The Common Descent Podcast

India is a landmass with an incredible history. Over the past half-billion years, it has spent time with the southern continents, time as an island-on-the-move, and time with the northern continents.…

As organisms live, grow, and move in their environments, they leave all sorts of traces in their surroundings, and these can become fossilized just like body parts can. Trace fossils (ichnofossils) c…

What exactly is a “crab” anyway? One answer is that they are among the most diverse and successful living arthropods. Another answer: they are many different groups of crustaceans that have converged…

The history of evolution has seen many land animals move to the sea, but few have done it with such success and specialization as ichthyosaurs. These Mesozoic marine reptiles were the first group of …

This June, by popular demand, we’re doing a Silver Screen Science double feature focusing on our two favorite reptiles: crocs and snakes. One croc movie, one snake movie, both quintessential creature…

This June, by popular demand, we’re doing a Silver Screen Science double feature focusing on our favorite reptiles: crocs and snakes! One croc movie, one snake movie, both quintessential creature fea…

All over the Earth, there are biological communities that differ depending on the local climate and landscape. These are biomes, and biologists love to map them to unravel patterns of ecosystem distr…

Far to the north and far to the south, conditions on Earth get weird. Cold climates and periods of perpetual night or day create some of the most unique habitats on the planet. In this episode, we lo…

The geologic record of Earth is an archive of data on the causes and effects of changing climates. As climate changes, it impacts everything from plants and animals to rocks and rivers. The study of …

Subterranean passages and chambers within the Earth form eerie and incredible environments that are home to unique ecosystems of bizarre creatures and which serve as some of the most invaluable sourc…

There isn’t much on Earth quite like an ant colony or a beehive. Lots of animals are social, but relatively few are eusocial. It’s a bizarre lifestyle, living in large multi-generational colonies wit…

We’ve talked a lot about Godzilla and King Kong in previous Silver Screen Science episodes, and now there’s a new movie with both of them in it, so we’re going to talk about that! More monster fights…

Go searching in the right spots in Illinois and you’re liable to find a hard chunk of ironstone with a gorgeous fossil inside. The Mazon Creek Fossil Beds represent some of the best Carboniferous fos…

Despite their unfortunate reputation, hyenas are really impressive. Modern and fossil, they’re a diverse group with a variety of dietary and social habits, and they are the quintessential example of …

Penguins aren’t the only flightless birds, and they aren’t the only diving birds, but they sure are good at doing both! In this episode, we discuss modern penguins’ unique suite of adaptations that a…

Taking teeth to the extreme! Tusks have evolved numerous times, particularly in mammals, and they’ve come in a striking array of shapes and sizes for a variety of uses. From the monstrously huge ivor…

Happy Darwin Day!

Baron Franz Nopcsa was a paleontologist around the start of the 20th Century, remembered today for his innovative fossil research, his (in)famous personality, and his fantastic adve…

A new tradition begins! Get ready for more plants with our friend Dr. Aly Baumgartner!

Most plants are content to sit still and take in sunlight and soil nutrients, but when conditions are tough, som…

Seals, sea lions, and walruses (oh my!) are widespread, successful, and invariably charming. In this episode, we take a look at how they’re adapted for their aquatic lifestyles and how they might hav…

Happy New Year!

A huge thanks to everyone who sent in questions for this year’s Q&A – we got more than we could even answer! – and to everyone who has supported the podcast this year by listening, sh…