Die Panda Die

You probably never believed there was anything in nature that behaved like the creatures in the film Alien. Tragically, we've come to disrupt that peace of mind. Liz and Maddie take a dive into the horror nightmare realm of parasitoids, organisms that have evolved to paralyze, mind control, and consume in truly screen-worthy ways. Liz has 80's nostalgia. Maddie builds some atmosphere.

Liz and Maddie discuss sexual selection, the evolutionary force responsible for a whole host of weird traits. For instance, why peacocks have cumbersome tails. For another, why duck reproduction is a nightmare horror show, in detail. Be forewarned, but come join us anyway!

The earth is old, and life has been evolving for a long time! Liz and Maddie take a broad tour through earth's geologic eras, including the ones with the dinosaurs. Liz gets real into movies. Maddie proposes a celebrity mythos.

Did you ever want to learn the secret dance of bees and how it was decoded? Listen as we explore the discoveries of Nobel Prize-winning ethologist Karl von Frisch, and the fascinating communication behavior of bees. Maddie questions memes. Liz learns about bee painting.

Why do similar appearances and behaviors occur in animals all over the world? Join us as we use some of the world's weirdest mammals to explain the process of convergent evolution. (Note: sorry for the weird audio clicks. We've fixed it for next week)

Animals behave in strange and unpredictable ways. But how much is instinct, and how much can they learn from the world around them?