Dung Beetles from Just the Zoo of Us

The Jimothy: Seattle Raccoon Steals Hearts

If you’ve been on the internet recently, you might’ve heard of Jimothy—a raccoon from Seattle who went viral. Jimothy t-shirts, murals, tattoos, and tribute songs popped up across the country. We wanted to understand why this raccoon had captured so many hearts, so we spoke to one of the first people who spotted him: Ben Trammell. One night in Seattle, Ben was watching a raccoon family walk along his backyard fence when he saw a tiny, scruffy, hunched-over raccoon with stiff front legs and a short puffball of a tail instead of the usual long, stripey one.  He was instantly enamored with this clumsy little guy and began watching his escapades night after night.  What Ben saw taught him something about raccoons he never expected.  Songbud Alan talks with Ben about raccoon chaos, family care, and the joy of watching a wild animal do life his own way. They flip the script on “survival of the fittest” to discover that compassion and care are natural and weird is good! Lulu also speaks with Seattle writer and disability activist Elsa Sjunneson about how Jimothy became a champion for grungy Seattle and an icon for the disability community.  Very special thanks to Robin Pecknold of Fleet Foxes for his performance of the song, "Jimothy." KEEP LEARNING! Huge thanks to Elsa Sjunneson for joining us. Her new book, Dear Blind Lady [https://www.powells.com/book/dear-blind-lady-9781632176363], is out this fall and available for preorder now - it includes a whole chapter for parents on how to talk to their kids about disability. Elsa also recommended two children's books for young readers who want to learn more: * We Move Together [https://wemovetogether.ca/] by Kelly Fritsch and Anne McGuire, a picture book about the many different ways disabled people move through the world. * All the Way to the Top: How One Girl's Fight for Americans with Disabilities Changed Everything [https://jkclegacy.com/book] by Annette Bay Pimentel, the true story of Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins, who at 8 years old crawled up the steps of the U.S. Capitol to protest for the Americans with Disabilities Act. Want more Elsa? Listen to her Radiolab episode, The Helen Keller Exorcism [https://radiolab.org/podcast/helen-keller-exorcism], and watch this wonderful PBS mini documentary [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxuxpCPG0-Q] about Elsa and her fencing. Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was produced by Alan Goffinski with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Ana González, Tanya Chawla, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. HEY GROWN-UPS! Love the show? Leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and review on your podcast app—it helps curious listeners find us! Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show [http://terrestrialspodcast.org/join] by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team! We want to hear from you! Share your thoughts about Terrestrials with us [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScfQ5fJWDQY6VxpY3UZ2JfUR_wWefhAB_iDGZBCF7ltfZQJAw/viewform]. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter [https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab-kids] for bite-sized essays, activities, and ways to connect with the show. Follow us on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/terrestrialspodcast/], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@terrestrialspodcast] for behind-the-scenes extras and more. Listen to original music from Terrestrials on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/album/2dJoTi6y22d3Mb7laxaCXj], Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/us/album/terrestrials-just-the-music-season-1/1769054305?uo=4&app=music&at=1001lry3&ct=dashboard], or our music page [https://wnycstudios.bandcamp.com/album/terrestrials-just-the-songs]. Got a badgering question for the team? Email us at terrestrials@wnyc.org or submit a voice memo with your name, age, and your question using this form [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeF9rrN-64E-wKGAnxjdCWyIi2JMA4AThp5y1BgB4X5tSZk1Q/viewform?usp=send_form]! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Dung Beetles from Just the Zoo of Us

It’s summer break! So, while Terrestrials takes a summer breather,, we’re bringing you a show that we really love. It’s called Just the Zoo of Us [https://maximumfun.org/podcasts/just-the-zoo-of-us/], and it’s produced by Ellen and Christian Weatherford, a married couple with a shared love of telling stories about this wonderful planet!In every episode, they rate a different animal on three qualities - effectiveness, ingenuity, and aesthetics. In this episode, they’re tackling the DUNG BEETLE, a beetle that loves… poop. It's a story that will take us to incredible places - beetles in boots, in hats, in planetariums! Enjoy! Check out the full episode to learn about Moray Eels here [https://maximumfun.org/episodes/just-the-zoo-of-us/253-dung-beetles-giant-moray-eel/]! HEY GROWN-UPS! Love the show? Leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and review on your podcast app—it helps curious listeners find us! Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show [http://terrestrialspodcast.org/join] by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team! We want to hear from you! Share your thoughts about Terrestrials with us [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScfQ5fJWDQY6VxpY3UZ2JfUR_wWefhAB_iDGZBCF7ltfZQJAw/viewform]. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter [https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab-kids] for bite-sized essays, activities, and ways to connect with the show. Follow us on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/terrestrialspodcast/], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@terrestrialspodcast] for behind-the-scenes extras and more. Listen to original music from Terrestrials on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/album/2dJoTi6y22d3Mb7laxaCXj], Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/us/album/terrestrials-just-the-music-season-1/1769054305?uo=4&app=music&at=1001lry3&ct=dashboard], or our music page [https://wnycstudios.bandcamp.com/album/terrestrials-just-the-songs]. Got a badgering question for the team? Email us at terrestrials@wnyc.org or submit a voice memo with your name, age, and your question using this form [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeF9rrN-64E-wKGAnxjdCWyIi2JMA4AThp5y1BgB4X5tSZk1Q/viewform?usp=send_form]! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Charmer: King Cobras' FANGtastic Powers

Lulu has been terrified of snakes all her life. But strangely, her oldest son  has been obsessed with them since he was two. So to understand his fascination, she called a snake expert who might also be one of the least afraid people on Earth: Gowri Shankar Pogiri [https://pogirigowrishankar.wordpress.com/about/].  As a kid in Bangalore, India, Gowri was his neighborhood's resident snake-catcher — wrangling seven-foot snakes and motorcycling into the sunset with the serpent draped around his neck so he could release it back into the wild. In college, he'd skip school to look at snakes for hours at the zoo.  And the day he met his first king cobra? He became completely entranced. He started working as a professional herpetologist, and became one of the first researchers to track king cobras in the wild. He’d spend his days in the rainforests of India, following the giant snakes as they climbed trees, swam across streams, and hunted prey. Until one day, when a dramatic encounter with a king cobra nearly ended his life. That remarkable story, plus a last-minute marriage proposal, a heroic bag, and how the only thing that Gowri is truly scared of might just be what Lulu, and all of us, are most afraid of, too.  Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was produced by Alan Goffinski with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Ana González, Tanya Chawla, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Sophie Samiee. HEY GROWN-UPS! Love the show? Leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and review on your podcast app—it helps curious listeners find us! Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show [http://terrestrialspodcast.org/join] by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team! We want to hear from you! Share your thoughts about Terrestrials with us [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScfQ5fJWDQY6VxpY3UZ2JfUR_wWefhAB_iDGZBCF7ltfZQJAw/viewform]. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter [https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab-kids] for bite-sized essays, activities, and ways to connect with the show. Follow us on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/terrestrialspodcast/], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@terrestrialspodcast] for behind-the-scenes extras and more. Listen to original music from Terrestrials on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/album/2dJoTi6y22d3Mb7laxaCXj], Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/us/album/terrestrials-just-the-music-season-1/1769054305?uo=4&app=music&at=1001lry3&ct=dashboard], or our music page [https://wnycstudios.bandcamp.com/album/terrestrials-just-the-songs]. Got a badgering question for the team? Email us at terrestrials@wnyc.org or submit a voice memo with your name, age, and your question using this form [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeF9rrN-64E-wKGAnxjdCWyIi2JMA4AThp5y1BgB4X5tSZk1Q/viewform?usp=send_form]! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Travelers Update: A Moon Tree Grows in New York

The director of horticulture at Madison Square Park, Stephanie Lucas [https://madisonsquarepark.org/park/conservancy/staff/read/stephanie-lucas-2/], spends her days caring for over 300 trees in the heart of New York City. One day in 2022, she saw a callout from NASA giving away seeds that had traveled to the moon. This would be the crown jewel of the park! She and her team worked hard on their application, submitted it, and then waited for two years. Eventually they gave up. Until one day, Stephanie got a call from NASA telling her to check her spam inbox. A week later, a cardboard box arrived at the park.  The tree - an American sweetgum - has been growing in the park for a year. Lulu and Producerbud Ana went to see it, met Stephanie, and imagined how this little sapling might grow one day.  If you’d like to see it yourself with the Terrestrials team, come to our Moon Tree Launch Party [https://wnyc.org/events/terrestrials-at-the-moon-tree-launch-party]happening from 4-8 PM on July 16th at Madison Square Park! It’s FREE, open to the public, and full of moon-tree magic: we’ll be showcasing our Moon Tree drawing contest submissions, inviting park-goers to make their own art, and giving folks a chance to meet Songbud Alan (who may or may not have a real half Moon Tree seed). See you there! We also hear a brand-new poem from New York State Poet Laureate Kimiko Hahn [https://kimikohahn.com/] and revisit our episode about astronaut Stu “Smokey” Roosa and the origin story of Moon Trees.  HEY GROWN-UPS! Love the show? Leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and review on your podcast app—it helps curious listeners find us! Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show [http://terrestrialspodcast.org/join] by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team! We want to hear from you! Share your thoughts about Terrestrials with us [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScfQ5fJWDQY6VxpY3UZ2JfUR_wWefhAB_iDGZBCF7ltfZQJAw/viewform]. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter [https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab-kids] for bite-sized essays, activities, and ways to connect with the show. Follow us on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/terrestrialspodcast/], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@terrestrialspodcast] for behind-the-scenes extras and more. Listen to original music from Terrestrials on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/album/2dJoTi6y22d3Mb7laxaCXj], Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/us/album/terrestrials-just-the-music-season-1/1769054305?uo=4&app=music&at=1001lry3&ct=dashboard], or our music page [https://wnycstudios.bandcamp.com/album/terrestrials-just-the-songs]. Got a badgering question for the team? Email us at terrestrials@wnyc.org or submit a voice memo with your name, age, and your question using this form [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeF9rrN-64E-wKGAnxjdCWyIi2JMA4AThp5y1BgB4X5tSZk1Q/viewform?usp=send_form]! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The DADventure: Wild Animal Dads from Owl Monkeys to Seahorses

What does it really mean to be a dad? In the animal world, fathers have long been painted as aggressive or absent. At best providers and protectors, but certainly not caregivers. And yet for every tale of a lion or chimp dad eating its own young (yikes!), there’s another creature who tells a sweeter story.  Two HUMAN dads bring us on this DADventure: Dr. Eduardo Fernandez-Duque [https://anthropology.yale.edu/profile/eduardo-fernandez-duque], who has spent decades studying owl monkey dads in the forests of Argentina, and Michael Feigelson [https://vanleerfoundation.org/team/michael-feigelson/], who once worried he wasn't cut out for the softer side of parenting.  They introduce us to seahorse dads who get pregnant, poison dart frog dads who give piggyback rides to their tadpoles, Darwin frogs who swallow their eggs to keep them safe, burying beetles who build "corpse cribs," jacana birds who do all the egg-sitting, and stickleback fish who construct intricate underwater nests for their young. Along the way, we learn that nature doesn’t offer just one model of fatherhood. Alongside Mother Nature... there just might be a Father Nature, too. Special thanks to the Van Leer Foundation [https://vanleerfoundation.org/] for the support of this episode.  Resources on Animal fatherhood * Eduardo Duque's Owl Monkey Project: https://www.owlmonkeyproject.com/ [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/NI-7COY2NEHro46xSrsJcGp10l?domain=owlmonkeyproject.com/] * An interview with Eduardo in Yale News [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/YJfQCPN9OMSAqM7Xs6t1cxpHrs?domain=news.yale.edu] * Lauren O’Connell lab – frog behaviour [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/eYuMCQW2PNc4mr5PhAuocG7r7W?domain=laurenoconnelllab.com] * Short explainer: frog parenting research [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/y0xcCR60QMiP8BAWcQCnc1git6?domain=youtube.com] * Stickleback fish parenting study (Alison Bell) [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/zHCECVOkX5Ij19DyCEF1cEVgL8?domain=royalsocietypublishing.org] * Alison Bell lab video [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/ULFGCW6lYwiwvGAqhOHLcotRmz?domain=youtube.com] Human fatherhood  * Fathertime by Sarah Blaffer Hrdy [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/jrrACXD0Z7U730xKFQIncWZeqc?domain=citrona.com] * ECM interview: evolution of “man the nurturer” [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/QSCxCYEn1QhoPOzlFQS5cxScI0?domain=earlychildhoodmatters.online/] * Lee Gettler – biology of fatherhood (video) [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/OWiPCZ6o2winy23gFRTwcBOyix?domain=youtube.com] * Lee Gettler article in Early Childhood Matters [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/GyPYC1wnXYiwK57Gh4UKcV8K1G?domain=earlychildhoodmatters.online/] * Darby Saxbe book: Dad Brain [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/mnMGC2koYghoAON3FxcJc5oeWb?domain=darbysaxbe.com] * Darby Saxbe Article in Early Childhood Matters [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/QmkAC31pZjiYV05Ks5fRcQG3JG?domain=earlychildhoodmatters.online/] Talks, films & convenings * Yale Conference on Fatherhood [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/enhVC4xq1kCAG3p5sqhjc4Vgdr?domain=alumniacademy.yale.edu] * Live Recording of Yale Conference:  [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/QpshC5yr2lFYO4V9sPi5ckwJZT?domain=youtube.com] * Fathers and Fatherhood: From Molecules to Modern Families [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/QpshC5yr2lFYO4V9sPi5ckwJZT?domain=youtube.com] * Fathertime documentary [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/SxTOC68v3milx8nmSws3c5yFVT?domain=vimeo.com] Campaigns & global perspectives * Equimundo's State of World's fathers report [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/ftJEC73wgnhj9oONCGt5cojQKf?domain=equimundo.org/] * Men Care Changemakers Journey [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/Z0LdC82xjoU8xL7qtYujcyB2ek?domain=changemakers.equimundo.org/] * Parenting Out Loud (Elliot Rae) [https://url.us.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/v2DNC9rykpUVP95qfRCJcq47uY?domain=parentingoutloud.com/] Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was produced by Tanya Chawla, with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Ana González, Alan Goffinski, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Angely Mercado. HEY GROWN-UPS! Love the show? Leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and review on your podcast app—it helps curious listeners find us! Terrestrials is made possible in part by listeners like you. Support the show [http://terrestrialspodcast.org/join] by joining The Explorers Club —and we’ll send you a special puzzle as a thank-you gift from our team! We want to hear from you! Share your thoughts about Terrestrials with us [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScfQ5fJWDQY6VxpY3UZ2JfUR_wWefhAB_iDGZBCF7ltfZQJAw/viewform]. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter [https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab-kids] for bite-sized essays, activities, and ways to connect with the show. Follow us on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/terrestrialspodcast/], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@terrestrialspodcast] for behind-the-scenes extras and more. Listen to original music from Terrestrials on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/album/2dJoTi6y22d3Mb7laxaCXj], Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/us/album/terrestrials-just-the-music-season-1/1769054305?uo=4&app=music&at=1001lry3&ct=dashboard], or our music page [https://wnycstudios.bandcamp.com/album/terrestrials-just-the-songs]. Got a badgering question for the team? Email us at terrestrials@wnyc.org or submit a voice memo with your name, age, and your question using this form [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeF9rrN-64E-wKGAnxjdCWyIi2JMA4AThp5y1BgB4X5tSZk1Q/viewform?usp=send_form]! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.