Best Guess

If you’ve ever listened to the podcast Song Exploder, this episode’s style might sound familiar. Check out the podcast here.

Much of the conversation around invasive species frames our relationship with these plants and animals as an ongoing battle, a war to be won. But what can we learn when we move beyond the language of domination and explore the broader connections between ourselves, our planet, and the creatures we share this space with? Read Diane’s essay, Making Relatives, and Nick’s work about Anishinabe perspectives on invasive species. This episode was produced by Anisa Khalifa and mastered by Matt Horton. Our thanks to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.

What do you do when you’re stuck at home during pandemic lockdown with thousands of mosquitoes to keep you company? You feed them. The hard way. This episode was produced by Lindsay Foster-Thomas and mastered by Charlie Shelton-Ormond. Our thanks to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.

Iguanas didn’t always fall out of trees during cold snaps in the Sunshine State, but chances are, future generations will regard them as just a natural part of the landscape. With the world changing around us at a rapidly increasing rate, how do we set conservation goals when we can't keep track of what we’ve lost? This episode was produced by Anisa Khalifa and mastered by Charlie Shelton-Ormond. Our thanks to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.

The exotic pet industry is one of the main pathways for introducing invasive species into new environments. It can be hard for non-herpers to understand what’s so attractive about living with these creatures. In this first of a series of bite-sized episodes, reptile enthusiast Tim Jackowicz takes us into his world, where giant snakes and lizards offer an opportunity to rethink how we approach the world around us. This episode was produced and mastered by Charlie Shelton-Ormond. Our thanks to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.

As if our native mosquitoes weren’t pesky enough, we humans have imported some of the most invasive mosquito species to the U.S., bringing with them painful and debilitating diseases. Is there a human solution to this human-caused problem? Or are we destined to see history repeat itself, as we try (again and again) to outwit the deadliest animal on the planet? This episode was produced by Anisa Khalifa and Charlie Shelton-Ormond. Matt Horton and Sean Roux mastered the audio. Our thanks to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.

Worst. Marine. Invasion. Ever. Prized as pets for their mesmerizing beauty, an aquarium keeper’s dream has become an environmental nightmare as legions of venomous, voracious lionfish are now guzzling up fish and further endangering coral reefs throughout the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. Researchers, inventors, divers and fishers are urgently trying to find new ways to stem the tide of these undersea marauders. This episode was produced by Anisa Khalifa and Charlie Shelton-Ormond. Matt Horton and Sean Roux mastered the audio. Our thanks to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.

Beyond the hype about Pablo Escobar’s cocaine hippos, the real story of what’s happening in Colombia’s Rio Magdalena is surprising and complex. Some look on these hungry herbivores with affection and admiration, others fear their aggressive attitude and huge ecological footprint. Follow these unlikely invaders from Africa to Colombia with a possible layover in…Louisiana? This episode was produced by Anisa Khalifa and Charlie Shelton-Ormond. Matt Horton and Sean Roux mastered the audio. Our thanks to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.

If you had to guess the top five largest invasive species in the world, where would you start? And why, exactly, are we moving these behemoths around the globe?

Tegus are armed with a metabolic superpower and a powerful appetite for eggs, but they’re also easily domesticated, making them both beloved family pets and unwelcome hungry pests. Throughout the South, these giant lizards are raising eyebrows, breaking hearts and launching lawsuits. See photos from the Repticon event in Raleigh and find more about the podcast here. Have you had a tegu encounter? We'd love to hear about it. Email [email protected]. This episode was produced by Charlie Shelton-Ormond. Matt Horton and Sean Roux mastered the audio. Our thanks to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.