Let's finish off a very weird year and welcome in the new year with a basket of colorful frogs! The northern leopard frog comes in many color morphs, all of them pretty: The starry dwarf frog is also pretty and has an orange tummy: The astonishing turtle frog: Poison dart frogs are colorful and deadly (blue poison dart frog, golden poison dart frog): The tomato frog looks like a tomato that is also a frog: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw. It’s the ve...
Dec 28, 2020•16 min
Thanks to Nicholas and Juergen for their suggestions! Let's learn about some insects that migrate and swarm! Further listening: The Animal Migrations Patreon episode (it's unlocked so anyone can listen) Further reading: Ladybugs Are Everywhere! Monarch butterflies gathered in winter: The painted lady butterfly: The bogong moth: The globe skimmer dragonfly: Ladybugs spend the winter in bunches, sometimes in your house: A stink bug, one of many potentially in your house: This person is not afraid ...
Dec 21, 2020•21 min
Let's find out about some gigantic birds this week! Thanks to Pranav and Richard for the suggestions! Further reading: Exceptionally preserved fossil gives voice to ancient terror bird Antarctica yields oldest fossils of giant birds with 21-foot wingspans Look at that beak! Llallawavis scagliai: Big birdie! A red-legged seriema and an unfortunate snake: Another big birdie! Toothy birdie! Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw. This week we’re going to learn...
Dec 14, 2020•17 min
This week we'll learn about a fascinating parrot and some more weird praying mantises! Thanks to Page and Viola for the suggestions! Further watching: Nova Science Now: Irene Pepperberg and Alex Alex: Number Comprehension by a Grey Parrot The Smartest Parrots in the World Further reading: Why Do Parrots Talk? Ancient mantis-man petroglyph discovered in Iran Alex and Irene Pepperberg (photo taken from the "Why do parrots talk?" article above): Two African grey parrots: The "mantis man" petroglyph...
Dec 07, 2020•15 min
This week we're going to learn about elephants! Thanks to Damian, Pranav, and Richard from NC for the suggestions! Further Reading: Dwarf Elephant Facts and Figures An Asian elephant (left) and an African elephant (right). Note the ear size difference, the easiest way to tell which kind of elephant you're looking at: Business end of an Asian elephant's trunk: An elephant living the good life: Can't quite reach: Elephant teef: A dwarf elephant skeleton: An elephant skull does kind of look like a ...
Nov 30, 2020•23 min
Thanks to Lorenzo for this week's topic, carnivorous sponges! How can a sponge catch and eat animals? What is its connection to the mystery of the Eltanin Antenna? Let's find out! Further reading/watching: New carnivorous harp sponge discovered in deep sea (this has a great video attached) How Nature's Deep Sea 'Antenna' Puzzled the World Asbestopluma hypogea, beautiful but deadly if you're a tiny animal: The lyre sponge, also beautiful but deadly if you're a tiny animal: The ping-pong tree spon...
Nov 23, 2020•14 min
Let's learn about a whole lot of mustelids, including some otters, weasels, and their relations and ancestors! Thanks to Jacob for the suggestion! Further reading: Weasels in Stone: Mustelid Evolution With voices joined in chorus, giant otter families create a distinct sound signature Further watching/listening: Video of giant river otters making noise Giant river otters: The least weasel is possibly the most cute: This mink would like to keep its fur for itself please and thank you: The Patagon...
Nov 16, 2020•23 min
Thanks to Pranav for this week's suggestion, Titanoboa, the biggest snake that ever lived! Parts of this episode come from an old Patreon episode about super-gigantic snakes, which is unlocked and you can listen to it here. A modern anaconda vertebra next to a Titanoboa vertebra. Guess which one is which: Carlos Jaramillo, one of the scientists who found Titanoboa and Acherontisuchus (taken from a Smithsonian Channel video): Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kat...
Nov 09, 2020•10 min
Thanks to Nick and Richard from NC for their suggestions this week! Let's learn about A BUNCH OF MONKEYS! Further reading: How we solved the Green monkey mystery--and found an important clue to Bronze Age world Field Notes: Singing Titi Monkeys (with a video of them singing) Dracula monkeys and Dracula: The Dracula monkey orchid (not a vampire, not a monkey, but it is an orchid): A capuchin monkey insisting a friend "see no evil": Abu! Mandrills gonna get as colorful as monkily possible: Rafiki!...
Nov 02, 2020•19 min
It's almost Halloween!! Our Halloween episode this year is all about some of the legends of ghostly black dogs in the UK and some other parts of the world, as well as some canid mysteries we haven't covered before. Thanks again to Pranav for the suggestion! This is your last chance to enter the book giveaway! You have until October 31, 2020, and that night at midnight (my time, Eastern daylight savings, or more likely when I wake up on November 1) I will randomly draw a name from all the people ...
Oct 26, 2020•29 min
It's almost Halloween, and time for another spooky episode! Thanks to Pranav for the suggestion! You still have time to enter the book giveaway contest, deadline October 31, 2020 at midnight! Details are here. There are also links on that page to look at the books if you want to order copies. You know, just in case. I was a guest cohost on the Varmints! podcast again, and this time we talked about ticks! Listen here if you don't already subscribe (but you should totally subscribe). Further readi...
Oct 19, 2020•31 min
This week we'll learn about five mystery fish that William Beebe spotted from his bathysphere in the early 1930s...and which have never been seen again. Thanks to Page for suggesting deep-sea fish! Further reading: How some superblack fish disappear into the darkness of the deep sea The Fine Art of Exploration Further listening: 99% Invisible "Bathysphere" The Gulper Eel unlocked patreon episode These two guys crammed themselves into that little bathysphere together. Sometimes they got seasick a...
Oct 12, 2020•22 min
Let's start off October with a spooky episode about some ghost animals--real ones, and some ghost stories featuring animals! Don't forget to enter our book giveaway! Details here. Further reading: Lolo the Ghost Snake Barn Related Ghost Stories What big teef you have, ghost bat: Nom nom little ghost bat got some mealworms (also, clearly this rehabilitation worker has THE BEST JOB EVER): Ghost snake! This is where the ghost snake lives. This photo and the one above were both taken by Sara Ruane (...
Oct 05, 2020•19 min
Thanks to Nicholas and Pranav for their suggestions which led to this episode about animals that are especially good at disguising themselves! If you'd like to listen to the original Patreon episode about animal mimics, it's unlocked and you can listen to it on your browser! Don't forget to contact me in some way (email, comment, message me on Twitter or FB, etc.) if you want to enter the book giveaway! Deadline is Oct. 31, 2020. Further watching: An octopus changing color while asleep, possibly...
Sep 28, 2020•21 min
Thanks to Lorenzo for suggesting the northern gannet this week! We'll also learn about an extinct ancestor of the gannet, called plotopterids! Don't forget to enter our book giveaway! Details here. The northern gannet is the assassin of the bird world, probably: DIVING! It's what they do: Northern gannets hanging out on their nesting grounds: An artist's rendition of a plotopterid, with the silhouette of a modern emperor penguin for comparison. Picture from March of the Fossil Penguins. Show tra...
Sep 21, 2020•13 min
This week we have two more listener suggestions, so thanks to Rosy and Simon! They both suggested small but intensely interesting fish! Further reading: The Handfish Conservation Project - Name a Fish! Further watching: Pacific Spiny Lumpsucker making adorable faces The only smooth handfish specimen in the whole world: In case you were wondering why it's called a handfish (this one is a spotted handfish): A red handfish. You'd be angry too if there were fewer than 100 individuals left in your sp...
Sep 14, 2020•11 min
BONUS TIME! A dung beetle rolling some poop: Butterflies on poop: Wombat poop is cubes! Show transcript: Welcome to a bonus episode made out of a bonus episode. Since this week’s topic is one that some adults may decide they don’t want their young kids listening to, because it goes into detail about hyena reproduction, I decided to unlock a Patreon bonus episode for everyone to listen to. But then I decided to actually release that episode so that listeners can download it normally in the main f...
Sep 07, 2020•11 min
This week we're going to learn about hyenas and the not-related-but-similarly-named hyaenodon! BUT we've got a PARENT WARNING WHOOP WHOOP WHOOP *klaxon sounds, red lights flash* Parents and others who listen with small kiddos, you may want to pre-screen this episode since we go into some details of hyena anatomy that may not be appropriate for younger listeners. CORRECTION! Thanks to Bal who pointed out that despite what I say on the episode, the hyena is not a canid! Oops, that was a really bas...
Sep 07, 2020•13 min
We finish off Invertebrate August in style, with great suggestions from Rosy and Kim! Also, I was a guest on The Flopcast last week if you want to hear me talking about DragonCon and birding with my friend Kevin! Also, he actually has a few pictures of me if you want to know what I look like (I hate having my picture taken). Further Reading: Why Do Mantids Only Have One Ear? Secrets of the orchid mantis revealed In this new praying mantis group, gender dictates disguise Male (left) and female (r...
Aug 31, 2020•15 min
This week's episode is about some invertebrates who look like they're made of velvet! Thanks to Rosy and Simon for their suggestions! Further reading: Red Velvet Mite Chigger Bites Structure and pigment make the eyed elater's eyespots black The red velvet mite looks like a tiny red velvet cake but is NOT CAKE, NOT A SPIDER, NOT A SPIDER CAKE: GIANT RED VELVET MITE: Regular sized red velvet mites on a fingertip and one parasitizing a daddy long legs spider: An eastern velvet ant female (it's actu...
Aug 24, 2020•21 min
Let's learn about some weird insects this week! Thanks to Llewelly for suggesting army ants! Further reading: If you're interested in the magazine Flying Snake, I recommend it! You can order online or print issues by emailing the editor, Richard Muirhead, at the address on the website, and there's a collection of the first five issues on Amazon here (in the U.S.) or here (UK)! The magnificent, tiny ice worm! The dark speckles in the snow (left) are dozens of ice worms, and the ones on the right ...
Aug 17, 2020•25 min
Thanks to Kaiden who suggested we learn about mosquitoes this week! You know what eats a lot of mosquitoes? Bats! If you don't already listen to the excellent podcast Varmints!, jump on over to it to listen to last week's episode about bats! I cohosted with Paul and had a great time, and I know you'll like the episode and the podcast in general. It's family friendly and lots of fun! Further reading: The Paleobiologist Who Inspired the Science in 'Jurassic Park' SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK: Mosquito ...
Aug 10, 2020•14 min
Thanks to Linnea for suggesting bees! Obviously we can't learn about ALL 20,000 bee species in this episode, but we'll learn about the honeybee and some other interesting bees! Further reading: Bee friendly? Pollinating California's almond crop The vulture bee Western honeybees on a honeycomb: A vulture bee thinking about "honey": The wholesome, solitary ivy bee: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw. It’s August and we’re kicking off a full month of our s...
Aug 03, 2020•18 min
Join us this week for some interesting crabs! Thanks to Charles for suggesting the aethra crab! Aethra crabs look like little rocks, although some people (who must be REALLY hungry) think they look like potato chips: A hermit crab using a light bulb bottom as an inadequate shell: The tiniest hermit crab: Gimme shell pls: THE BIGGEST HERMIT CRAB, the coconut crab. It really is this big: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw. We have a bunch of crustaceans t...
Jul 27, 2020•16 min
It's our annual updates and corrections episode, with a fun mystery animal at the end! Thanks to everyone who contributed, including Bob, Richard J. who is my brother, Richard J. who isn't my brother, Connor, Simon, Sam, Llewelly, Andrew Gable of the excellent Forgotten Darkness Podcast, and probably many others whose names I didn't write down! Further reading: Northern bald ibis (Akh-bird) Researchers learn more about teen-age T. rex A squid fossil offers a rare record of pterosaur feeding beha...
Jul 20, 2020•23 min
Thanks to Adam for the great suggestion of synchronous fireflies! Let's learn about lightning bugs (or fireflies) in general, and in particular the famous synchronous fireflies! Further reading: How Fireflies Glow and What Signals They're Sending Further watching: Tennessee Fireflies Synchronizing Fireflies in Thailand (it shows an experiment to encourage the fireflies to start blinking by the use of LEDs) Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw. This week w...
Jul 13, 2020•16 min
This week let's learn about some animals that were discovered by science, then not seen again and presumed extinct...until they turned up again, safe and sound! Further reading: A nose-horned dragon lizard lost to science for over 100 years has been found Modigliani's nose-horned lizard has a nose horn, that's for sure: Before the little guy above was rediscovered, we basically just had this painting and an old museum specimen: The deepwater trout: The dinosaur ant: The dinosaur ant statue of Po...
Jul 06, 2020•13 min
Let's learn about another mystery ape, the koolakamba (also spelled kooloo-kamba or other variations)! Further reading: Between the Gorilla and the Chimpanzee The Yaounde Zoo mystery ape and the status of the kooloo-kamba Mystery of the Koolakamba Antoine the Yaounde Zoo ape, supposedly a koolakamba: Mafuka (sometimes spelled Mafuca): A rare photo of the Bili ape: A handsome western gorilla: A handsome western chimpanzee: A western chimpanzee mother and baby: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange ...
Jun 29, 2020•14 min
This week we'll look at an ancient mystery from the Middle East, a mythological dragon-like animal called the Mush-khush-shu, popularly known as the sirrush. Thanks to Richard J. for the suggestion! The Ishtar Gate (left, a partial reconstruction of the gate in a Berlin museum; right, a painting of the gate as it would have looked): The sirrush of the Ishtar Gate: Two depictions of Silesaurus: The desert monitor, best lizard: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Ka...
Jun 22, 2020•15 min
We have more mystery animals this week, horrible carcasses that have washed ashore and are hard to identify! It's a sequel to our popular Globsters episode, episode 87. None of these are actual mysteries but they're all pretty gross and awesome. (I don't know what I did wrong with the audio but it sounds bad, sorry. I just got a new laptop and have been experimenting with improving audio, and this was obviously a failed experiment.) Further reading: The Conakry monster: https://scienceblogs.com/...
Jun 15, 2020•13 min
