This little orange lizard lives with his mum and poos outside. What's not to love?

The great desert skink (Liopholis kintorei) can be found in the deserts of the Northern Territory, South Australia, and Western Australia.

They live in large burrows in family groups, which is extremely unusual for reptiles.

Cast your vote for Australia's most underrated animal here.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-01/science-week-underrated-australian-animal-vote/105582104

Featuring:

• Christine Ellis Michaels, Warlpiri ranger
• Dr Rachel Paltridge, Indigenous Desert Alliance

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
• Jacinta Bowler, Producer
• Rebecca McLaren, Producer
• Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

What has no eyes, no ears, and is barely ever seen? It's no riddle — it's the marsupial mole!

These tiny, golden creatures like to burrow through the sands in central Australia, making the two species of marsupial mole (Notoryctes) almost impossible to find.

Cast your vote for Australia's most underrated animal here.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-01/science-week-underrated-australian-animal-vote/105582104

Featuring:

• Associate Professor Natalie Warburton, Murdoch University

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
• Jacinta Bowler, Producer
• Rebecca McLaren, Producer
• Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

This tiny frog is pasty white, with big arms, a teeny head, and is — somehow — still absolutely adorable.

The turtle frog (Myobatrachus gouldii) can be found in a small part of south-west Western Australia.

They mostly live underground, and are one of only a few species of frog that burrow forwards instead of backwards.

Cast your vote for Australia's most underrated animal here:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-01/science-week-underrated-australian-animal-vote/105582104

Featuring:

• Dr Paul Doughty, Western Australian Museum

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
• Jacinta Bowler, Producer
• Rebecca McLaren, Producer
• Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

They can travel over land, climb walls and take down large prey. And that's all before the short-finned eel (Anguilla australis) makes it out into the ocean for their epic migration to mate.

The location is so remote, scientists still don't know what happens while they're there.

But then, as new baby eels, they need to swim thousands of kilometres back to the Australian mainland — and only one in every 10,000 hatchings make it.

Cast your vote for Australia's most underrated animal here:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-01/science-week-underrated-australian-animal-vote/105582104

Featuring:

• Dr Wayne Koster, Arthur Rylah Institute

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
• Jacinta Bowler, Producer
• Rebecca McLaren, Producer
• Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

Sure, it's a rat, but it's Australia's own cheeky little water rat!

The rakali (Hydromys chrysogaster) is Australia's largest rodent, and can be found in the waterways all around Australia.

Cast your vote for Australia's most underrated animal here:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-01/science-week-underrated-australian-animal-vote/105582104

Featuring:

• Emmalie Sanders, Charles Sturt University

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
• Jacinta Bowler, Producer
• Rebecca McLaren, Producer
• Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

They shoot glue, puree their enemies, and are about the size of a leaf.

With 140 species of southern velvet worms (Peripatopsidae), and most of those in Australia, these tiny creatures are our home-grown invertebrate.

They normally live in rainforests, under logs or leaf litter, and they like to keep it damp and dark.

Cast your vote for Australia's most underrated animal here:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-01/science-week-underrated-australian-animal-vote/105582104

Featuring:

• Associate Professor Tanya Latty, the University of Sydney

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
• Jacinta Bowler, Producer
• Rebecca McLaren, Producer
• Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

The ghost bat (Macroderma gigas) is Australia's only carnivorous bat, so it's probably not a good idea to make fun of their giant ears and unique nose.

They live in large colonies of up to 1500 individuals in northern Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory, roosting in caves, and old abandoned mine shafts.

Cast your vote for Australia's most underrated animal here:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-01/science-week-underrated-australian-animal-vote/105582104

Featuring:

• Dr Nicola Hanrahan, Charles Darwin University

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
• Jacinta Bowler, Producer
• Rebecca McLaren, Producer
• Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

They can grow up to a metre and the world's largest cuttlefish species can also disappear in a puff of ink and mucus.

The giant cuttlefish (Ascarosepion apama) is an oddball, and you can catch a glimpse of them around the whole bottom half of Australia — all the way from Brisbane to Shark Bay.

Cast your vote for Australia's most underrated animal here:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-01/science-week-underrated-australian-animal-vote/105582104

Featuring:

• Dr Mark Norman, Chief Scientist Parks Victoria

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
• Jacinta Bowler, Producer
• Rebecca McLaren, Producer
• Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer
• Petria Ladgrove, Executive Producer

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

Move the peas over to find that Australian freezers have seals, kangaroo penises and the DNA of 'the Chanel of goats.'

Featuring:

• Dr Natalie Warburton, Murdoch University. 
• Dr Jillian Garvey, La Trobe University. 
• Dr Nicola Rivers, Monash University.
• Dianne Hakof, Hospital Manger Animal Health Department Zoos SA

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer.
• Petria Ladgrove, Producer. 

This episode of What the Duck?! was first broadcast in 2022 and was produced on the land of the Wadawarrung and the Kaurna people.

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.

It turns out self-medicating and herbal remedies are not exclusive to humans.

From cats eating grass, to elephants making medicinal tea in their throat pouch — the animal world has its own prescriptions.

And naturally, there's plenty of digging through poo involved in this scientific research!

Featuring:

• Dr Kevin Feeney, Central Washington University.
• Professor Michael Huffman, University of Kyoto.
• Dr Sophia Daoudi-Simison, Newcastle University UK.

Production:

• Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer.
• Nick Kilvert, Presenter/ Producer.
• Petria Ladgrove, Producer.
• Mastering: Angela Grant.

This episode of What the Duck?! was first broadcast in 2022 and was produced on the land of the Wadawarrung and the Kaurna people.

Stream the brand-new series Dr Ann's Secret Lives on ABC iview.