Cool Facts About Animals

We're back with a new episode on the Portuguese Man of War. Wow, this is one cool animal/colony of organisms, with super long tentacles, a deadly sting, and an interesting backstory.  Thanks to our Patreon sponsors! If you'd like to be a Patreon sponsor, head here.  And if you think you know the answer to the creature quiz or the riddle, send us an email at coolfactsaboutanimals@gmail.com. 

Here in Portland, Oregon, we're lucky to live so close to a world-class science museum, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, which we all affectionately call OMSI. A few weeks ago, we got the chance to take a tour of their latest exhibit, Staying Alive: Defenses of the Animal Kingdom, with Sarah, the exhibit's curator. We learned about all sorts of animal defenses, including speed, size, camoflauge, and lots of others. We hope you enjoy this virtual tour - and if you're in Portland, definitely check out this exhibit! It's up through April 2024.     

Way back in our first episode - over 5 years ago now! - Grady chose cheetah for our first episode. We've learned a lot more about cheetahs since then, and introduced two new podcasters - Jaguar and Corduroy! So, we decided to bring you this reboot of our original episode. We hope you enjoy it. Here's the video we mentioned about cheetahs running in slow motion: https://rangerrick.org/rr_videos/slow-motion-cheetah/ If you think you know the answer to our creature quiz or riddle, send us an email at coolfactsaboutanimals@gmail.com and we will send you a bookmark.  Thank you to our Patreon sponsors! If you would like to support us financially, you can do so here: https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals  

These little arachnids pack a mean sting. But how dangerous are they? What does a scorpion sting feel like? And how many times can Jaguar evolve in one episode? Learn all about scorpions in our latest episode.  Thank you to our Patreon sponsors! If you'd like to support us financially, please head to our Patreon page here. https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals We love to hear from you! Send us an email at coolfactsaboutanimals@gmail.com

Jaguar is starting his own podcast! Listen to the promo on this episode, and then listen to universe premiere of World of Jaguar wherever you find your podcasts.  Apple link here.  MAKE ME RICHER AND FAMOUSER MINIONS!  p.s. Scorpion episode coming soon!

You’re in for an adorable treat on this sea otter episode of Cool Facts About Animals! Learn about their special fur, tool use, and an ancient lion-sized otter. We’d love to hear from you! Send us your creature quiz answers, let us know you did the kid power challenge, or take a guess on our next episode. Send us an email at coolfactsaboutanimals@gmail.com Thank you to our Patreon sponsors Cardiff, Grace, and Evie! If you’d like to be a Patreon sponsor, head here. https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals And if you want to buy your own Cool Facts About Animals gear, check out our store.

On this special episode of Cool Facts About Animals, we got to interview one of the scientists who changed the world! Dr. Bill Ritchie was one of the scientists behind the cloning of Dolly the Sheep. We talk about why this was so important, and how it has helped to change medicine today. We also have lots of cool facts about sheep, courtesy of Clara. We hope you enjoy the episode! 

We're almost done with our episode on sheeps, featuring a very special interview with a scientist who was involved with perhaps the most famous sheep of all.  In the meantime, we hope you enjoy this rebroadcast of a very silly episode with our friend Mr. Eric of the excellent podcast What If World. 

We had so much fun with our last four truths and a lie (ocean animals) that we decided to do it again! This episode features five unbelievable bugs. Four are real, one is fake. Can you spot the fake? Let us know what you guessed by emailing us at coolfactsaboutanimals@gmail.com! Thanks to our Patreon sponsors Loretta and Bennett! If you’d like to be a Patreon sponsor and help financially support our podcast, head over to https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals Thanks for your support!

Every once in a while, Jaguar prevails and we take a break from our regularly scheduled programming for an All About Cooking episode. This is one of those times. In this episode, Jaguar prepares Dinosaur with the essence of Turkish bay leaf. He also teaches us some pretty incredible science. Kids, DO NOT try this at home!! We’ll be back soon with a four truths and a lie about bugs! Thanks for listening! *The full episode didn't upload the first time. If you're having trouble, please redownload the episode.  Want to support Jaguar’s All About Cooking? Order your very own All About Cooking apron here: https://www.zazzle.com/all_about_cooking_apron-154817884147573023

We've had some sickness in our house that has interfered with our podcast schedule. (Don't worry, we're all ok!) So this month we're reaching into our archives to replay an episode you may have missed the first time. This is one of our favorite episodes, and one of our most popular. It's an interview with Dr. Justin Schmidt who has been stung by over 100 different insects and created a scale of how much each one hurts. He tells us about what it feels like to get stung by a bullet ant (OUCH!) versus a bee, why insects sting, why some insects die after they sting you, and lots more.  We will be back soon with bug edition of four truths and a lie and, by Jaguar's demand, an episode of All About Cooking.   

Axolotls are territorial, regenerative, and maybe hold the secret to eternal youth. Oh, and they're suuuuper cute. In this episode, we share 10 cool facts about axolotls, then we share our interview with Dr. S. Randal Voss. Dr. Voss is one of the leading experts on axolotls, and he shares all sorts of facts about what makes them unique, why they are critically endangered in the wild, and how kids can help protect them.  Find out more about Dr. Voss's lab here: http://www.vosslab.com If you want to financially support our podcast, you can do so here: https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals  Want some CFAA merch? Get it here: https://www.zazzle.com/store/coolanimalspod/products 

In this episode, one of the most fearsome predators of all time and a living tank go head-to-head. Yes, the T-Rex and the Ankylosaur battle! Before these two face off, we learn key facts to better predict who will take the crown. Which was faster? Which was smarter? Which was best equipped to survive? We gave a few different battle scenarios. What do you think would have happened? Send us an email at coolfactsaboutanimals@gmail.com with your answers, and we will send you a bookmark. We also want to hear from you if you solved our riddle or if you did the kid power challenge. Thank you to Murphy and Eli for being our Patreon sponsors! If you’d like to be a Patreon sponsor, you can check out our page here. https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals The holidays may be over, but you can still show your CFAA pride. Check out our gear store here. https://www.zazzle.com/store/coolanimalspod

If you are a regular listener of our show, you know that we LOVE cats – we even have three! In this episode, we learn all about domestic cats – how smart they are,  how much they sleep, how well they communicate, some strange jobs they’ve had, and of course, how cute they are! Thanks to our Patreon sponsors, Maelynn, Coralynn and Atesh! If you’d like to help financially support us – and get a shout out on our show – head here. Also, with the holidays coming up, now is a good time to show your CFAA pride! Get your merch here. Finally, if you want to answer our creature quiz, guess our riddle, or do the Kid Power, let us know and we will send you a bookmark! Email us at coolfactsaboutanimals@gmail.com.

In this bonus mini episode, Corduroy tries to teach Jaguar the ABCs... but it doesn't go quite according to plan. 

In this episode, we dive into the world of rats. Sure, they can crawl up sewer pipes into your toilet and may have been at least partly responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of Europeans. But - they're also really smart, feel regret, and can show emotion with their ears.  This is a special episode. In our first half, we share cool rat facts. And in the second half, we interview Professor Monica Green, who studies plague. We learned so much from her about plague, how it was spread, and even that it is still around today.  We couldn't fit our whole interview with Professor Green into this episode, so we're including a longer interview on our feed. You should see it right behind this one.  Thanks to our Patreon sponsor Henry for getting us excited about rats! If you'd like to be a Patreon sponsor, please click here: https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals

In this episode, we include many of the facts from our interview with Professor Green that we couldn't fit in our Rat episode. We do go into some detail about the plague and its continued existence, so please use discretion in whether you feel comfortable listening to this episode.  Don't miss our rat episode that accompanies this episode, which includes additional facts about rats and also includes lots of interesting information from Professor Green.

In this episode, we speak with National Geographic author about all sorts of cool animals facts. We talk about why pandas are black and white, why t-rexes have short arms, and some of her favorite animal myths to debunk. Julie is the author of almost 50 books, including a number of Weird But True books, and her new book - Why? Animals.  Thank you to Paul and Evelyn for being our Patreon sponsors. If you'd like to support us financially, you can do so here: https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals Did you know we have a gear store? Get your animal lover a Cool Facts About Animals shirt, sweatshirt, or All About Cooking apron here: https://www.zazzle.com/store/coolanimalspod/products 

Today we are rebroadcasting our mega plastic episode. We’re replaying this episode now because we just found out that one of the people we interviewed for this episode, Dr. Jenna Jambeck, was named as one of the 25 MacArthur Genius Grant recipients for 2022. This is a really big honor! We have a lot planned in the next few weeks. Stay tuned for an episode with Weird But True author Julie Beer about all sorts of animal trivia. And then – our episode about rats. As part of that episode, we’ll speak with historian Monica Green about the black death. But for now, we hope you learn a lot and gets lots of great ideas after hearing from Dr. Jambeck and our other guests about plastic pollution.  

In this special episode, Jaguar and Teddy play some games. You'll never guess who wins!  Thanks to our Patreon sponsors, Magdalena, Kellan, and George! If you'd like to be our Patreon sponsor, you can do so here: https://www.patreon.com/coolfactsaboutanimals