We're back on the WCC couch to talk Owl Conservation over some Sour Owl blackcurrant cocktails, along with muffins and macaroons! We're joined by wildlife photographer, naturalist, and owl conservationist, Matt Wright from Faunagraphic. Also, after some two years, we welcome back our first guest Jasmine Zelený, wildlife scientist, photographer, snake catcher, and owl fanatic. We discuss Matt's background in raptor handling and rescue, how this developed into an interest in photography/wildlife t...
Jul 18, 2018•1 hr 36 min
WCC is proud to present the second installment in our Book of Hope Conservation Case Studies series. In this second set of case studies, we’ll be exploring some of the amazing bird conservation successes from the Book of Hope with various chapter authors
Jul 13, 2018•1 hr 22 min
We're joined by our returning guest, the phenomenal Dr. Jodi Rowley for more froggy chats and to discuss her new book, Status of Conservation & Decline of Amphibians: Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific Islands, edited by Harold Heatwole & Jodi Rowley, brought to you by CSIRO Publishing! Dr Jodi Rowley has been the Curator of Amphibian & Reptile Conservation Biology at the Australian Museum since 2016. She's a biologist with a focus on Australasian amphibian biodiversity, ecology and...
Jul 05, 2018•1 hr 4 min
WCC is proud to present our Book of Hope mammal conservation case-study collection! Recently, a review of successful conservation projects in Australia, coordinated by the Threatened Species Recovery Hub of the National Environmental Science Program, led to a book entitled “Recovering Australian Threatened Species: A Book of Hope”, now available from CSIRO Publishing.
Jun 29, 2018•1 hr 44 min
We head up to Brisbane's northside to chat with Professor Rob Capon from the University of Queensland's Institute of Molecular Biosciences and the Cane Toad Challenge. By studying the chemical ecology of these invasive, toxic toads, Prof. Capon and his team have developed a toad-specific bait for luring tadpoles into DIY traps. We take a few minutes before his talk at the QLD Wildlife Preservation Society to discuss this fantastic new tool in the fight against invasive cane toads.
May 30, 2018•1 hr 34 min
Part 2 of our RepX Brisbane Reptile Expo 2018 podcast is here! After running around the RepX Brisbane Reptile Expo 2018 all morning, interviewing stallholders and demonstrators for Part 1, we finally get to sit down and have some longer chats with some of these amazing reptile breeders, snake handlers, and various other wildlife experts at the WCC Podcast table. Join us for a rotating interview with heaps of awesome reptile heads, including some pioneers in Australian herpetoculture!
May 18, 2018•1 hr 21 min
It's finally here! WCC podcast is coming at you from RepX Brisbane Reptile Expo 2018. In this first part of the show, we explore some of the amazing reptile collections, demonstrations, and the people behind them. With a massive array of lizards, turtles, pythons, venomous snakes, as well as inverts, birds of prey, and more. PS keep an eye out for Ep. 24. Part #2 Stage Show. Plenty more in-depth chats with some amazing RepX guests, coming soon!
May 18, 2018•1 hr 40 min
We caught up with Dr Shane Simpson aka The Reptile Doctor and Dr Joshua Llinas from HerpVet to talk reptile viruses! In March, Dr. Simpson was in town for a reptile virus talk and stayed with Dr. Llinas, so these bright folk joined us on the couch to discuss a broad range of veterinary issues. In particular, we talk about emerging infectious diseases in captive reptiles and new developments in reptile virology. We also handled some Snake Charmer cocktails and cheese cake. Enjoy!
Apr 21, 2018•1 hr 39 min
In this episode we chat with the book's lead editor and Deputy Director of the TSR Hub, Professor Stephen Garnett from Charles Darwin University. We discuss the many successes in conserving Australian wildlife, the national threatened species review and the book it inspired, as well as some of the key lessons learned and factors involved in successful species recovery.
Apr 04, 2018•42 min
For this special episode, the WCC team was invited by the Threatened Species Recovery Hub of the National Environmental Science Program for an afternoon at their Early Career Researchers Conference! Held at Thunderbird Park in the pristine Gold Coast Hinterland.
Mar 13, 2018•1 hr 6 min
Like us on Facebook for pictures and updates: www.facebook.com/WildlifeCakeCocktails/ For our first botanical episode, we cross over to Dr Noushka Reiter in Melbourne, research scientist with the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria and part of the Threatened Species Recovery Hub. We discuss orchid conservation, highly-threatened Mellblom's Spider Orchids, their pollination by tiny Thynnid wasps, and much more. We enjoy some delicious white-orchid cocktails and while chocolate cake. You can check out ...
Feb 28, 2018•37 min
Like us on Facebook for pictures and updates: https://www.facebook.com/WildlifeCakeCocktails/ We cross over to Christmas Island to speak with Hamish Noller, reptile enthusiast and recent UQ Wildlife Science graduate. We're also joined bv Jason Turl, ranger at Parks Australia, to chat about the Christmas Island Blue-Tailed skink, now extinct in the wild but maintained in two captive breeding colonies, one where Hamish is volunteering. We also discuss Christmas Island's other reptiles, many other ...
Feb 21, 2018•1 hr 1 min
We had an awesome time with Dr Rowley talking frog conservation, the new FrogID citizen-science project, and much more, over some coffee and cupcakes. After checking out Jodi's talk at the Caboolture Region Environmental Education Centre, we head out to have a play around with the #FrogID app around the CREEC reserve and creek system. We're also joined by Scott Eipper from Nature4You and some keen local froggers. What an amazing night with some interesting people! Thanks again to CREEC and FrogI...
Feb 05, 2018•38 min
This time we're talking Blue-Tongue Lizard morphs, RepX Brisbane Reptile Expo, and much more with our special guests Joe Ball and Scott Owen. Joe is an incredibly knowledgeable and innovative blue-tongue lizard breeder here in Brisbane, a world leader in producing phenomenal coloured morphs of blue-tongue, and a RepX Ambassador. Scott is one of the organizers of the upcoming RepX Brisbane Reptile Expo and is joining us on the couch to talk about the spectacular event coming this March. We had a ...
Feb 02, 2018•1 hr 37 min
We're herping Mt Glorious, this time with UQ Herpetological Society! WCC is back in the field, looking for nocturnal reptiles with Cameron Baker and other keen herpers. Cameron is a PhD student studying the movement ecology of Australia's apex-predator, the estuarine crocodile. He also leads the occasional herping trip as senior member of the UQ Herp Society board. We had a great time chatting with this awesome crew of reptile-fans, and found some fantastic creatures along the way too!
Jan 31, 2018•38 min
We speak with Kerry Waldman in San Diego, USA, discussing wildlife and fire, particularly the massive fires in southern California and their implications for ecosystems. Kerry is a former navy engineer turned environmental management student, a biking enthusiast working towards a career with US National Parks, and generally passionate about his local parks and wildlife. We had an awesome chat about fire ecology in Australia and USA and much more while enjoying chocolate cake, an India Pale Ale (...
Jan 27, 2018•51 min
Here we go!! Kicking off the summer holidays here in Queensland, we're searching for Leaf-Tailed Geckos with wildlife education consultant Scott Eipper from Nature4You. We're joined by Lisa Owen from UQ, as well as some lovely, festive, homemade rumballs :) This episode, we head down for a night walk through the rain forests of Mount Tambourine, located in the picturesque Scenic Rim region of south-east Queensland. While spot-lighting for the incredibly camouflaged Southern Leaf-Tailed Gecko (Sa...
Dec 23, 2017•58 min
We're back in Karawatha Forest! After some wet and wild weather, we headed out to Karawatha again, hoping the local frogs would be out and about. I'm joined by Callum McKercher, UQ frog biology student and Lisa Owen from Scales Wildlife Services for a nighttime wander and chat. We discuss frog behaviour, conservation, some new great ape discoveries, and much more. Our froggy walk also gave us a chance to try out FrogID, the fantastic new citizen-science app from the Australian Museum! This free ...
Dec 11, 2017•1 hr 6 min
WCC Episode 12 is here for your Friday wildlife science fix! We're very lucky to be joined by Nick Leseberg, Uni of Qld PhD candidate and Night Parrot researcher for Bush Heritage Australia. Nick has worked as a field ecologist on a variety of projects throughout Australia/PNG and is currently studying conservation biology of Night Parrots (Pezoporus occidentalis), the worlds most elusive bird! We discuss the fascinating life of the Night Parrot (as far as we currently know!), working with crypt...
Dec 01, 2017•1 hr 11 min
Another WCC Audio Podcast coming at you! We discuss Feral Cats and Native Bird Conservation with Professor John Woinarski from Charles Darwin University. Prof. Woinarski has spent over 40 years in research and management of native Australian wildlife. He's worked with birds, mammals, reptiles, and more, with much of his work centring on conservation ecology in northern Austrlia. Calling us from Melbourne, we discuss some of John's recent research on the impacts of feral cats on native birds, as ...
Nov 28, 2017•49 min
Another episode of WCC here for your Sunday night! We had a great time with the amazing Corinne Unger, geomorphologist and mined land rehab expert. Corinne has worked in the mining industry in a wide variety of roles, from soil conservation to mine rehabilitation. She's also spent time in research and implementation of Australia's national policy for abandoned mines, and is currently working on a PhD at the University of Queensland. We discuss circular economies, mining impacts, mined land rehab...
Nov 26, 2017•1 hr 30 min
A collection of audio from suburban Brisbane, lorikeets calling while feeding on eucalyptus blossoms during a Spring rainstorm.
Nov 16, 2017•45 min
A collection of captured audio from our herping trip to Karawatha Forest near Brisbane, Australia
Nov 01, 2017•15 min
We're frogging in Karawatha! WCC is back with another herping podcast, this time joined by UQ PhD student Nicholas Wu and honours student Callum McKercher, both studying frog biology. After some lovely Spring storms over the weekend we head to Brisbane's Karawatha Forest to look for some local native frog species. After a few mojito and cosmo mini-cheese-cupcakes, we discuss frog ecology, conservation, the effects of Chytrid fungus, shedding physiology, metamorphosis, frogs as environmental indi...
Oct 27, 2017•56 min
Hi folks! Welcome to the first of what will hopefully be many Herping podcasts, another WCC Conversations audio show. I'm joined by UQ Wildlife Science student Hamish Noller (a.k.a. That Reptile Guy), and WCC producer Kristian Summers from Summers Sound Solutions for some "road-cruising". We took a night-time drive on the search for snakes and other wildlife through the long and winding forest roads of Mount Glorious, a beautiful section of the D'Aguilar Range National Park just west of Brisbane...
Sep 28, 2017•1 hr 54 min
Here we go! WCC Episode 7. Koala Rescue QLD with Ray Chambers, another WCC Conversations audio podcast, now up for your enjoyment! Along with his brother Murray, Ray operates Koala Rescue QLD, a state wide 24-hour Koala rescue service based on the Sunshine Coast. A not-for-profit service, they provide rescue & transport to injured, sick or orphaned Koalas across the state. Koala Rescue QLD also spend time promoting Koala awareness and planting trees for QLD's Koalas. We had a great time disc...
Sep 12, 2017•49 min
Here we go! WCC Episode 6. Venomous Snakes with Scott Eipper is now up :) Running Nature4You from southwest Brisbane, Scott is a a wildlife handler, education consultant, author of numerous articles and books on Australian fauna, and a well-known venomous snake expert. We had an amazing time discussing venomous reptiles, herping, wildlife, some interesting new snake-bite and venom research, and much more over lemon and lime cheesecake (topped with native redlime pearls!) along with Snake in the ...
Aug 08, 2017•1 hr 12 min
We crossover to South Africa to chat with primatologist & wildlife scientist Lisa Owen, currently on tour as a teaching assistant for a wildlife management field course with twenty UQ students. We discuss rhinoceros conservation and management in Africa and Australia, as well as some of Lisa's latest adventures including facing her arachnophobia by handling a friendly baboon spider. In conservation news we discuss the struggle faced by Bornean Orang-Utan populations and Queensland's proposed...
Jul 21, 2017•34 min
For our first WCC Conversations Podcast, ecologist Chris Jolly joins us from the Northern Territory to talk Northern quoll conservation, cane toads, Targeted Gene Flow, and more. A PhD student at the University of Melbourne's Ecology & Evolution Lab, Chris also has an interest in reptiles so, naturally, we get sidetracked by snake talk because they're cooler than mammals :) Of course, there will be a chocolate ganache cake and something called a Hop Toad involving rum, lime, and apricot bran...
Jun 21, 2017•46 min
Reptile Vet Dr Joshua Llinas drops by to talk reptile medicine including virology, paramyxoviruses, bornaviruses, the infamous Sunshine Virus from here in South East QLD, and much more. Hamish Noller from That Reptile Guy & Asha Constance from The Might Kind will be hanging out on the couch to help us with dessert and daiquiris :)
Nov 20, 2016•1 hr 38 min
