elephants, living with humans isn’t always easy. Elephants have survived by adapting to all the changes we’re making to their world. But there’s only so much they can do. In this episode, we look at how we can learn to live with—and listen to—elephants.

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

Learn more:

Reteti: reteti.org

Longuro: reteti.org/blog/longuro-story

Shaba: amivitale.com/product/shaba

Sarara Foundation: sarara.co/foundation

More than 60 million years ago, an asteroid hit the Earth, wiping out nearly all the dinosaurs. The only dinosaurs to live through this mass extinction were birds. In this episode, we look at how these ancient creatures learned to listen and communicate, and how listening to birds has changed us.

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

Operation frog sound! Send us your frog sounds for an upcoming episode. We want you to go out, listen for frogs and toads, and record them. Just find someone croaking, and hit record on your phone. It doesn’t matter if there’s background noise. It doesn’t even matter if you’re not sure whether or not you’re hearing an amphibian—if you think you are, we would love to get a recording from you.

Please also say your name and where you are in the world, and then email the recording to us at [email protected]

Mentioned in this episode:

Subscribe to Amy's newsletter, Letter to Earthlings at https://letterstoearthlings.substack.com/

Birds, frogs, dolphins, and humans—we’re all big talkers. Turtles, on the other hand, are considered to be silent. Or are they? In this episode, we challenge what we know about some of our quieter planet mates. 

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

Operation frog sound! Send us your frog sounds for an upcoming episode. We want you to go out, listen for frogs and toads, and record them. Just find someone croaking, and hit record on your phone. It doesn’t matter if there’s background noise. It doesn’t even matter if you’re not sure whether or not you’re hearing an amphibian—if you think you are, we would love to get a recording from you.

Please also say your name and where you are in the world, and then email the recording to us at [email protected]

Episode links:

Gabriel Jorgewich-Cohen

Turtle Island

Mentioned in this episode:

Subscribe to Amy's newsletter, Letter to Earthlings at https://letterstoearthlings.substack.com/

Living together in a group is a strategy many animals use to survive and thrive. And a big part of what makes that living situation successful is listening. In this episode, we explore the collaborative world of the naked mole-rat. 

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

Operation frog sound! Send us your frog sounds for an upcoming episode. We want you to go out, listen for frogs and toads, and record them. Just find someone croaking, and hit record on your phone. It doesn’t matter if there’s background noise. It doesn’t even matter if you’re not sure whether or not you’re hearing an amphibian—if you think you are, we would love to get a recording from you.

Please also say your name and where you are in the world, and then email the recording to us at [email protected]

Mentioned in this episode:

Subscribe to Amy's newsletter, Letter to Earthlings at https://letterstoearthlings.substack.com/

A name is essential to your identity. It’s what people call you and what you respond to—it’s part of what you understand about yourself. But do other living things call each other by names? In this episode, we look at how names work in some non-human worlds. 

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

Mentioned in this episode:

Subscribe to Amy's newsletter, Letter to Earthlings at https://letterstoearthlings.substack.com/

Listening and looking for loons.

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

We want to hear from you! Send us your questions about the new season, the content or how it’s made, for an upcoming behind-the-scenes episode. You can submit your questions to [email protected] 

We answer listener questions about the making of Season 5: Hark and of Threshold more broadly in this special AMA episode with host Amy Martin, managing editor Erika Janik, and producer Sam Moore. 

Thanks to Kraftkabel for the use of his music. You can find the whole track here.

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

Mentioned in this episode:

Subscribe to Amy's newsletter, Letter to Earthlings at https://letterstoearthlings.substack.com/

Sometimes a place we consider quiet is just a place we haven’t taken the time to listen.

Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced. You can support Threshold by donating today. To stay connected, sign up for our newsletter.

We want to hear from you! Send us your questions about the new season, the content or how it’s made, for an upcoming behind-the-scenes episode. You can submit your questions to [email protected]