Wild Behavior

Megan Lambert & Rachel Dale
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Join animal behavior experts Rachel Dale and Megan Lambert as they explore the incredible ways animals think, feel, and interact with their world. In each episode, they sit down with top researchers for a deep dive into the most intriguing aspects of animal life, blending cutting-edge science with captivating stories and surprising discoveries.  

Episodes

  1. 06/18/2025

    The man who stares at goats - GOATS with Christian Nawroth

    Here's your intro to goat behaviour. What do goats understand about human behaviour? Goats vs sheep. The weirdness of goat eyes. How to make goats happy. How to avoid horns to the face and other tips for interacting with goats.  Links to Christian's work: https://christiannawroth.wordpress.com/  https://bsky.app/profile/goatswhostare.bsky.social

    46 min

  2. 06/04/2025

    Tales from the jungle - COCKATOOS with Mark O'Hara & Berenika Mioduszewska

    Studying animals in the wild comes with challenges. You have to find the animals and build a research "villa" before you even start the science.  Mark O'Hara & Berenika Mioduszewska took on this challenge to study wild Goffin's cockatoos on a small Indonesian island. Their exciting findings help us understand why some birds evolved be so clever.  More on Mark and Berenika's research: https://goffinlabtanimbar.org/  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/berenika.mioduszewska/

    45 min

  3. 05/22/2025

    How to train your alligator - ALLIGATORS with Stephan Reber

    Professional alligator wrangler and IG Nobel prize winning scientist Stephan Reber joins us to tell us all about alligators. What’s the difference between alligators and crocodiles? How (and why?) is helium used in alligator research? What can alligators tell us about dinosaurs?  Follow Stephan on Bluesky: @stephanreber.bsky.social‬ More on Stephan's work: https://portal.research.lu.se/en/persons/stephan-reber  Link to Gharial father transporting babies:  https://www.livescience.com/gharial-crocodile-papa-photo.html  More on the IG Nobel award: https://www.lunduniversity.lu.se/article/lu-researcher-receives-ig-nobel-prize-alligator-helium-study

    51 min

  4. 05/07/2025

    Paws and claws - WOLVES & DOGS with Sarah Marshall-Pescini

    What's the difference between wolves and dogs? How did we create the noble pug? Let's enter the world of domestication with Dr Sarah Marshall-Pescini.  More about Sarah's work: https://sites.google.com/view/marshall-pescini/home  Video of wolf cooperation: https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1709027114#supplementary-materials  Sarah's latest research on carnivore urbanisation: https://academic.oup.com/cz/article/70/3/394/7666915?login=false

    42 min

  5. 04/23/2025

    Calls of the wild - BIOACOUSTICS with Maxime Garcia

    How do animals produce sound? How important is size? How to they adapt their sounds for their environment? How do they interpret the sounds they hear? Welcome to the world of bioacoustics! Dr Maxime Garcia introduces us to the study of animal communication, using species from howler monkeys to woodpeckers as examples.  In the words of Max - give it a look, give it a listen!  More about Maxime: https://www.mpi.nl/news/animals-who-try-sound-bigger-are-good-learning-sounds  https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Maxime-Garcia-5

    50 min

  6. 04/03/2025

    Gentle Giants - ELEPHANTS with Josh Plotnik

    We've got elephants! In this episode with Dr Josh Plotnik we cover the cultural history of elephants in Thailand and ethical tourism. How to study an animal with a totally different sensory world. How do you smell an experiment? And we talk about how we can use cognition research to protect wild elephants. You can find out more about Josh's work here: https://hunter.cuny.edu/artsci/psychology/faculty-and-staff/profile/joshua-plotnik/  http://thinkelephants.org/

    45 min

  7. 03/20/2025

    Shifting the spotlight - MEGAN & RACHEL

    It's time to put ourselves in the hot seat and introduce you to your Wild Behavior hosts.  Rachel and Megan interview each other about their scientific journeys. We find out about demanding elephants, curious kea parrots and our shared experiences of the slightly gross side of working with carnivores.

    31 min

  8. 02/26/2025

    Mind reading - GREAT APES with Chris Krupenye

    We covered some important questions with Dr Chris Krupenye, a leading figure in ape-hollywood as well as actual science. Can apes read minds? What skills are actually needed to succeed in social situations (asking for a friend)? How does one make a soap opera for chimpanzees?  Links: You can follow Chris on Bluesky  Find out more about his research at: Social & Cognitive Origins Group Johns Hopkins University

    1h 3m

  9. 02/12/2025

    Feathered toolmakers - NEW CALEDONIAN CROWS with Sarah Jelbert

    Did you know some crows can make tools? But do the crows really understand what they're doing or do they just get lucky? In this episode of the Wild Behavior podcast Dr Sarah Jelbert tells us all about the tool-making abilities of New Caledonian Crows! Let's swoop into the world of birds.  Links to Sarah's work: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/people/person/Sarah-Jelbert-c090ce16-d43a-4a29-af02-fd00d651d89e/  https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-27405-1  https://bsky.app/profile/sjelbert.bsky.social

    46 min

  10. 01/29/2025

    Below the surface - DOLPHINS with Stephanie King

    How do you study an animal that lives in a totally different world?  In this first episode of the Wild Behavior podcast Dr Stephanie King tells us all about the incredible life of a dolphin researcher! Dive on in with us (pun intended). Links to Stephanie's work: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/people/person/Stephanie-King-51f8882c-81d0-4f06-b62a-239460af967b/  https://bsky.app/profile/stephanielking.bsky.social

    47 min

  11. SEASON 1, EPISODE 1 TRAILER

    Wild Behavior Teaser

    Coming soon! Wild behavior - a journey into the world of animal behavior research.  We'll take you from amazing scientific discoveries to a behind the scenes peak into what it's like to be an animal behavior researcher.  Subscribe now so you don't miss out.

    1 min

Trailer

About

Join animal behavior experts Rachel Dale and Megan Lambert as they explore the incredible ways animals think, feel, and interact with their world. In each episode, they sit down with top researchers for a deep dive into the most intriguing aspects of animal life, blending cutting-edge science with captivating stories and surprising discoveries.  

Information

  • Creator
    Megan Lambert & Rachel Dale
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    11
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Wild Behavior
  • Show Website
    Wild Behavior