Ngatia joined a research project studying African wild dogs in Laikipia Kenya when they were some of the best news in conservation – an endangered species that reclaimed lost territory and found new ways to coexist with people. Then a canine pandemic hit that wiped out the entire population … except one animal: WDF128. Ngatia tells the story of how…

Ocelots in Texas are closely monitored, so Mamma Jane grew up around remote cameras since 2011, and wasn’t afraid of the lenses. When Fin and Fur Films called about doing a documentary, Dr. Lombardi was skeptical if they could get a shot of Mamma Jane and her kittens, but thought they might be able to get some footage with remote cameras. He was ri…

F202 lived right in the heart of Yellowstone National Park where Anton used groundbreaking technology to study not only where she moved, but also how she hunted. F202 was a fantastic hunter and mom, rearing a number of litters in the park. However, some of her offspring wandered out of the park where they can be legally hunted, showing the challeng…

Fishers are woodland creatures who traditionally avoid people and prefer dense forests. Lobstah was a (very large) fisher who bucked this trend by surviving in small suburban forests, hunted in coastal shrub habitat, and even ran along the rocky coast of Rhode Island. By tracking his movements, Ganoe was able to learn more about how fishers have ad…

In 2019 a small yellow bird in The Bahamas was given a radio transmitter and a mission – show us what Kirtland’s warblers do. Nicknamed 007, this bird not only migrated all the way to Michigan, but also displayed a new behavior that scientists had never tracked at this spatial scale before. This discovery shows how the species was able to recover i…

While Dr. Hinton progressed along his career as a wolf biologist – from intern to master’s student to PhD student – the Kilkenny female (11170F) matured from a young teenage wolf into an Alpha female. While Hinton spent time tracking and watching the Kilkenny female, a new idea started crystallizing in his mind about what factors made the differenc…

When poachers killed the mom of young cheetah 784 there was only a slim chance the cub would survive on her own. With no one to teach her how to hunt or navigate the dangers of the open plains, Anna feared the worst. But 784 persevered and started to figure out how to use her speed to her advantage. Anna and her team watched from nearby, like guard…

Deer 003 was the most unusual animal in a large study of deer in Missouri. While most animals disperse a few miles to set up their home range, this deer set out on a marathon trek, breaking records as he went. Moving at night to avoid archery hunters, 003 was on a mysterious mission, and showed scientists just how far a deer can move.…

Even before he launched a rocket-net over her head, Dr.Chamberlain knew Turkey 473 was a special bird because she sported a big beard (which is very unusual for hens). After outfitting her with a radio transmitter, Chamberlain tracked 473 for more than two years, monitoring her nesting behavior, and learning how turkeys avoid, or fail to avoid, the…

Dr. Blake first met Samuel as the hatchling tortoise left its nest on the Galapagos Islands. A tiny tracking tag helped Stephen and his team track the little guy as he legged it away from his nest site, navigating the harsh volcanic landscape in search of safety and some edible foliage. Eight years later Samuel has grown to over 15 pounds and survi…

Bird 5715 was the, you guessed it, 5715th bird captured as part of a long-term study of acorn woodpeckers since 1974 at Hastings Natural History Reservation in Carmel Valley California. She had the fortune of being born into the richest territory around, with tens of thousands of acorns stashed into woodpecker-created holes in trees (aka granaries)…

Spotted hyenas live in large clans ruled by a queen who typically passes her high rank onto her daughters. Waffles was born from a low ranking (peasant) family, but was able to assemble a gang that helped her claim the throne. This risky venture paid off for Waffles, who had numerous offspring (named after syrup brands), but ended tragically for so…

A preview to the episodes coming up in season 3.

Leroy was one of the first fishers to ever get a GPS tracking collar, providing immediate, new discoveries about how this “wilderness species” colonized suburbia. Dodging police and sneaking through culverts, Scott eventually found Leroy dead in a swamp - a murder mystery tied to the unusual mating behavior of fishers.…

Josephine was a sea turtle who found an easy meal by raiding a fisherman’s nets. Kate was happy to help the fisherman by moving the turtle and putting a tracking device on it. Undeterred, Josephine returned to her favorite fishing spot, providing interesting data and creating a new dependable and friendly link between fisherman and turtle biologist…

Lucy met Diane the basking shark when she gave the fish a small tracking tag off the coast of Scotland. While Diane typically loafed around eating plankton, this high-tech tag showed that Diane would occasionally sprint to the surface and jump into the air over and over again.

Etumbe was rescued from captivity and became part of the first group of Bonobos to be released back into the wild. Her seniority and calm demeanor helped her become one of the leaders of this new group and also led to an incredible interaction between man and their closest wild cousin.

There are a surprising number of mountain lions in the hills just above Silicon Valley. Chris Wilmers is studying how these big cats make a living in the midst of so much Bay Area development. 36M unwittingly joined the study when he got trapped and equipped with a tracking collar with technology fancier than any other study, as you would expect fr…

Bobby was a big bruiser of an ocelot. When Ricardo first trapped and collared him, Bobby was feisty and scarred after prowling his tropical island home like a king, sending smaller males fleeing with flurries of claws and teeth. Eventually, however, those teeth gave-way, and the next generation of ocelots had the last laugh.…

Jorge spent over two years living in a remote Amazonian jungle where he developed a special relationship with a monkey that looked like his mom.

Deer 255 is part of a herd that winters in the Red Desert of Wyoming. In the spring, some animals stay locally, some migrate up into the nearby foothills, and some, like 255, keep going on a serious long-distance migration. This incredible annual movement was only discovered a decade ago, and 255 now holds the record for the longest deer migration.…

Pacman was a jaguar in the Mayan rainforests of Southern Mexico. He was easily recognized by a bite mark on his flank shaped like his namesake video game character. International collaboration between scientists led to the surprise finding that Pacman would cross a major river to patrol parts of a territory in Honduras as well. This double life see…

Biologists often use themes to name their study animals, making it easier to keep track of which group an individual was from. John Snow was a male marmot in the Game of Thrones marmot colony, obviously. As biologists tracked this marmot they were amazed at how much the animal’s story paralleled the character from the TV show [Spoiler Alert!].…

This is a short introduction to season two of the Wild Animals Podcast

Dr. Martin Wikelski shares the story of Hansai, a young stork that lost his flock while migrating south for the winter. Instead of ending up in Africa, he was stranded in Germany as winter quickly approached. Listen in to hear just how Hansai survived and brought a baby to a farm.

Studying Flammulated Owls is tough work, flailing around with tall catch-poles, at night, on mountain slopes, while avoiding the occasional bear or mountain lion. The owls don’t make it any easier, and B5 was a bit of a nemesis for Scott as he conducted his research into the movement and ecology of these tiny owls.…

Marijo is a forest elephant living in Gabon where she walks a fine line between remote forests, local farmers, and ivory poachers. Amelia Meier learned the story of Marjio as she followed her GPS tracks and footprints, literally, through the forests of Gabon. By following close behind, Amelia could find fecal samples and document elephant diet and …

Lisa Kettemer met Joy the humpback whale when it enthusiastically swam up to the boat and allowed biologists to tag it. Joy’s story includes intrepid work in frigid oceans and a mysterious but real-life white whale. You can find out more about this project including tracks from Joy and other whales here.…

Vanilla Ice is a male coati who would rather hang with the ladies and their kids than do the normal solitary-male coati thing. Dr. Ben Hirsch uses video and DNA tests to document the coati soap opera and find out why. You can learn more about Ben’s research at this page.

P22 is a mountain lion that lives under the Hollywood sign in Griffith Park. He is one of the most urban large cats in the world with one of the smallest home ranges (8 mi2). As part of his research with Los Angeles carnivores, Dr. Seth Riley has been following P22 since 2012 and joins us to tell his remarkable story. The survival of P22 for over 1…

Bravo Luis was subordinate male in a monkey group who liked to hang out on the edges and never stood up to fight for the group. This all changed when a long rainstorm wiped out the other group males and only Bravo and a few females survived. Dr. Meg Crofoot has been following Bravo Luis for over 15 years and tells the story of this reluctant monkey…

Osito was a young male bat living in a dingy drainage ditch who struggled to maintain the interest of a local pack of young females. Dr. Teague O’Mara tells about Osito’s struggles and expands on his research in Panama into how bats know where to find food. You can learn more about Teague’s research at his website teagueomara.com or by following hi…

Giant pythons have escaped from captivity and started to invade southern Florida. Biologists are scrambling to learn about how these snakes survive, with the hopes of eventually eradicating this invasive species. Monica Lasky tells the story of Jaeger, a huge snake she radio-tagged and later tracked deep into the Everglades, dodging sawgrass and al…

Pluie was one of the first animals to wear a satellite tracking collar with global readout, meaning her movements could be tracked no matter how far she went - and did she every go far! Dr. Mark Hebblewhite tells how the incredible movements of this one wolf inspired a new effort to protect large landscapes, from Yukon to Yellowstone (Y2Y), needed …

Introduction to the podcast and to season one.