What The Duck?!
The show with a mission to explore the mysteries of nature - especially the ones that make you go What the Duck?!
- Update frequency
- every 6 days
- Average duration
- 23 minutes
- Episodes
- 171
- Years Active
- 2022 - 2025
Sex is Weird: Ep 6- Virgin birth
It turns out not everyone was listening when it was written ‘it takes two to tango’ and some species can go it alone in their quest to reproduce. And then there’s the plants that decided THREE or ONE…
00:25:17 |
Thu 19 Sep 2024
Sex is Weird: Ep 5- Why does it feel good, anyway?
What is the role of pleasure in successful reproduction?
Evolution says it's mightily important: every female vertebrate has a clitoris.
Snakes have two!
Female pleasure has been selected for.
Ma…
00:25:17 |
Thu 12 Sep 2024
Sex is Weird: Ep 4- How to be hot according to nature
Do animals fall in love at first sight?
Every species has different traits that are 'attractive' — they're showing off their DIY skills making a bower, vibrating sexy fruit fly songs, puffing up a w…
00:28:16 |
Thu 05 Sep 2024
Sex is Weird: Ep 3- Sexy females fight back
The energy required to grow, birth and raise young is intense, so it's only fair that the female body has some tricks to make sure reproducing is worth it.
From cryptic choice to immune system sperm…
00:25:56 |
Thu 29 Aug 2024
Sex is Weird: Ep 2- Why do penises exist?
When it comes to sexual organs, the penis is really ‘out there.’ Name another organ that can change its form AND function in a matter of seconds!
There’s a lot of variety in the animal kingdom; fr…
00:25:17 |
Thu 22 Aug 2024
Sex is Weird: Ep 1- The world’s first d*ck pic
When you really think about it, sex to make babies is WEIRD! You take an outie that has to get stuck inside an innie that links into a production line of eggs to assemble a perfect tiny being. It’s s…
00:24:52 |
Thu 15 Aug 2024
INTRODUCING: Sex is Weird (a What the Duck?! series)
How the duck did sex evolve as a major form of reproduction?
Sex is Weird is a brand new series of What the Duck?! with Dr Ann Jones.
From the evolution of the first-ever genitals and the strange …
00:03:15 |
Tue 13 Aug 2024
Feeling Crabby
Have the crabs been lying to us?
They usually have ten legs and eyes on stalks, but there are all sorts of things hiding under the shell, including emotions.
There are true crabs, false crabs, and…
00:25:16 |
Fri 09 Aug 2024
Spiders - they're going to kill!
Spiders have gravity-defying ninja skills, they can hear without ears and they work together to gang up on huge prey.
Spiders are murder machines!
Featuring:
Dr Kate Umbers, Western Sydney Univ…
00:25:16 |
Fri 02 Aug 2024
Mosquitos- blood suckers
You can run but you can't hide!
Ever wondered how a mosquito manages to hit a blood vessel without fail?
And that one mozzie that you hear buzzing and buzzing at night? It’s probably a species that…
00:25:16 |
Fri 26 Jul 2024
Snakes and Ladders
How does a snake climb a pole? It's not like they have a ladder... or arms.
It turns out that snakes have some pretty crazy skills when it comes to climbing anything and everything.
The Island of G…
00:25:16 |
Fri 19 Jul 2024
The Swearing Duck
Ripper the musk duck had many bad habits – chief among them was attacking the keepers and then swearing under his breath.
But was Ripper really angry, or was his potty mouth a symptom of something m…
00:25:04 |
Fri 12 Jul 2024
Fisticuffs, ego, and the great tomato virus discovery of the 20th century
It's the early 20th century, a government scientist position was determined by a boxing match, and a tomato virus threatened to stop the development of Australian-style tomato sauce in its tracks.
…
00:08:29 |
Fri 05 Jul 2024
Can plants get cancer?
Plants are fully sick right now - and not just because indoor plants are in fashion.
They have an immune system, they get infections, and can catch viruses... they just can't move away from their s…
00:25:16 |
Fri 28 Jun 2024
Electric Eel- an attitude problem and access to its own taser
It seems absolutely bonkers that an animal can muster ELECTRICITY, especially enough to send out a zap like a taser.
But that's exactly what electric eels can do, and the world record holder more t…
00:25:16 |
Fri 21 Jun 2024
Flaco the escapee owl flew free in New York City ... until he met his end on a window pane
A superhero origin story would absolutely be 12 years in a cage and then set free by secretive criminals.
That’s the story of Flaco, the Eurasian Eagle Owl, released from his vandalised cage in Cent…
00:25:16 |
Fri 14 Jun 2024
When animals put other animals in jail
Usually, it's humans putting animals in cages, but sometimes the animals do it to themselves.
Female platypus lock themselves in burrows to breed, great hornbill males lock females up in the hollow …
00:25:16 |
Fri 07 Jun 2024
Why snakes remain deadly even after they're dead
At first, you might think it is a plot from a zombie movie: that undead animals are coming for you.
But it turns out that Australia's animals aren't just dangerous when they're alive — they can be d…
00:25:16 |
Fri 31 May 2024
Do animals dream?
Cassie and Claire have watched their parrot talk in its sleep... so is it dreaming?
And, if animals DO dream... will we ever know what they’re dreaming about? Ann Jones tries to find out.
Featur…
00:25:16 |
Fri 24 May 2024
Do worms sleep?
Birds can fly while half their brain is sleeping and some spiders sleep dangling on a silk thread, but what about worms.
Do worms sleep?
Featuring:
Associate Professor John Lesku, La Trobe Universi…
00:25:16 |
Fri 17 May 2024
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are the property of ABC listen. This content is not affiliated with or endorsed by eachpod.com.