The Primordial Soup Pot

Join Rustin and Aaron for there fiftieth episode of the primordial soup pot. In this episode Rustin starts us off with the Lion's Mane Mushroom. Learn about this delicious fungi's future in the biomedical industry. Aaron follows with the Kew Garden's once rarest fungi on earth that remained unidentified for over a decade. SPOILER ALERT (it was actually a burnt golf ball)

Christmas time! Everyone hang up the tapeworms! Aaron starts us off with the breathtaking migration of the Christmas Island red crabs. Millions of these crabs migrate across Christmas Island yearly, covering the streets and beaches. learn about these crabs' role in the environment and the threats these species face today. Rustin follows with the biology of the beloved Mistletoe, a hemiparasite spr...

Hibernation! Rustin talks about hummingbirds' torpor, a state in which their body temp can drop over 50 degrees in a single day! Learn about how these hummingbirds use this mini-hibernation to survive wintery nights, Aaron follows with the salamanderfish, aka the great value "we have a lungfish at home" fish. Learn about the extreme lifestyle this rare fish lives in one of the most remote parts of...

Research Animals (sort of)! Aaron starts off with the legend of Ol' Rip the Horny Toad. This lizard supposedly survived 30 years sealed inside a time capsule, and went on to tour the country drawing in thousands of spectators. Learn how the "animal whose fame is second only to the serpent from the Garden of Eden" made history and still lives on to this day. Rustin follows with Clever Hans, the Hor...

Keystone Species! Rustin starts by discussing the mysterious die-off of the long-spined sea urchins and their impact on the coral reefs of the Caribbean. Aaron lowkey fumbles his bit on the Atlantic wolffish, but it's okay cause we all had fun with it.

Spooky season once again! Rustin starts us off with the devils tramping ground, a unique clearing in the middle of North Carolina. Join Rustin as he discusses the many theories behind the mysterious patch (everything from demonic presence to soil minerals). Aaron follows with a lengthy insight into the Tsavo man eaters, a pair of lions that threatened railroad workers in the late 1800s. Listen to...

Ponds! In this episode, Rustin and Aaron discuss how two different events drastically affected pond ecosystems in very different ways. Rustin opens with Mosquito fish. This species once commonly used for mosquito control has now become a widespread invasive species that has proven to cause more harm than good. Aaron follows with a piece on the sodic meadow bomb ponds. Learn how a miscalculated bom...

Season 3 begins! In this themeless episode, Aaron kicks things off with the population of wallabies living on Scotland's Inchconnachan Island. Learn about the history of their arrival, their impact on the native wildlife, and the natural history of competition between marsupial and placental mammals. Rustin follows with a new hot topic...Cocaine sharks. Learn how Rustin explains the sensationalism...

Lakes! Rustin opens with the tale of Lake Nyos. Learn about the folklore and science behind this carbonated lake, along with the disaster caused by the lake's eruption. Aaron follows with Lake Nicaragua, a freshwater lake that many sharks call home. Learn about the freshwater habits of bull sharks, and how they ended up in this freshwater ecosystem.

We got ants! Aaron starts with the cannibal ants found living in an abandoned nuclear bunker. Learn more about how this ant "colony" adapted to these unique conditions and what researchers learned about ant behavior. Rustin follows with an overview of social parasite ants. Learn about all different types of social parasites, from kidnapping raiders to ants so repulsive nobody wants to deal with th...

Bugs! Rustin starts off with the lacewing. Learn about this bug's usage by farmers, antipredator behaviors, and habit of wearing insect corpses. Aaron follows with the biology of tortoise beetle larvae and their....unique methods for dealing with predators.

Weird Diets and Niches! Aaron starts off with the Epomis beetles, a group of carabid beetles that have evolved to feed on frogs many times their size. learn about how these grubs manage to subdue their amphibian prey, and the unique environmental conditions that lead to its evolution. Rustin follows with the various species of cleaner wrasse fish. Learn about the good (cleaning mutualists), the ba...

Spring is here! Join Rustin and Aaron as they discuss some of the sights and sounds of springtime. Rustin begins with the mating calls of alligators (and a brief history of how they influenced a certain iconic dinosaur roar). Aaron follows with the biology of the elusive blue ghost firefly and the impacts of firefly-based tourism.

Succulents! Aaron Starts off with the biology of the creeping Devil cactus, Stenocereus Eurca. Learn about the the unique adaptions this cactus has to allow it to crawl, and the unique conditions that lead it its evolution, Rustin follows with Lithops plants. Learn about how these plants survive the harsh South African deserts through the usage of their special light-refracting, pebble-mimicking,...

Human-Animal Coworkers! Rustin Discusses the mind-boggling Honey Guide. Learn how this bird has co-evolved alongside humans to aid in wild honey gathering. Aaron follows with how 8 mussels help protect an entire city's water supply,

Back from the brink! Aaron and Rustin both cover two different conservation success stories. Aaron starts with the black-footed ferret, discussing the key reasons for their decline, their rediscovery, and the challenges they still face today. Rustin follows with the habitat restoration of the Kirtland warbler. Learn about how studying habitats influences animal conservation, how conserving one ani...

Streams! Rustin starts us with a discussion about beavers and their role in habitat creation and promoting biodiversity through the construction of their dams. Aaron follows with the Gillbach, a unique German stream kept at tropical temperatures year-round. Learn about all the tropical fish that have established themselves in this man-made ecosystem.

We return to the Deep! Aaron starts off with Movile Cave. This cave has been sealed off from the surface world for over 5 million years. Learn more about this incredible discovery and the rare wildlife that inhabits it. Rustin follows with a bit on a few of the deep sea's most fascinating fishes, the Whale fish and the Big Nose. Learn more about the discovery that changed everything we knew about...

We're crab people now! Rustin starts off with a bit of the biology of the boxer crabs, a unique species that caries two small anemone in their pinchers.. Learn about how these crabs use their anemone symbiotic friends to catch food, defend from predators, and engage in vigorous dance-offs. Aaron follows with the bizarre evolutionary history of the Samurai crab. These crabs were named after the Hei...

Amphibians! Aaron starts off with a very peculiar tree frog, the only frog species known to eat fruits and (maybe) pollinate flowers. Rustin follows with the mythical Japanese giant salamander. Learn the unique biology behind this species, their conservation status, and how they influenced the legend of the Kappa.

Urban Wildlife! Rustin starts with the Peregrine Falcon. Learn about the unique conservation approach that brought them into our cities and how they became the bane of pigeon owners everywhere (sorry, Mike Tyson). Aaron discusses the Asian water monitor, the second-largest lizard in the world. Learn how these lizards have surprisingly adapted well in human environments where most large carnivores...

Birds! In this episode, Aaron talks about the Indian vulture crisis. Learn the cause of this historic vulture decline, its effects on the health of the people and environment, and the efforts undergoing to bring them back. Rustin follows with the bizarre biology of the Hoatzin. Learn all about the unique adaptions of this evolutionary outcast.

Lab Rats! In this episode, Rustin and Aaron discuss two very important species in the field of scientific research. Rustin discusses the zebra finch. learn how this bird's unique breeding habits made it one of the most studied songbirds in the world. Aaron follows with the African-clawed frog. Learn how this species went from one of the most useful laboratory animals to one of the most invasive.

The autumnal season. Aaron starts with an infamous invasive species in the northeast United States, the spotted lanternfly. Learn about how this species affects our crops and possible methods to stop the spread. Rustin follows with the diverse field of caddisflies. Learn how these communities of insects utilize the fallen leaves for food, shelter, and even breathing.

Spooky season round 2! Rustin leads with another bat-themed topic. This time on how bats utilize echolocation and how this process has coevolved alongside their moth prey. Aaron follows with a monster of old, the parasitic guinea worm. Learn how this worm has influenced history and the current effort to bring about its eradication.