Natural Selections

Oct 27 2021 100 ep. 5 mins 1.8k

Natural Selections Podcast artwork

Short conversations about the natural world with Dr. Curt Stager and Martha Foley, from member-supported North Country Public Radio

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Natural Selections: Raven vs. Crow, what's the difference?

Oct 27 2021 5 mins

Ravens were once a rarity in the North Country, but now they are becoming a common sight. They have a similar appearance to crows, but if you see the two birds together the difference is fairly obvious. Curt Stager and Martha Foley discuss ravens and crows on Natural Selections.

Natural Selections: "Couch potato" bass evolving in response to human predation

Oct 20 2021 5 mins

The pressure to keep billions of humans fed can have a transformative impact on amimal populations. Overharvesting that targets the largest animals can result in reduction of the average size of species, as seen in Caribbean conch snails. And sport-fishing pressure on large mouth bass can winnow out the most agressive in the gene pool, resulting in a "lazier," more passive remnant

Natural Selections: Get to know your closet nemesis, the clothes moth

Oct 13 2021 5 mins

Keratin, the substance wool, hair, and feathers are made from, makes a pretty thin diet, but the clothes moth has been dogging humanity's closets and drawers for hundreds of years, unravelling the work of generations of knitters and weavers to feed its larvae.

Natural Selections: For cats, the comfort zone is shaped like a box

Oct 06 2021 4 mins

Of all the places a cat can hang out, why do do many of them want to hang out in boxes? According to researchers, cats that spend time in close confines are measurably less stressed than those remaining in the open. As Curt Stager tells Martha Foley, it's not just house cats who feel this way.

Natural Selections: How nature journals put the history in natural history

Sep 29 2021 5 mins

Martha Foley has never succeeded in keeping a nature journal long-term, but Curt Stager finds them invaluable in his work. He records his observations on paper, but also finds great data through researching the journals of past observers, from Samuel de Champlain to Thomas Jefferson, to ordinary little-known North Country folk. His hint - always put it on paper. Whatever became of

Natural Selections: Bats can sing, too!

Sep 22 2021 5 mins

Humans, birds, and whales are not the only creatures who can sing. Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager discuss recent research that uncovered bats also use learned songs to communicate.

Natural Selections: Just how individual are animals?

Sep 15 2021 5 mins

We tend to think that dogs do this, and that cats do that. We think animal species have a recognizable set of behaviors that define the nature of their kind. But what about individual animals? Does each have something we could understand as a unique personality?

More fish: good for the flowers, bad for the snakes

Sep 08 2021 5 mins

The complex web of species interaction is full of odd associations. Stocking a lake with fish cuts down on dragonflies, which helps pollinators, which helps the flowers bloom. Or it can cut down on amphibians such as newts, which is bad for garter snakes. Invasive flowering purple loosestrife is good for insects and birds that feed on them, but hard on plankton, which is at the bot

Really, really big bugs (and some tiny ones, too)

Sep 01 2021 5 mins

Martha Foley? - not a fan of bugs. And Curt Stager took a course on them to steady his own reactions. The Natural Selections team looks at the outliers on the spectrum, the largest and smallest of critters with too many legs. New Zealand's weta makes a real handful. The fairy fly is nearly invisible. Some prehistoric dragonflies were big enough to make off with the cat.

Natural Selections: The evolution of breathing

Aug 25 2021 6 mins

All creatures breathe in some fashion, but how the job gets done has changed from fish to amphibian to reptile to mammal. Curt Stager and Martha Foley chart the evolution of animal respiration.