What The Duck?!
Episodes
Introducing: Nature's Most Wanted
15 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Dr Ann Jones is bringing true crime and natural history together with Nature's Most Wanted, a new series from What the Duck!? investigating when anim...
Invasive species: a science comedy debate
13 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Join What the Duck?! at a science comedy debate called Sci Fight.Sci Fight brings scientists and comedians together to examine serious topics in a si...
Why snakes remain deadly even after they're dead
06 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
At first, you might think it is a plot from a zombie movie: that undead animals are coming for you.But it turns out that Australia's animals aren't j...
How a rat's smelly towel might be key to rewilding
27 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Bush rats are not black rats — that's the first thing you need to know.Ann Jones is joined by ABC Top 5 scientist Dr Patrick Finnerty to understand...
How Marion Anstis became the tadpole whisperer
20 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Marion Anstis pursued her love of tadpoles and frogs on afternoons and weekends, writing papers for scientific journals despite not studying zoology ...
Diane Purcell on how algae grows on you
13 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
From the rolling hills of country Ireland to rolling waves beneath her boat docked in Hobart, Dr Diane Purcell has explored the most extreme places a...
The field guide to a birding life: Peter Menkhorst
06 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Peter Menkhorst is the mammalogist who wrote the birding bible, The Australian Bird Guide.As a boy, Peter would go birdwatching with his dad, setting...
Creepy crawlies across continents: why Tanya Latty loves bugs
30 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Every superhero has their origin story, and a superhero of science is no different…From watching slater bugs and catching non-venomous snakes in he...
Creepy crawlies across continents: why Tanya Latty loves bugs
30 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Every superhero has their origin story, and a superhero of science is no different…From watching slater bugs and catching non-venomous snakes in he...
Ranger Stacey's totally wild life on and off TV
24 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Nineties kids didn't dawdle on the way home from school in the afternoon. This was the age of appointment television, and that appointment was with T...
Modern dogs: What have we created?
16 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The influence of selective breeding by humans has created a doggo for every occasion, but it's not without problematic results.Some breeds have breat...
Dogs in Australia: What is a dingo?
09 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This is the story of the domesticated animal that feralised itself.Where did dingoes come from and when?Where does a wild dog stop and a dingo begin?...
Woofs and wags: What's your dog telling you?
02 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Are puppy dog eyes really a sign of love, or does Fido just want a lil snack?Can dogs really "speak" by pressing talking buttons, or do they just mak...
Good dog: Survival of the friendliest
26 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
'Man's best friend' sure sounds better than 'obligatory symbiont', but what are the true dynamics at play?There's no denying the bond people feel and...
Designer dogs: What is a breed anyway?
19 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There's designer clothes, but they have nothing on designer dogs!They come in a huge range of shapes and colours and sizes, from the tiny Chihuahua t...
Wolf to woof: Did we make dogs?
12 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The relationship between humans and big scary wolves has come a long way to give us tiny fluffy lap dogs with very discerning tastes in expensive foo...
Is the animal kingdom ruled by tiny worms?
05 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Nematodes are found in every environment on Earth and can survive in some seriously extreme conditions.They will come back to life after being frozen...
Warehouse, cemetery, playground: Australia's biodiversity vault
28 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
CSIRO's National Research Collection in Canberra is where millions of dead things bring life to Australian science.The specimens, collected over many...
Girls just wanna have frogs
21 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After receiving a heartbreaking email, Ann goes on a mission to prove that 'girls DO like spiders, frogs and all things nature'.'Featuring:Lyra and J...
The bird-eating centipede
14 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's like a classic horror film.There are huge fangs, a segmented body, a remote location, the ocean bashing against cliffs, you're all alone and the...
No, centipedes don't have 100 legs
07 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Turns out centipedes versus millipedes isn't as simple as a numbers game.But here at What the Duck?! we never skip leg day.Featuring:Dr Juanita Rodri...
Are animals musical?
31 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Can animals create, or even enjoy music?Ann rips through the animal kingdom to check out the musical talent of some likely and unlikely performers.Fe...
The trap is set: Webs, hypnosis, and mucus tubes
24 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We'll all go to trouble to get a good meal, but some animals take it to the extreme.Some build architectural masterpieces to entrap their prey, or us...
Mushrooms: Is the future fungi?
16 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Fungi are already hard at work helping trees survive drought, recycling fallen logs, rotting away carcases, and helping human digestive systems, but ...
Mushrooms: What are they, really?
09 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Mushrooms were once lumped in with plants, and they stayed there well after science knew better.But if a fungus is not a plant… is it a closer rela...
Mushrooms: Why do they kill?
02 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As daily updates about the 'mushroom murders' monopolised newsfeeds around the country, the What the Duck?! team started questioning the motives. N...
What the Duck?! serves mushrooms
20 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Have you found yourself wondering why a simple brown mushroom would develop a toxin so strong that just a few grams could kill a human?What the Duck?...
Murder birds: The cuckoo's killer instinct
19 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cuckoo babies hatch in the nests of other bird species then quickly, often brutally, make sure they're the only baby to get fed…So how does a cucko...
Slug slime and frog glue: Get stuck into nature's stickiness
12 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There are so many sticky things in nature, but what's the nature of their stickiness?Could slug mucus or frog ooze be used in medical treatments?Ann ...
What's brown and sticky?
05 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you ever wanted to be able to stick to walls like Spider-Man, then listen to this!How do geckos and ants walk easily up walls and across the ceili...
Mars on Earth: Salt lake life
29 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This place is so extreme that NASA sends scientists to test equipment for Mars missions. And yet, Australia's salty lakes are full of life.Featuring:...
Is anything true blue?
22 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ann finds out that birds are not really blue. Not even bluebirds. If they're not blue, then what the duck are they?Featuring:Richard McClure, Stems F...
Australia's most underrated animal: Winner!
15 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Listen back to the What the Duck?! special broadcast with Dr Ann Jones and Cassie McCullagh.After 65,000 votes, Australia has spoken — the rakali h...
Underrated animals: Dugong
09 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
They live off seagrass, and sound like a teeny bird, but can weigh in at more than 400 kilograms and will cut you with their tusks.Dugongs (Dugong du...
Underrated animals: Palm Cockatoo
08 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's a bold claim, but the palm cockatoo might be the most punk-rock bird of all.The black and scarlet parrot lives in the rainforests and woodlands ...
Underrated animals: Great desert skink
07 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This little orange lizard lives with his mum and poos outside. What's not to love?The great desert skink (Liopholis kintorei) can be found in the des...
Underrated animals: Marsupial mole
06 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What has no eyes, no ears, and is barely ever seen? It's no riddle — it's the marsupial mole!These tiny, golden creatures like to burrow through th...
Underrated animals: Turtle frog
05 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This tiny frog is pasty white, with big arms, a teeny head, and is — somehow — still absolutely adorable.The turtle frog (Myobatrachus gouldii) c...
Underrated animals: Short-finned eel
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
They can travel over land, climb walls and take down large prey. And that's all before the short-finned eel (Anguilla australis) makes it out into th...
Underrated animals: Rakali
03 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sure, it's a rat, but it's Australia's own cheeky little water rat!The rakali (Hydromys chrysogaster) is Australia's largest rodent, and can be found...
Underrated animals: Velvet worm
02 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
They shoot glue, puree their enemies, and are about the size of a leaf.With 140 species of southern velvet worms (Peripatopsidae), and most of those ...
Underrated animals: Ghost bat
01 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The ghost bat (Macroderma gigas) is Australia's only carnivorous bat, so it's probably not a good idea to make fun of their giant ears and unique nos...
Underrated animals: Giant cuttlefish
31 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
They can grow up to a metre and the world's largest cuttlefish species can also disappear in a puff of ink and mucus.The giant cuttlefish (Ascarosepi...
What's in your freezer?
25 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Move the peas over to find that Australian freezers have seals, kangaroo penises and the DNA of 'the Chanel of goats.'Featuring:Dr Natalie Warburton...
Self-medicating species: Animals that say yes to drugs
18 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It turns out self-medicating and herbal remedies are not exclusive to humans.From cats eating grass, to elephants making medicinal tea in their throa...
Old and smelly: Farts from the past
11 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Fossils tell us a lot about the past, but are there fossilised farts? (Spoiler, YES!)Look back at great farts of history, and the story of methane.Do...
Does it Fart?
04 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Farts are not just for laughs. There are farts for survival, for communication, and even to attack!But it turns out it's tricky to get scientists to ...
Hybrids, dog breeds and DNA: What makes a species?
26 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's a seemingly simple question from What the Duck?! listener Skylar: how do scientists determine a new species?Turns out, it's complicated.And it's...
Modern dogs: What have we created?
20 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The influence of selective breeding by humans has created a doggo for every occasion, but it's not without problematic results.Some breeds have breat...
Dogs in Australia: What is a dingo?
13 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is the story of the domesticated animal that feralised itself.Where did dingoes come from and when?Where does a wild dog stop and a dingo begin?...
Woofs and wags: What's your dog telling you?
06 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Are puppy dog eyes really a sign of love, or does Fido just want a lil snack?Can dogs really "speak" by pressing talking buttons, or do they just mak...
Good dog: Survival of the friendliest
30 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
'Man's best friend' sure sounds better than 'obligatory symbiont', but what are the true dynamics at play?There's no denying the bond people feel and...
Designer dogs: What is a breed anyway?
23 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There's designer clothes, but they have nothing on designer dogs!They come in a huge range of shapes and colours and sizes, from the tiny Chihuahua t...
Wolf to woof: Did we make dogs?
16 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The relationship between humans and big scary wolves has come a long way to give us tiny fluffy lap dogs with very discerning tastes in expensive foo...
Introducing What the Dogs?!
15 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A new series from What the Duck?! is coming soon.Dr Ann Jones is exploring the connection between humans and dogs and asking how our destinies became...
Can snakes climb ladders?
09 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How does a snake climb a pole? It's not like they have a ladder... or arms.It turns out that snakes have some pretty crazy skills when it comes to cl...
Snakes on the brain
02 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Would you meet a stranger in a park with a pile of snakes? Comedian Craig Quartermaine took the risk in an attempt to overcome his fears.Featuring:C...
Hollywood bird sounds
25 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Have you heard of the Kookaburra that conquered Hollywood?Yes- that was a kookaburra at the start of Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark.Bu...
Spiders: the ultimate assassins
18 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Spiders have gravity-defying ninja skills, they can hear without ears and they work together to gang up on huge prey.Spiders are murder machines!Feat...
Pandas, penises and performance anxiety
11 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A tiny penis, a 12-hour annual fertilisation window, picky females and strawberry bubble bath – these are just a few of the issues that pop up when...
Coming out of your shell
04 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There's a whole world of mystery, and quite a bit of maths, inside the humble sea shell.Forget ancestry searches online, shells can tell you the hi...
Did Jaws get anything right about sharks?
28 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jaws (1975) was a massive hit that also created a whole lot of fear, but does anything in the film really stand up to shark science? Do sharks stalk...
Girl, so confusing!
21 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Female lab mice have been bred to be passive and breed with ease. But, in the wild they're feisty and even pugnacious.How much of our biological und...
How we really feel about eels
14 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Eels are mysterious and have a fascinating history. People in pre-medieval England used them to pay rent. Early 17th-century maps featured 'eel ship...
Why do animals have penises?
07 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to sexual organs, the penis is really ‘out there.’ Name another organ that can change its form AND function in a matter of second...
Hollywood lied to us: Babe
28 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Aussie classic Babe turns 30 this year, and its story of the little pig that achieves his dream of being a sheep dog is still as uplifting as the day...
Hollywood lied to us: The Birds
21 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you have a fear of getting swooped by magpies, mobbed by seagulls or blinded by crows, perhaps Alfred Hitchcock is to blame.His 1963 horror classi...
Hollywood lied to us: Antz
14 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Remember that 1998 film Antz? The one about an ant named Z?The one where the ants had nightmare-inducing human teeth? The one we probably have to bla...
Hollywood lied to us: Cocaine Bear
07 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 1985, a real American black bear consumed a bunch of cocaine that'd been dropped from a plane into the forest, and died.Nearly 40 years later Holl...
Hollywood lied to us: Jurassic Park
31 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Quick! Think of a ‘dinosaur movie’. Chances are Jurassic Park (1993) was first to mind. Steven Spielberg’s genetic nightmare/theme park go...
Summer: Sex is Weird: Ep 1- The world’s first d*ck pic
24 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When you really think about it, sex to make babies is WEIRD! You take an outie that has to get stuck inside an innie that links into a production lin...
Summer: Minimalist animals
17 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Could a legless lizard be 'minimalist of the year' for famous podcaster T. K. Coleman?Ann Jones leads an unlikely gang of animal experts on a tidy da...
Summer: Mother Nature does it better (ASMR edition)
10 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) is a tingly sensation that can bring relaxation, and it's spawned a growing industry of videos online of ...
Summer: Why do Quolls have spots?
03 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine you've just been cancelled for a controversial opinion about Taylor Swift's musical output, and you have to go to ground.You can act like the...
Summer: Butts- what are they good for?
27 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Right now, you’re probably sitting on one of the most unique things about humans. One thing that separates us from the apes, from the birds, from E...
Summer: How many animals REALLY live in your house?
20 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How many species live around your house?In the COVID lockdown of 2020, three housemates decided to count.They thought there’d only be a handful, bu...
Hollywood lied to us: Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
13 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer is a Christmas classic... but how much do we really know about reindeer? In the last instalment of "Hollywood lied to...
Hollywood lied to us: The Lion King
06 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Lion King (1994), aka Hamlet with Cats, is an iconic family classic. But would The Lion King's portrayal of a pride make biologists proud?Ann Jon...
Hollywood lied to us: Groundhog Day
29 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The movie is fictional but Groundhog Day (asking a groundhog for a long-term weather report) IS A REAL THING!But wait, what even ARE groundhogs? AN...
Hollywood lied to us: The Little Mermaid
22 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Yes, the Little Mermaid is an animated movie, but if it were real, where would this mermaid paradise be? Is it plausible that Ursula the Octo-woman ...
Hollywood lied to us: Jaws
15 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jaws (1975) was a massive hit that also created a whole lot of fear, but does anything in the film really stand up to shark science? Do sharks stalk ...
Everything you wanted to know about Pigeons!
08 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Did you know that pigeons make milk? The pigeon gets a bad rap, but it is actually an incredible bird with a rich history.It is related to the dodo ...
Glowing Animals
01 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Are you high, or is that a sheep glowing?Yep- sheep glow, but that's not all... when it comes to glowing the list of animals includes the platypus, d...
The ostrich-riding bushranger- John Francis Peggotty
25 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
There's a statue of an ostrich wearing a saddle in Meningie, South Australia.The large bird statue is dedicated to the legend of "John Francis Peggot...
Everything you need to know about flies
18 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What makes a true fly and do we really need them? As per usual the What the Duck?! team is elbow-deep in crap looking for a way out.And the way out,...
Killer whales vs boats
11 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A group of Killer whales have been hassling boats around Spain over the last few years. They've been nibbling the rudders and even sinking yachts, ...
Bumping, grinding and groaning - why do animals do it? Your questions answered.
04 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Did you know that some squirrels, otters and goats are capable of autofellatio? And ferrets, macaques and dolphins can use rocks, plants and other o...
Sex is Weird: Ep 7- Do we need sex?
26 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Sex comes at a cost, there’s energy, time, risks of predators, and diseases… so do we even need it?Asexual organisms don’t seem to miss the dat...
Sex is Weird: Ep 6- Virgin birth
19 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It turns out not everyone was listening when it was written ‘it takes two to tango’ and some species can go it alone in their quest to reproduce....
Sex is Weird: Ep 5- Why does it feel good, anyway?
12 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What is the role of pleasure in successful reproduction?Evolution says it's mightily important: every female vertebrate has a clitoris.Snakes have tw...
Sex is Weird: Ep 4- How to be hot according to nature
05 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Do animals fall in love at first sight?Every species has different traits that are 'attractive' — they're showing off their DIY skills making a bow...
Sex is Weird: Ep 3- Sexy females fight back
29 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The energy required to grow, birth and raise young is intense, so it's only fair that the female body has some tricks to make sure reproducing is wor...
Sex is Weird: Ep 2- Why do penises exist?
22 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to sexual organs, the penis is really ‘out there.’ Name another organ that can change its form AND function in a matter of second...
Sex is Weird: Ep 1- The world’s first d*ck pic
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When you really think about it, sex to make babies is WEIRD! You take an outie that has to get stuck inside an innie that links into a production lin...
INTRODUCING: Sex is Weird (a What the Duck?! series)
13 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How the duck did sex evolve as a major form of reproduction?Sex is Weird is a brand new series of What the Duck?! with Dr Ann Jones. From the evolut...
Feeling Crabby
09 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Have the crabs been lying to us?They usually have ten legs and eyes on stalks, but there are all sorts of things hiding under the shell, including em...
Spiders - they're going to kill!
02 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Spiders have gravity-defying ninja skills, they can hear without ears and they work together to gang up on huge prey.Spiders are murder machines!Feat...
Mosquitos- blood suckers
26 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You can run but you can't hide!Ever wondered how a mosquito manages to hit a blood vessel without fail?And that one mozzie that you hear buzzing and ...
Snakes and Ladders
19 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How does a snake climb a pole? It's not like they have a ladder... or arms.It turns out that snakes have some pretty crazy skills when it comes to cl...
The Swearing Duck
12 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ripper the musk duck had many bad habits – chief among them was attacking the keepers and then swearing under his breath.But was Ripper really angr...