Strange Animals Podcast

A podcast about living, extinct, and imaginary animals!

Natural Sciences Science Life Sciences

Update frequency: every 6 days
Average duration: 12 minutes
Episodes: 313
Years Active: 2020 - 2025

Episode 431: The New Dire Wolf

Thanks to Jayson for suggesting this week's topic, the new "dire wolf"! Also, possibly the same but maybe a different Jayson is the youngest member of the Cedar Springs Homeschool Science Olympiad Te…

00:10:25 | Mon 05 May 2025

Episode 430: The Fake and the Real Coelacanth

This week we examine two recent articles about coelacanth discoveries. Which one is real and which one is fake?!

Further reading:

Fake California Coelacanth

First record of a living coelacanth fro…

00:11:02 | Mon 28 Apr 2025

Episode 429: Foxes!

Thanks to Katie, Torin, and Eilee for suggesting this week's topic, foxes!

Further reading:

Meet the Endangered Sierra Nevada Red Fox

Long snouts protect foxes when diving headfirst in snow
Black …

00:07:15 | Mon 21 Apr 2025

Episode 428: The Most Venomous Snake!

Thanks to Nora and BlueTheChicken for suggesting the inland taipan this week!

The inland taipan in its summer colors [picture by AllenMcC. - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/i…

00:05:52 | Mon 14 Apr 2025

Episode 427: The Other Cephalopods

Further reading:

Reconstructing fossil cephalopods: Endoceras

Retro vs Modern #17: Ammonites

Hammering Away at Hamites

An endocerid [picture by Entelognathus - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://com…

00:10:19 | Mon 07 Apr 2025

Episode 426 Lots of Little Birds

Thanks to Murilo, Alexandra, and Joel for their suggestions this week!

The bird sounds in this episode come from xeno-canto, a great resource for lots of animal sounds!

A cactus wren [picture by Mi…

00:13:24 | Mon 31 Mar 2025

Episode 425 Rabbits!

Thanks to Alyx and Richard from NC for their suggestions this week! Let's learn about rabbits!

Further reading:
Why your pet rabbit is more docile than its wild relative
FOUND: Small enigmatic rabbi…

00:08:29 | Mon 24 Mar 2025

Episode 424 Old-Timey Giant Snakes

Show transcript:

Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw.

Recently I read about a giant snake supposedly seen in Tennessee in 1908. The story seemed a little suspicious so I …

00:10:16 | Mon 17 Mar 2025

Episode 423: Pack Rats and Busy Mice

Further reading:

Mouse filmed moving items in man’s shed in Bristol

The pack rat:

Show transcript:

Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’m your host, Kate Shaw.

This week I’m sharing a Patreon…

00:07:38 | Mon 10 Mar 2025

Episode 422: Two Tiny, Tiny Animals

Thanks to Tim and Mia who suggested one of this week's animals!

Further reading:
Genomic insights into the evolutionary origin of Myxozoa within Cnidaria
A tardigrade, photo taken with an electron m…

00:09:18 | Mon 03 Mar 2025

Episode 421: Australian Animals

Thanks to Nora, Holly, Stephen, and Aila for their suggestions this week!

Further reading:

How 'bin chickens' learnt to wash poisonous cane toads

Monkeys in Australia? Revisiting a Forgotten Furry…

00:12:01 | Mon 24 Feb 2025

Episode 420: The Sea Bunny

Thanks to Sam for suggesting this week's topic, the sea bunny!

My plush sea bunny, with one of my cats, Dracula, who does not like it:

Show transcript:

Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I’…

00:07:14 | Mon 17 Feb 2025

Episode 419: The Elephant Seal

Thanks to Charlotte, Clay, and Richard from NC for their suggestions this week!

Further reading:

Seal whiskers, the secret weapon for hunting

Elephant seals drift off to sleep while diving far bel…

00:11:17 | Mon 10 Feb 2025

Episode 418: Animals Discovered in 2024

This week we take a look at some of the many animals that were discovered last year!

Further reading:

‘Blob-Headed’ Catfish among New Species Discovered in Peru

New Species of Dwarf Deer Discovere…

00:09:44 | Mon 03 Feb 2025

Episode 417: The Hoatzin

I'm a bit under the weather this week, so here's a Patreon episode about a weird bird!

Further reading:

Hoatzin nestling locomotion: acquisition of quadrupedal limb coordination in birds

Show tr…

00:09:37 | Mon 27 Jan 2025

Episode 416: The heaviest tarantula and the bitey-est ant

Thanks to Siya, Sutton, Owen, and Aksel for suggesting this week's topic, the Goliath birdeater tarantula and the fire ant!

Further listening:

The TEETH Podcast

Further reading:

Tropical fire ant…

00:09:44 | Mon 20 Jan 2025

Episode 415: Animals with Names

This week we're going to learn about some animals that seem to have individual names!

Further reading:
Bottlenose dolphins can use learned vocal labels to address each other
How Do Dolphins Choose T…

00:07:44 | Mon 13 Jan 2025

Episode 414: Two Marvelous Frogs

Thanks to Eilee and Alexis for their suggestions this week, two amazing frogs!

Further reading:

Paradoxical frog: The giant tadpole that turns into a little frog
Fungus is wiping out frogs. These t…

00:07:52 | Mon 06 Jan 2025

Episode 413: The Great American Interchange

Thanks to Pranav for suggesting this week's massive topic!

Further reading:
When did the Isthmus of Panama form between North and South America?
Florida fossil porcupine solves a prickly dilemma 10-…

00:18:14 | Mon 30 Dec 2024

Episode 412: Whales and Dolphins

Thanks to Elizabeth, Alexandra, Kimberly, Ezra, Eilee, Leon, and Simon for their suggestions this week!

Further reading:

New population of blue whales discovered in the western Indian Ocean

An End…

00:12:43 | Mon 23 Dec 2024

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