Gettin' Fishy With It

This week, we join the remaster trend by re-recording a classic episode that our online listeners have never heard! We did a live podcast episode at PAX East in Boston in 2024, and the recording was sadly lost (thanks tech guy Bernard…). We had so much fun the first time, we thought we’d record it all for our online listeners! We covered everything from the very first fishing games, to fishing minigames in games which otherwise hav...

In this episode, "Repatriated Sturgeon as Biomonitors for Pollution," the crew goes for a swim in the historic Genesee river of Rochester, NY with Dr. Jeff Wyatt. He’s been doing incredible work with reintroducing sturgeon into an area where they were recently extinct.  Did you know that sturgeon can take 20 years to get to breeding size/age? Join us for a heartwarming story about fish, water restoration and local communities comin...

In this episode, "The Life of Gars," the crew talks everything gar, with the GARgantuan “Gar Guy” himself, Dr. Solomon David. Gars have been around much longer than humans. It helps when you grow so big that you have no natural predators!  They’ve somehow wrongly been characterized as a “trash fish” and Dr David is here to set the record straight. We learn about their evolution, reproductive strategies, distribution and m...

In this episode, "Fish and Climate Change," the crew chats about climate change with comedian and climate communicator, Rollie Williams. Did you know that 1% of the world is covered by coral reefs?  Is that a lot or a little? You decide!  But corals are not doing well due to rising temperatures and it’s home to much of our diverse fish species. Come along with us as we talk about temperatures, ocean acidification and much...

In today's episode, "Species Spotlight: Billfish," the crew dives deep… like a swordfish… into the amazing billfish!  Billfish are a general term for swordfish, marlin, sailfish and spearfish. These monsters of the ocean are large, fast, agile, and apex predators. We discuss their anatomy, behavior, evolutionary adaptations and lifespans. We talk about how they can get caught in nets and about their conservation. Hope...

In today's episode,, "Fish Evolution," the crew chats about fish evolution with Dr. Kory Evans, Ichthyologist and professor of biosciences at Rice University in Texas! If you want to learn about the skull shapes of fish and how they evolved, Kory is the guy for you. We talk about evolution of electric fishes, the crazy second jaws of parrotfish and how flatfish (flounder, sole, halibut etc) start out looking like most...

In this episode, "Species Spotlight: Angelfish," the crew go up to heaven… in search of the Angelfish (freshwater)! We focus on freshwater angelfish only and it's quite a deep dive! Physically speaking, they are certainly oddballs, from their prominent long fins to their fast snapping mouths to the bug eyes of the babies that seem to be screaming at you.  Did you know there are only 3 species in captivity and only 1 t...

In today's episode, "GFWI Movie Club: Jaws," the crew gets into everything JAWS! This classic movie celebrated its 50th anniversary this summer so there was no way we were missing this one. Join us as we point out the strengths and weaknesses of this movie. We highly suggest re-watching before the episode since it makes the observations that much more salient. Learn about the history, the making and the symbolism behi...

In today's episode, "Stickleback Stock Center," the crew learns about the gem of the northern hemisphere, the stickleback!  We interview Holly Valentine, the Stickleback Stock Center Stock Manager at UCONN and learn about this interesting little fish. Stickleback are incredibly adaptive and they are used for a variety of research topics. You might think Alaska only has snow and salmon but these little guys are living in lakes even ...

*** All views and opinions expressed by Joe Caterine on the podcast are his own and don't represent those of any of the organizations he is affiliated with. ***

In today's episode, "Aquaculture Information Exchange", the crew interviews Joe Caterine and learns about his role at the Aquaculture Information Exchange. This new aquatic-centered social media platform is just in its infancy and yet there is so much potential! This is a ne...

In today’s episode, we get to know Dr. Wasseem Emam, the founder and director of Ethical Seafood Research, a nonprofit organization which is helping to uplift the welfare of food fishes. We get into the Canadian education system, talk about the purpose of some of these organizations and how they help fish live better lives. Wasseem has spent time in a lot of different countries and he is doing his part on the ground to engag...

In this episode, "Species Spotlight: Pirahna," the crew chomps off another episode with a look into the “fearsome” piranha!  Many people don't know that piranhas are related to many peaceful community fish and that they are big chickens when it comes to bravery. We also get some words from the late Teddy Roosevelt and his observations on piranhas.  Lastly, we chat about the care of these fish in the hobby in case you ...

In today's episode, the crew once again dives into the Zebrafish Husbandry Association initiative to make science more easily accessible and reproducible. Ana Borges of the Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine breaks down the benefits of sharing this information and how it can make the collaborative scientific community even better! The more data we collect and report, the easier it is to draw strong scientific conclusions. ...

In today's episode, the crew chats with Brendan De Grim, the Dive Safety Officer of New Orleans own Audubon Aquarium! Not only is his job super cool but his path to getting there is certainly one you're going to want to hear!  From criminal justice to banking to private investigator to scuba instructor, Brendan teaches us that the path to the fish world can be a windy road. The Aquarium in New Orleans has been revamp...

Did you ever wish there was a real School of Wizardry except for fish? You're in luck! In today's episode, "Marine Science Magnet High School," the crew gets educated with Eric Litvinoff from the Marine Science Magnet High School. Connecticut has excellent magnet schools which are paid for by tax dollars and allow for equal opportunity attendance for anyone in the state. MSMHS is one of those schools and it...

Were you ever envious of the powers of Aquaman? In today's episode, "Training Sharks and Rays", the crew explores the fascinating world of training sea creatures. But did you know it's not just dolphins and sea lions that are trainable? Sharks and rays can be taught to do all sorts of things! We can train them to come to a specific location or sit on a hammock, all to enable them to participate in their own health...

In today's episode, "Federal Funding for Fish Conservation and Human Health," the crew discusses federal funding, its importance in the lives of fish and how we benefit as humans. We cover the US Fish & Wildlife Service, the US Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Association, the National Institutes of Health, and the Environmental Protection Agency. Most of these agencies cost billio...

In today's episode, "Zebrafish Husbandry Reporting & Reproducibility Initiative (Part 1)," we talk with former Zebrafish Husbandry Association President Michelle Altemara about her new initiative to standardize reporting in fish research papers. Science has a reproducibility problem and oftentimes it's because we don't account for all of the variables. Sometimes, “we keep fish on a recirculating rack” is not a good enough way t...

In this episode, "Species Spotlight: Sturgeon," the crew shines a spotlight on sturgeons! Let's dive into all the facts about these prehistoric & gentle boop noodles!

This podcast is brought to you by the mosquitofish.  These tiny fish are not bloodsucking pests as their names might suggest but rather they consume mosquito larva with gusto.  Mosquito fish are the most widespread fish in the world mostly due to huma...