Just the Zoo of Us

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's especially odoriferous episode, Christian gives high marks to the Egyptian vulture and Ellen gives props to the grandstanding, handstanding eastern spotted skunk. We discuss where the pharaoh's chicken ranks in the scavenging pecking order,  how to ACTUALLY get rid of the smell from a skunk spray using chemistry,  and why it's import...

Join Ellen & special guest, conservation biologist Dr. Christine Wilkinson, for a review of the oft-maligned powerhouses: hyenas! We discuss the diversity of the hyena family, eating bones, girlbossing, how pop culture has missed the mark on hyena representation, and compassionate conservation. Follow Christine on Twitter and check out their website for more! Follow Just the Zoo of Us on  Facebook...

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's episode, Ellen hangs out with the slow loris & Christian observes leg day with the southern cassowary. We discuss armpit alchemy, the pitfalls of cute animal videos, rumbles in the jungle, and real life dinosaurs. Follow Just the Zoo of Us on  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  Instagram ! Cover photos: warmer via Getty images (slow loris), J...

Join Ellen & special guest Tharusha Wijewardena for a review of the charming and endangered Blanding's turtle. We discuss what to do if you see a turtle crossing the road, what cartoons get right and wrong about turtles, the perils of longevity and cute fluffy predators, and the conservation work that’s going into helping our tough-shelled friends. Follow Tharusha on Twitter and learn more about t...

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's episode, Christian drops in on green iguanas and Ellen reels in the blue marlin. Topics include pendulous dewlaps, frozen lizards falling from trees, the powerhouse of the cell, and flailing knives. Follow Just the Zoo of Us on  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  Instagram ! Cover photos: Christo Goosen via Pexels (green iguana) & Kelly Dalli...

Join Ellen & special guest, animal trainer Aeralyn Rudnick, for a review of the relentlessly charming turacos! They are here to tell us all about what it’s like to work with these spectacular little goofballs, how to win their hearts over with the power of berries, baby bird glow-ups and the science behind their rainbow of brilliantly pigmented colors that really do make them actual living paintin...

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's episode, Ellen chills out with icefish & Christian tells us why the wombat really shines. Topics include Crystal Pepsi, secret fish cities, poop cubes and blacklights. Follow Just the Zoo of Us on  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  Instagram ! Cover photo: keiichihiki via Getty images (wombat), Marrabbio2 via Wikipedia (icefish, Chionodraco...

Join Ellen & conservation biologist Stephanie Martinez for a review of the little deceptively adorable critters tunneling through the grasslands: ground squirrels! We talk about the hazards of field work, sleeping your problems away, the science of splooting, jiu jitsu matches, squirrel romance, tippy taps and furry little neighborhood watch programs. Follow Stephanie on Twitter ! Follow Just the...

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's episode, Christian tells us how the bull shark gets fresh by staying salty & Ellen takes a stab at the knife-faced green heron. We discuss Jaws, the atlatl, and zoooOOOP! Follow Just the Zoo of Us on  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  Instagram ! Cover photo: Divepic, wildpix645 (via Getty images) Help support this show and unlock bonus cont...

Join Ellen & marine biologist Rosie Steinberg for a review of some beautiful animals that you might not have even known were animals: carnation corals! We talk about the living Ship of Theseus, what a coral smells like, intense turf wars being fought in super slow motion, and life as a hivemind of squishy clones. Follow Rosie on Twitter ! Follow Just the Zoo of Us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagr...

Join Ellen & reptile keeper Dominique DiFalco for a review of the fabulously lashed crested gecko! Learn all about the joys of loving and caring for reptiles, the mind-blowing physics that keeps geckos clinging even to smooth glass, and what makes these wide-eyed, velvety soft lizards such special little friends. Follow along with Dominique's work on Facebook (her group is currently on pause for t...

Join Ellen and special guest, science communicator & podcaster Ashley Hamer, for a review of the towering leaf-eaters of the African savannahs: the northern giraffe! We discuss how giraffes keep their tongues from getting sunburnt, built-in compression socks, the perils of necking, and more. Follow Ashley on Twitter and check out her other work on her website ! Cover photo: Leo Mercon, via Getty I...

Join Ellen & special guest bat enthusiast Nate Marshall for a review of the not-so-sinister vampire bats!  In this episode, we discuss leaf noses, Pope tweets, bat friendships, and more. Follow Nate on Twitter and check out his podcast for more bat content! Cover photo: belizar73,  Getty images Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinjustthezo...

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's episode, Ellen squares up with the formidable tarantula hawk & Christian gives the buzz on vulture bees.  We discuss why you should give the tarantula hawk plenty of personal space, their video game boss fight strategy, and putting meat back on the menu for some very interesting little bees. Help support this show and unlock bonus co...

Join Ellen & special guest Carly Haywood for a review of the scaly, pig-snouted friends of the underbrush: nine-banded armadillos! In this episode, we discuss whether you should be afraid of getting leprosy from an armadillo, what “pancaking” is and why they do it, and little tiny clone parades scuttling through the underbrush. You can follow Carly on Twitter at @MotherOfDasypus :) Cover photo: Sv...

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's episode, Christian brings the acorn woodpecker to trial for its rampant vandalism & Ellen goes for a ride in a time machine with the West African lungfish. Along the way, we discuss the physics of using your face as a jackhammer, snot cocoons, and Sonic hedgehog. Cover photos: Luis Echeverri Urrea via Getty images (woodpeckers), volt...

Join Ellen & special guest, science writer & naturalist Rosemary Mosco, for a review of the little grey guy strutting down a street near you: the pigeon! We discuss the history of why pigeons live alongside us, how they evade the clutches of even the world’s fastest predator, ways pigeon couples keep the romance alive, and the joy of appreciating these metropolitan doves. You can find Rosemary's w...

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's episode inspired by Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Ellen basks in the unexpected glory of the ocean sunfish & Christian pays respect to the mischievous tanuki. You'll learn what to bring to a sunfish's dinner party and how the tanuki earns the title of power couple. Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at...

Join Ellen & special guest evolutionary biologist Dr. Kory Evans for a review of the dimensionally innovative flatfish! Learn the story of why these quirky fishes developed such peculiar body plans and how their bizarre adaptations help them live their best life beneath the sand. We discuss migrating eyes, transient feet, and which cartoons got flounders right and wrong. Keep up with Kory and his...

Join the Weatherfords for a weekly animal review! In this week's festively spooky episode, Christian kicks off the celebration with the painted bat & Ellen counts up points for the iconic Dracula parrot. Photos: Merlin Tuttle (painted bat), Ondrej Prosicky (Dracula parrot) Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinjustthezoo

Join Ellen & special guest, entomologist Derek Hennen, for a review of our many-legged friends, the myriapods! We’re talking millipedes, centipedes, and pauropods: what the difference is between these long guys, how they manage to scurry around without tripping over all of those feet, and what they’re up to down there underneath the leaf litter. Join the millipede fan club: @DearMillipede Cover ph...

Just the Zoo of Us and One Bad Mother got together to celebrate MaxFun Block Party! If you enjoyed this conversation we had with host Biz Ellis, be sure to subscribe to One Bad Mother on maximumfun.org ! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinjustthezoo

Ellen inspects an army of fish clones, the Amazon molly, and Christian finally digs in to the details of the inimitable aardvark. Learn how clones are made in nature, what's going on inside the aardvark's porcine snout, and why it's so crucial to never leave home without tippy-tappies. Amazon molly photo by Manfred Schartl. Aardvark photo by Michael Viard via Getty Images. Help support this show a...

We've got big, exciting, great news! Just the Zoo of Us is joining the Maximum Fun network! Listen to our announcement for more information about the network, the date of our first episode as members, and a very special treat if you stick around to the end (it's less than two minutes!). Check out Maximum Fun & their other wonderful shows over at www.maximumfun.org :) Help support this show and unl...

Join Ellen & special guest Mallory McNulty for a review of our porous friends, freshwater sponges! Get the real answers to your burning sponge questions, like what a sponge feels like in your hands, how a completely stationary animal gets to new places, what kind of role they play in their ecosystem & why freshwater sponges have earned their chance in the spotlight! Help support this show and unlo...