The Critter Shed

A very special chat with Kathryn Murphy from Trinity College Dublin about the way exotic animals were used for entertainment and hunting in ancient Rome. With a particularly gruesome (i.e. fascinating) tale of a human-bull mating. Yeah, we know. The Critter Shed is now on Patreon! We make this show for free, in our own time, but it does incur costs for us. A donation from you - even the price of a...

Today we chat with Dublin Zoo keeper Brendan Walsh about the role of zoos in modern society and modern conservation. For more information on Dublin Zoo conservation projects: https://www.dublinzoo.ie/ The Critter Shed is now on Patreon! We make this show for free, in our own time, but it does incur costs for us. A donation from you - even the price of a cup of coffee - would help us stay afloat an...

A special Christmas episode celebrating an iconic seasonal bird, the robin. If you have queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about, we'd love to hear from you. FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterShedDUB/ TWITTER: @crittershedpod EMAIL: crittershed@gmail.com Presented by Collie Ennis and Colette Kinsella. Produced by Colette Kinsella for Red Hare Media. The Warren: The Critter She...

We meet some lucky garden ladies who are literally out of this world - it's the ladybird show! If you'd like to donate to Dublin Zoo to help them through their COVID-induced financial bottleneck, you can do that here: https://www.dublinzoo.ie/ Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about: FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/The...

Have you heard the one about the cuddly Australian mammal that has a venomous spur on its heel? Or, how about the gorgeous bird whose feathers contain toxin? Today we're all about creatures that pack a toxic - and unexpected - punch. More on the blue-capped ifrit here . Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about. Or tell us...

Meet Sindbad the Stowaway, Collie's newest housemate. And we have an update on Sam the Fox from Trinity College Dublin. Click here for more information on the Kildare Animal Wildlife Unit: https://www.facebook.com/Wildlifeunitkildare/ Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about: FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterSh...

Collie finds a living fossil, and also becomes a surrogate mother to 15 feathery offspring... Image: Creative Commons Image: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/Lamprey_mouth.jpg FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterShedDUB/ TWITTER: @crittershedpod EMAIL: crittershed@gmail.com Music: Podington: Curious, Tuxes Presented by Collie Ennis and Colette Kinsella. Produced by Cole...

Holly English watched a wildlife documentary when she was 10 and it changed her life. The documentary was about the beautiful and enigmatic African wild dogs and now she studies them for a living. This episode is an ode to African wild dogs. FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterShedDUB/ TWITTER: @crittershedpod EMAIL: crittershed@gmail.com Music: Podington: Curious, Sunset Presented by Col...

Which came first, the chicken or the nest? Collie and Colette talk turkey about nests, who made the first one, and who makes the biggest one. Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about: FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterShedDUB/ TWITTER: @crittershedpod EMAIL: crittershed@gmail.com Music: Podington: Curious, Algo...

There's a Nintendo Switch video game doing the rounds now that is basically Collie's life in digital: Animal Crossing. Podcaster and writer Rosemary Mac Cabe and producer Liam Geraghty are both big fans of the game, and they take us to their digital islands and show us around. Also: we meet an Animal Crossing character who is a REAL digital version of COLLIE ENNIS!!! This is fun! FACEBOOK: https:/...

Isn't nature sounding amazing at the moment? Now that many of us are in lockdown, and there are fewer noisy machines on the road or in the air, we can actually hear nature more clearly than ever. Collie and Colette listen in to the nature sounds collected and sent in by listeners from around the world, and it's a treat. Also, if you can spare the price of a cup of coffee, the folks at My Lovely Ho...

Today we soothe your corona-isolated soul with one of the most beautiful sounds of all: chattering budgies! And, we delve into their fascinating natural history. Do you know where they are native to? Well, struth, we have the answer! Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about: FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterShe...

Like centipedes? Then you'll love this giant carnivorous animal that can take out BATS! Watch this BBC video about the bat-eating scolopendra: http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20161205-giant-centipede-hunts-bats Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about: FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterShedDUB/ TWITTER: @critters...

Like zombie movies? Then you'll love this episode because we examine the darker side of the mating season... and it gets very dark... Further reading: Here's a great read from The Guardian . Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about: FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterShedDUB/ TWITTER: @crittershedpod EMAIL: critt...

In these socially distant times of ours, we have a special episode dedicated to an underrated amphibian: the cane toad! We dispel myths like: "They're Australian, aren't they?" Er, no. Or: "They are sadistic killers of all life on Earth, aren't they?" Again, no... and after this episode, we hope you will agree that they are simply gorgeous animals. Further reading and watching: Cane Toads, an Unna...

Collie and Colette celebrate the great and important BEETLE family... with a cameo by a very lucky and lovely bunny. Photo copyright Colette Kinsella Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about: FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheCritterShedDUB/ TWITTER: @crittershedpod EMAIL: crittershed@gmail.com Music: Podington: Curiou...

This is a live recording in front of an audience in The Crawford Art Gallery in Cork, and we're all about SPIDERS!!! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gather round, children, for stories about lesser-celebrated Christmas animals. Yule felines, yule arachnids, yule goats and even yule marsupials - this Christmas episode has them all. Further reading: Feast your eyes here on the truly breathtaking Christmas tree worms ( Spirobranchus giganteus ) who manage to look festive all year round. More on the terrifyingly gorgeous Icelandic Yule Cat story h...

Snoring cats, peaceful pachyderms and orgasmic ostriches. This episode has it all! We went to Dublin Zoo to chat to keeper Brendan Walsh about a study he carried out on the zoo's largest residents, one that gave him new and remarkable insights into their nocturnal lives. An elephant-sized THANK YOU to the staff at Dublin Zoo for being so generous with their time and information. It was a wonderful...

The Critter Shed is now a proud resident of The Warren , Ireland's newest podcast network and home to some of the most remarkable and innovative podcasts in the country. We have some great flatmates in our cosy burrow and we'd like you to get to know them as well as you know The Critter Shed. Have a listen to this bonus episode and, if you like what you hear, hop on over the http://www.thewarren.i...

Today we head off to roly-poly town to visit the unsung heroes of the invertebrate world... WOODLICE!!!! These tiny armadillo-like creatures are nature's recyclers. All winter long they will be working hard in your garden, breaking down and recycling your organic waste. We also hear about what you can do in your winter garden to help your wildlife neighbours survive and thrive until spring, AND wh...

Some time before this episode was released, Collie came across an amazing sight in his own Dublin suburb, Tallaght. Over many years a former waste ground and dumpsite for silt dredged from local ponds had regenerated into a vibrant and multi-layered wetland ecosystem that was home to species such as newts, bats, frogs and the endangered European eel. The site was included in the local council's Lo...

This week we meet a gentle - and leggy - giant of the invertebrate world, Collie comes up with a new business idea, and we hear how ingenious primates deploy invertebrates as recreational drugs. Seriously. They get baked. Music: Podington: Curious, Sunset, Tuxes, Chauncy Don't forget to hit us up on our various channels with questions, queries or things you'd like us to get nerdy about. FACEBOOK:...

This week we’re on an animal  rescue farm visiting one of the world's most intelligent, misunderstood and mistreated animal: the pig. We meet the enigmatic (and GIANT) boar Wilbur and his friend Tina Sunshine, who spend their days lounging in the sun when they're not opening childproof fridge locks or stable doors. Tina Sunshine and Wilbur were rescued from dire circumstances, and we also hea...

This week the critter shed becomes 'the love shack' as we delve into the sensuous,  sumptuous and scintillating love lives of SNAILS! We hear how giant African land snails smooch and snog their way through courtship, and then shoot actual LOVE DARTS (be still my beating heart) during coitus. AND how they have enviable staying power. Also, these snails are just gorgeous, wonderfully adapted an...