Nature

Just the Zoo of Us

Join us, Ellen and Christian Weatherford, while we review your favorite species of animals and rate them out of ten in the categories of effectiveness, ingenuity and aesthetics.
More information can be found at justthezooofus.com 😊
Got a species you want us to review? Submit your animal friend to us at ellen@justthezooofus.com and when we review your animal we’ll give you a shoutout! 😊
Cover art by Mrs. Brainbow (Taylor Gordon-Wood). Theme music by Louie Zong.

Latest Episodes:

Bonus Episode Preview: A Review of Vampires Oct 31, 2024

Show notes

A free sample of October's bonus episode: a review of vampires! Head over to https://maximumfun.org/join/ to sign up and get ALL of our bonus content!

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261: Ogre-Faced Spider & Honduran White Bat Oct 23, 2024

Show notes

Ellen gets a really good look at the ogre-faced spider & Christian gets cozy with Honduran white bats. In this festively themed episode, we discuss ephemeral eyes, hearing with legs, casting nets, rowing through the air, huddling under leaves, navigating with sound, and so much more.

Links:

For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
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260: Ross Seal w/ Griffin McElroy! Oct 16, 2024

Show notes

In this week’s episode, we are joined by comedy podcasting and tabletop roleplaying legend Griffin McElroy for a review of the squishy pugs of the Antarctic seas: Ross seals. We discuss which ninja turtle we are, the Victorian era magnetic crusades, haunting siren calls below the ice, bagpipes, thick raptors, and so much more.

Links:

Source of Ross seal vocalization audio: https://blogs.helmholtz.de/atkaxpress/en/2021/05/palaoa-all-the-things-you-can-hear-underwater/
Check out The Adventure Zone and more of the McElroy family's work at their website!
Listen to Maximum Fun's special Tabletop Hullabaloo, featuring Ellen, Griffin and other MaxFun hosts!
For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
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259: Strawberry Poison Dart Frog & Clownfish Oct 09, 2024

Show notes

Christian gets toxic with strawberry poison dart frogs & Ellen just keeps swimming with clownfish. We discuss the final evolution of oof, extreme motherhood, matching blue jeans, the conservation status of clowns, fact checking Finding Nemo, and so much more.

Links:

The Great Barrier Reef Foundation
For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
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258: Cats w/ Steven Ray Morris! Oct 03, 2024

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Join Ellen & special guest, podcasting powerhouse Steven Ray Morris, for a long-anticipated review of those furry little predators that have inspired devotion and admiration for thousands of years: the cat. We discuss the history of humans’ relationship to cats, ancient Egypt, fluid dynamics, how they manipulate the laws of physics, the future of cats in space, what makes each cat special to us, and so much more.

Links:

Find more of Steven's work on his website: https://www.stevenraymorris.com/
Check out Steven's podcast See Jurassic Right!
Follow Steven on Twitter and Instagram!
Learn more about how you can celebrate World Okapi Day!
For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
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257: Pygmy Hippopotamus & Harpy Eagle Sep 26, 2024

Show notes

Ellen fawns over the viral pygmy hippopotamus & Christian goes big with the harpy eagle. We discuss the evolution of hippos, blood sweat, poocoptering, Moo Deng, smooch breaks, sloth staredowns, and so much more.

Links:

For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
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Source for harpy eagle call: https://xeno-canto.org/316474

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256: Dr. Sebastian Echeverri's Top 3 Spiders Sep 19, 2024

Show notes

Spider scientist Dr. Sebastian Echeverri returns to share with us his top 3 favorite spiders. We discuss spiders who go from moving like shadows to soaring through the air, spider cowboys with sick lasso moves, wife guy spiders who move in on the first date, how spiders appear in video games and movies and how they could be so much cooler, and of course so much more.

Links:

Check out Sebastian's book, Spiders of the United States & Canada
Learn more about Sebastian and see more of his work at spiderdaynightlive.com
For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
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Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinjustthezoo

255: Siamang & Laughing Kookaburra Sep 11, 2024

Show notes

Christian hoots with siamangs & Ellen hollers with laughing kookaburras. We discuss defying gravity, how screaming fits into any good morning routine, birds' double-barreled voices, the true identity behind the SpongeBob dolphin sound, and more.

Links:

Audio source for siamang calls: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Symphalangus_syndactylus_20170623_Dou%C3%A9-la-Fontaine.ogg
Audio source for kookaburra calls: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dacelo_novaeguineae_ANWC_X00516.opus
For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
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Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinjustthezoo

254: A History of Bugs w/ Lucca's BioHub! Sep 06, 2024

Show notes

Join Ellen & special guest, science communicator Lucca of Lucca's BioHub, for a look back on the half-a-billion year history of bugs. We discuss ancient millipedes as long as a horse, whether we’d rather fight 2 million ant-sized humans or one human-sized ant, the arms races and tiny empires and intertwined symbiotic relationships that have shaped the very planet into the world we know today, and so much more.

Links:

See more of Lucca's BioHub at their website!
Follow Lucca on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube!
For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
Follow Just the Zoo of Us on Threads, Facebook, Instagram & Discord!
Follow Ellen on TikTok!

Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinjustthezoo

253: Dung Beetles & Giant Moray Eel Aug 28, 2024

Show notes

Ellen gets the ball rolling with dung beetles & Christian jaws away about the giant moray eel. We discuss tiny boots, field trips to the planetarium, The Mummy (1999), secret jaws, why moray eels make that face, teamwork on the reef, fact checking The Little Mermaid, and more.

Links:

For more information about us & our podcast, head over to our website!
Follow Just the Zoo of Us on Threads, Facebook, Instagram & Discord!
Follow Ellen on TikTok!

Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinjustthezoo

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