Deck the Halls

Pack some snacks and your most comfy travel attire as we prepare to follow a couple of animals that live life in constant motion. First, keep your fingers and toes in tight and have a watchful eye for the fast-paced life and times of the Humboldt Squid. Then kick back and enjoy the majesty as we soar from one end of the globe to the other, drifting along with the Arctic Tern.Today we're going on a long adventure, and after this we, Danielle and Katie, will be taking a hiatus. We're so honored you've travelled this far with us and we hope to return soon for another run of searching high and low, in and out, freezing, steaming, squeaking and always laughing as we plunge into the trenches of our wild world for unique and fascinating animals! 

It's April shower season and this week we are soaking it all in by taking the plunge into freshwater habitats. Keeping it cool, calm and quiet, we are searching for a couple of very shy critters. We're country hopping today as we begin our journey in South Africa, gently scouring the riparian banks for one of Africa's most endangered animals: the Riverine Rabbit. Then we bounce over to South America where we'll drift dreamily in the plentiful wetland waters and peer into the dense, dark foliage to get a glimpse of the Boat-billed Heron.

There's an island off of the eastern shores of Africa called Madagascar. Maybe you've heard of it, maybe you picture towering Baobab trees or maybe you picture a CGI ring-tailed lemur named Julian. Either way, our goal is to introduce you to some life on this island you've never heard of before. Prepare for the unexpected in the bizarre patchwork animal that is the Lowland Streaked Tenrec and bust out your magnifying glasses as we get a closer look at some of the smallest reptiles on earth, the tiny chameleons in the genus Brookesia.

The color yellow is sprinkled all throughout the natural world. It can be found in every group of animal, in plants and fungi and let us not forget the sunshine that rains down upon us all from space. Yellow has different reasons for being in all of these places, some you may not expect. Let us brighten your day with the Golden-lion Tamarin and the Egyptian Vulture, each yellow in their own right, owning it in their own unique way.

- We've done a lot of animal research and we've come across some very bizarre animal names. Most of the time the animal's scientific name can be broken down to the scientist that discovered it and greek, latin, or other root words describing the animal. But sometimes... we don't know what the heck was going through scientists minds when they were naming these animals. This episode highlights a couple of animals with some off-the-wall names that turn out to be some very cool creatures. We'll visit the Strange-Tailed Tyrant and then dive in the ocean to learn about the Tasselled Wobbegong. You'll have to listen to find out more, brace yourselves!

Welcome to the Month of Love: Cribs Edition. Grab a loved one and tune in, this time we're celebrating a couple of animals who go above and beyond to set the scene for that special someone. First we're diving into the ocean to be dazzled by the intricate set up the Puffer fish meticulously curates to woo his lucky mate, then we're journeying to South Africa to tunnel through the labyrinth of a nest the Sociable Weaver creates over generations to house its family, friends, and some freeloaders to boot.

We've made it to 50 episodes, meaning we've introduced you to nearly 100 unique animals tucked in every habitat on this very special planet we call Earth! Today, we are heading out for a field trip in the birthplace of the podcast, Shollenberger Park in Petaluma, CA: a 165 acre wetlands area filled with birds, water and a flocking point for animal nerds of all ages. Join us as we sit and talk about the bird life surrounding us and interacting with its environment in real time, as we interrupt each other to point out a new event and tell stories of what we've seen along the walk, and of course a short discourse of our origin story, the fateful day the podcast idea took flight. We're so thrilled we've made it this far, honored you've come with us and hope you enjoy journeying with us through these wetlands and beyond. 

What a mouthful! Ring in the new year with us as we dissect and attempt to pronounce ametabolous metamophosis, our third installment of the metamorphic series. With only two groups of animals claiming this style of life we'll cover it all starting with the Archaeognatha bristleworms followed by the Zygentoma silverfish and firebrats. If that all sounded like a load of gibberish, don't worry, we lay it all out and as usual learn some surprising, interesting and all around bizzare facts about these seemingly simple animals. 

Brr, is anybody else feeling chilly? Well hang in there, it's our last episode of the year! Layer up, get a fire going or huddle around your heater, however you need to get cozy as we learn about a couple of animals who are experts at enduring the cold climate in the eternal winter wonderland that is the world's Boreal Forests. We'll start off diving in to icy Canadian waters to swim with the Arctic Grayling then fly to the vast and mysterious forests of eastern Russia and Northern China to catch a glimpse of the Amur Tiger. Let's cheers to sending off the year with us in a glittering snowscape!

We've digested Thanksgiving and it's a quick turn around this year for the Winter holidays. Bust out those holiday bins and get creative with us as we meet up with some unique animal builders. Whether its weaving and winding in the forest with the Bower Bird or creating meticulous spirals with your claws like the Australian Desert Scorpion, you're bound to get inspired to do something a little different this year with your holiday decorations!