BewilderBeasts!
Join Melissa as she dives deep into the weirdest, funniest, sciency-est ways in which animals intersect at humanity. How is a horse responsible for the FDA? How did fish farts nearly cause bombs to fly between Russia and Sweden? How did a pigeon save 194 soldiers in wartime? Why are honey bees trained to find unexploded landmines in Croatia? Let's go!
Episodes
A personal note from Melissa re: Roe v. Wade and a throwback episode about feminism by way of First Daughter, Alice Roosevelt's pet garder snake, Emily Spinach. Also, panda cologne is eau d'number 2, and our favorite bad taxidermy, "Sad Otter".
All resources for this episode can be found in the shownotes of episode 24, "Emily Spinach"
Visit BewilderBeastsPod.com for all episodes.
One sheep in Australia goes on the "lamb" and comes back from his "ram"springa needing a haircut of epic proportions.
Please visit Bewilderbeastspod.com for more information about the show, and pretty please with cherry on top, leave a written review or tell a friend about the show!
Resources:
https://slate.com/technology/2021/03/baarack-sheep-domestication-wool.html
https://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/national/ba...
When violent militarized police attack school children protesting for the right to education in Chile, hundreds of homeless street dogs stand in the way. This story focuses on two of the hundreds of Chilean protesting dogs: the infamous Negro Matapacos (Bebe), whose likeness pops up wherever social injustice involving police brutality and injustice to kids around the world exists, and El Vaquita, the dog who needed a fake protest...
An invasive little bugger is murdering trees & plants in mid-Atlantic states by sucking them dry, then uses poisonous poop to finish the job. One hero rises above to turn poisonous poop lemons into delicious vomit lemonade.
Let's go!
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Resources:
PopSci podcast: https://www.popsci.com/animals/how-to-make-honey-spotted-lanternflies
Atlas Obscura: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/unusual-honey-pennsylvan...
The time LL Bean teamed up with a taxidermist and a woman from New Sweden, Maine, to make an unbelievably rare event come back to life for the masses. Plus, moose are hunted by an unusual predator, and one inebriated moose gets stuck in a tree.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/BewilderBeastsPod)Three shorter stories that couldn't quite make an entire episode on their own: A cat on the Queen's payroll in the UK and a pig who started a nearly 13 year war over land in the Pacific Northwest between the US and Canada.
*****
I got today’s information from a variety of sources -
On the Queen’s Chief Mouser:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_VIII
https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/who-were-henry-viiis-wives
https://www....
Starting Season 3 : Swedish crows trained to pick up cigarettes in exchange for actual peanuts- it's proposed to save towns over 75% of the monetary cost of humans picking up trash, but what does that mean for the crows?
*****
Resources:
The American Cancer Society Quitline at 800-227-2345
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/503606/are-cigarette-butts-secret-better-roads
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/505089/dutch-startup-...
April Fool's Day is in full swing on this episode of not-exactly BewilderBeasts! Let's learn about a bit about by way of a New York Yankee's baseball player and an ostrich.
When a NY Yankee Challenged an Ostrich To A Spaghetti Eating Competition
More about Nick Charlie Key and his incredible show, "The Fantastic History of Food" can be found here: https://www.foodhistorypodcast.com/ and on Twitter: https://twitt...
In this fan favorite, we revisit Melissa's failed foray into pharmaceutical advertising.
All resources for this replay can be found in the show notes of Episode 18: The Side Effects of Toad Licking
Missing historical appendages? Fierce women who get it done? Big goofy hero dogs? Quirky facts and serious history? It's all here. If there is one episode that encompasses Bewilderbeasts, it's this one.
All information about this episode can be found on the show notes of episode 33: Ann Harvey, Hairy Man and the Island of the Dead.
When Melissa's asked which story sticks with her the most, it's the one of the Border Collie who unmasked the terrible racists in Tennessee.
Episode notes can be found on episode 26: The Rebellious Reenacting Rooster
In this fan favorite, we meet Poll - President Andrew Jackson's swearing parrot,-who makes frequent cameos through the episodes of Bewilderbeasts.
All resources can be found on episode 8, "The Profane Presidential Parrot"
Replay of Episode 50: Olga of Kiev.
#StandWithUkraine #Ukraine
McNugget, the coffee shop rooster; Cosmo, the rowdy raven who befriended an elementary school; an update on Magawa, the land-mind detection rat from episode 10; and scheduling updates!
Resources:
McNugget the Rooster
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/one-tough-old-bird-rules-the-parking-lot/
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/beloved-issaquah-rooster-likely-killed-by-dog/
This week is part two of the prosthetics arc where we look exclusively at one dolphin who lost her tail but not her spirit - how that dolphin's journey saved the wildlife rehabilitation center she lived in, helped humans with advancements in prosthetic tech, and saved countless animals after her death in 2021, all while schmoozing with Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd and Harry Connick, Jr. Let's meet Winter the Dolphin.
Resou...
This week's show is all about the real life Animal Avengers, animal prosthetics, osseointegration, and the magic of 3D printing to save animals from euthanasia while advancing prosthetic technologies to help humans.
Resources for today's episode include:
Hi everyone! Episode 21, Fishfart Diplomacy, had a segment dedicated to all things Groundhog Day and let's bring back the term Bear Rat for our favorite meteorological rodents!
All sources can be found on the original airing of the show, episode 21: https://bewilderbeastspod.podcastpage.io/episode/ep-21-fish-fart-diplomacy
The time Kentucky Fried Chicken teamed up with NASA, some space ready chickens, and an 8th Grader FOR SCIENCE.
I got today's information from:
https://www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/news/background/facts/adf.html
https://www.audubon.org/news/the-amazing-story-cold-war-space-egg-race
https://techshot.com/aerospace/technology/
https://www.sciencefocus.com/space/is-it-possible-for-chickens-to-lay-eggs-in-space/
This week, the Soviet dogs who went to space, their descendants, and one named Pushinka who had a minor role in stopping nuclear Armageddon during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Resources for this week's episode:
Cultura Colectiva
Contact the show:
bewilderbeastspod (at) gmail (dot) com
Twitter: BewilderedPod
Facebook: BewilderBeasts Pod
Instagram: B...
In Australia there is a rescue service for frogs who get trapped in produce that saves upwards of 1500 frogs every single year. We also meet Tony the Frog from Twitter who was saved from a head of lettuce in America, and why voting in America is important in off-presidential years if you want to save amphibians. Alright, let's go!
I got today’s information from
https://journalistsresource.org/health/frog-salad-bagged-lettuce/
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