Podcast · Tech & Science

Wildly Curious

by Katy Reiss & Laura Fawks Lapole · English · Tech & Science

Wildly Curious is a comedy podcast where science , nature , and curiosity collide. Hosted by Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole, two wildlife experts with a combined 25+ years of conservation education experience, the show dives into wild animal behaviors , unexpected scientific discoveries

New episodes: Every two weeks
Typical length: 16 min
Latest: 28 Jul 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

28 Jul 2026 · 51 min

Nature's Worst Nightmares: The Creepiest Animals on Earth

Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. Some animals are majestic. Others... ...should probably stay very, very far away. In this hilariously horrifying episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole debate the animals they could absolutely live without. From parasites that replace organs to frogs that break their own bones, this episode dives into some of evolution's strangest—and most disturbing—creations. Along the wa...

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Earlier episodes 29 most recent

S14 · E6 · 14 Jul 2026 · 10 min
The Real-Life Dragon You've Never Heard Of
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. What if dragons were real... and they could run across water? In this minisode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole explore one of the most incredible reptiles you've probably never heard of: the sailfin dragon, also known as the sailfin lizard (Hydrosaurus). Native to the rainforests of Southeast Asia and New Guinea, this dragon-like reptile combines the best features of an iguana, a ...
S14 · E5 · 7 Jul 2026 · 49 min
How Scientists Track Wild Animals (Without Ever Seeing Them)
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. How do scientists study animals that spend their lives hiding, migrating thousands of miles, or living deep underwater? In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole explore the incredible technology that's transforming wildlife research. From radar that detects millions of migrating birds to satellites tracking whales from space, conservation has become a real-life spy mission....
S14 · E4 · 9 Jun 2026 · 9 min
The Real-Life Dragon You've Probably Never Heard Of
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. What if dragons were real? In this minisode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole explore one of the strangest reptiles on Earth: the Armadillo Girdled Lizard (Ouroborus cataphractus), a tiny armored lizard from South Africa that looks like it crawled straight out of a fantasy novel. Covered in spiky scales and equipped with one of the most unusual defense strategies in the animal...
S14 · E3 · 21 May 2026 · 58 min
Mutations Explained: The Tiny DNA Changes That Can Change Everything
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. What happens when your DNA makes a typo? In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into the strange, fascinating world of genetic mutations—the tiny changes in DNA that can shape evolution, alter proteins, create disease, or sometimes do absolutely nothing at all. From harmless genetic quirks to serious inherited disorders, this episode breaks down some of the mos...
S14 · E2 · 12 May 2026 · 12 min
The Poisonous Bird You've Probably Never Heard Of
Send us Fan Mail Most birds are harmless. This one is poisonous. In this minisode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into one of the strangest birds on Earth: the pitohui, a brightly colored songbird from New Guinea that carries powerful neurotoxins in its skin and feathers. The toxin is chemically similar to the same compounds found in some poison dart frogs, making the pitohui one of the very few known poisonous birds in the world. But how does a bird become p...
S14 · E1 · 5 May 2026 · 53 min
Real Life Zombies: How Parasites and Fungi Control Animal Minds
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. What if “zombies” weren’t just fiction? In this Season 14 kickoff episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into the real science behind “nature zombies”—organisms that can hijack behavior, manipulate brains, and turn animals into living tools for their own survival. From parasitic fungi to mind-altering parasites, this episode explores how evolution has produced some of the mo...
21 Apr 2026 · 11 min
Why Are They Called Crows and Ravens?
Send us Fan Mail Why are crows called crows… and ravens called ravens? In this mini episode of the Bird Name Game series from Wildly Curious, Laura explores the surprisingly simple—and fascinating—origins behind the names of two of the most intelligent and culturally iconic birds in the world: crows and ravens. These birds are often associated with mystery, mythology, and even death—but their names didn’t come from legend. They came from something much simpler: the sounds they make. -Why the ...
14 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Why Is It Called a Chickadee? The Surprising Story Behind Bird Names
Send us Fan Mail Why do birds have such unusual names? In this mini episode of the Bird Name Game series from Wildly Curious, Laura dives into the fascinating origins behind two of the most familiar backyard birds in North America: chickadees and titmice. These small, curious songbirds aren’t just cute—they’re also incredibly intelligent and highly vocal, with communication systems that scientists are still studying today. Chickadees get their name directly from their famous “chick-a-dee-dee-...
31 Mar 2026 · 8 min
Cassowary vs Emu: The Surprising Origins of Their Bird Names
Send us Fan Mail Why are birds named what they’re named? In this mini episode of the Bird Name Game series from Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss explores the fascinating naming history behind two giant flightless birds that look like they walked straight out of the dinosaur era: cassowaries and emus. Both birds are massive, powerful, and deeply tied to the evolutionary story of modern birds—but their names come from very different linguistic journeys. Cassowaries, found in the tropical forests of N...
17 Mar 2026 · 10 min
Why Is It Called an Albatross? The Surprising History of Bird Names
Send us Fan Mail Why do birds have the names they do? In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss kicks off a new mini-series called “Bird Name Game”, exploring the fascinating origins behind bird names. Each episode looks at two birds, their natural history, and the surprising linguistic stories behind what we call them. This episode dives into two iconic seabirds: the albatross and the gull. The albatross, one of the largest flying birds on Earth, can glide across the ocean for thousands ...
S13 · E10 · 10 Feb 2026 · 15 min
Can Cats Talk? The Science Behind Meows, Purrs, and Human Manipulation
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and prepare to realize your cat has been training you this whole time. In this Niche Scientists minisode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into the fascinating research of Dr. Susanne Schötz, a phonetics professor at Lund University—and the scientist behind some of the most groundbreaking work on cat–human communication. Her research explores how cats use meows, purrs, trills, and intonation to communicate with humans, how those sounds change...
S13 · E9 · 3 Feb 2026 · 50 min
Echinoderms Explained: Sea Stars, Sea Urchins, and the Ocean’s Weirdest Hydraulics
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. In this deep-dive episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole crack open the bizarre, beautiful world of echinoderms—the “spiny-skinned” sea creatures that are hard on the outside, squishy on the inside, and powered by a literal hydraulic system. We’re talking sea stars, sea urchins, sand dollars, brittle stars, feather stars, and sea cucumbers—a group that looks like it shouldn’t mak...
S13 · E8 · 13 Jan 2026 · 13 min
Snail Racing Science: Why Studying Slime Is a Big Deal
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and prepare to root for the slowest athletes on Earth. In this Niche Scientists minisode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into the bizarre but brilliant world of snail racing—and the scientists who study it to unlock secrets of movement, slime, and survival. Every summer in England, snails compete in the World Snail Racing Championships. It sounds ridiculous… until you realize researchers are using these races to study animal locomotion, non...
S13 · E7 · 6 Jan 2026 · 43 min
Natural Navigation: How Humans Find Direction Without GPS
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and rediscover a skill humans were never meant to lose. In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole explore natural navigation—the ancient human ability to find direction by reading the land, sea, sky, plants, and animals instead of relying on GPS. Long before maps and satellites, humans navigated forests and oceans using patterns, movement, and observation. And the wild part? That ability never disappeared—we just stopped practicing it. 🌿 H...
S13 · E6 · 30 Dec 2025 · 17 min
The Scientists Who Studied Pee, Poop, and Won Prizes
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and prepare to learn something you will never un-know. In this Niche Scientists minisode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole spotlight two researchers whose work sounds ridiculous… until you realize it’s brilliant. Meet Dr. David Hu and Dr. Patricia Yang, engineers who study fluid dynamics by asking the questions no one else would: Why do almost all mammals pee in the same amount of time?Why is wombat poop shaped like a cube?And how can studying ani...
S13 · E5 · 23 Dec 2025 · 47 min
DNA Explained: How Genetics Shape Who You Are (and Why It Matters)
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. DNA isn’t magic—but it is one of the most powerful instruction systems in the universe. In this deep-dive episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole break down genetics, DNA, and inheritance in a way that actually makes sense—no lab coat required. From the tiny molecular code inside your cells to the ethical questions surrounding modern gene editing, this episode connects the science...
S13 · E4 · 16 Dec 2025 · 16 min
Whale Earwax Holds a Hidden History of the Ocean
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and prepare to learn something you absolutely did not know existed. In this Niche Scientists minisode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss dives into one of the strangest—and most important—jobs in science: whale earwax archivist. Yes. That’s a real thing. Certain whales build massive earwax plugs over their lifetime, adding a new layer every six months. And scientists have learned how to read those layers like tree rings—revealing a whale’s age, stress levels, exposure to...
S13 · E3 · 2 Dec 2025 · 11 min
The Science of Swearing: Can Cursing Actually Help You?
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and let your curiosity swear a little. We won’t tell. 😉 In this Wildly Curious minisode, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole kick off their new Niche Scientists series with a deep dive into Dr. Richard Stephens—a psychologist who studies something we all do (sometimes loudly): swearing. From pain tolerance to powerlifting, Dr. Stephens’ research shows that strategic cursing can actually make you stronger, tougher, and maybe even a little bit smarter about when to drop...
S13 · E2 · 25 Nov 2025 · 36 min
The Science (and Chaos) Behind Turkeys, Pumpkins, and Thanksgiving
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and stuff your brain before you stuff your turkey. 🦃🥧 In this Wildly Curious Thanksgiving special, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole serve up the surprisingly scientific and hilariously human history of America’s favorite feast. From how pumpkins nearly went extinct after the Ice Age to why turkeys were almost wiped out (and then made a comeback), this episode is a buffet of weird facts, origin stories, and seasonal science. 🍂 How mastodons helped evolve pumpkins &n...
S13 · E1 · 11 Nov 2025 · 1 hr 11 min
Could You Fight That? Round 2 – Science, Strategy & Total Chaos
Send us Fan Mail Season 13 is here… and it’s fight night. (Hypothetically, of course.) 🥊 Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole are back with Could You Fight That? Part 2, the follow-up to one of Wildly Curious’ most beloved (and ridiculous) episodes. This time, the matchups get even wilder—from kangaroos and cassowaries to anteaters and octopuses—as the duo debates whether they could theoretically survive these encounters. It’s all fun, all hypothetical, and all rooted in animal science and pure...
28 Oct 2025 · 11 min
The Taos Hum: The Sound Science Can’t Explain
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and listen closely… if you can. 👂 In this Nature Mysteries Minisode, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole tune into one of the strangest modern mysteries: the Taos Hum. Since the 1990s, people in Taos, New Mexico have reported a low, constant humming sound that only a small percentage of the population can hear. The rest? Silence. 🎧 What is the Taos Hum—and why can only some people hear it? 🌍 Is it microseismic vibrations from the Earth itself? ⚡ Could it c...
14 Oct 2025 · 19 min
The Hessdalen Lights: Science’s Strangest Unexplained Glow
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and embrace the glow of curiosity. 🔦 In this Nature Mysteries Minisode, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole investigate one of the most baffling natural light shows on Earth—the Hessdalen Lights of Norway. For over a century, glowing orbs have danced through a remote valley, pulsing, hovering, and splitting apart with no clear cause. Scientists have studied them for decades… and still, no one really knows what they are. ✨ What are the Hessdalen Lights, and how long ha...
8 Oct 2025 · 16 min
The Truth About the Bermuda Triangle: Science vs. Mystery
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and let your curiosity get lost at sea (but like, safely). 🌊 In this Nature Mysteries Minisode, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into one of Earth’s most famous unsolved legends: the Bermuda Triangle—also known as the Devil’s Triangle. For over a century, this stretch of ocean between Miami, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico has been blamed for the mysterious disappearances of ships, planes, and the people aboard them. But is it really cursed—or just misunderstood? 🛩️ ...
1 Oct 2025 · 13 min
How the Moon Was Formed: A Science Cosmic Mystery
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. In this Nature Mysteries Minisode, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole tackle one of the biggest unanswered questions in planetary science: how was the Moon formed? We look at what we do know—like why lunar rocks look almost identical to Earth’s, why one side of the Moon is thicker than the other, and why it’s slowly drifting away at 1.5 inches per year. Then we dig into the wild theories scientists are...
S12 · E11 · 18 Sep 2025 · 19 min
Crabs on the Move: The World’s Strangest Mass Migration
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. In this final Swarms Minisode of the season, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole lose their minds (in the best way) over the most chaotic, moon-synced crab love party on Earth: the migration of Christmas Island red crabs. We’re talking: 🦀 50 to 100 million land crabs 🌧 Timed to what we're convinced is a witches curse.... 🚧 Roads shut down 🌊 Pina colada breaks (probably) 💥 And babies launc...
S12 · E10 · 11 Sep 2025 · 52 min
Nature’s Self-Destruct Button: When Death Means Survival
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. In this explosive episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole reveal the surprising truth: sometimes, nature chooses to self-destruct—and it's all part of the plan. From exploding ants to salmon that spawn and die, and fungi that launch spores like botanical cannons, this episode dives into how death in nature isn't always failure—it's strategy. 💥 Why some creatures explode on purpose...
S12 · E9 · 26 Aug 2025 · 14 min
Swarms: Why Army Ants Are the Forest’s Most Ruthless Hunters
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and prepare yourself—because this time, the swarm doesn’t just chase... it devours. In this Swarms Minisode, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into the world of army ants, some of the most strategic, aggressive, and terrifyingly coordinated hunters on Earth. From building living bridges to raiding the forest floor with military precision, these ants don't forage… they sweep, and anything that can’t move fast enough is gone. 🐜 Why army ants don’t build nests—but...
S12 · E8 · 19 Aug 2025 · 45 min
Seeds on the Move: How Plants Travel the World Without Legs
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it. In this seed-sational episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dig into the unexpectedly wild world of seed dispersal. From coconuts floating across oceans to violets launching their seeds like botanical cannons, this episode explores the many weird and wonderful ways plants get around without walking. 🌊 How coconuts evolved to sail thousands of miles 🌬️ The physics behind pa...
S12 · E7 · 5 Aug 2025 · 16 min
Swarms: Why Killer Bees Are So Scary (and So Misunderstood)
Send us Fan Mail Subscribe if you love science, chaos, and being mildly afraid of your backyard. 🐝 In this Swarms Minisode, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole uncover facts around the infamous “killer bees”—a.k.a. Africanized honeybees. Spoiler: they don’t look scary, but they’ll chase you, sting in overwhelming numbers, and sometimes even wait above water for you to come up for air. But is the fear justified? 🐝 What makes Africanized honeybees so aggressive? 🌎 How did a 1950s experiment...

About Wildly Curious

Wildly Curious is a English tech & science podcast from Katy Reiss & Laura Fawks Lapole. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: Katy Reiss & Laura Fawks Lapole
Language: English
Category: Tech & Science
New episodes: Every two weeks
Typical length: 16 min
Latest episode: 28 Jul 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1551899680

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