Wildly Curious
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, and bizarre natural phenomena. With a knack for breaking down complex topics into fun and digestible insights, Katy and Laura make science accessible for all—while still offering fresh perspectives for seasoned science enthusiasts. Each episode blends humor with real-world science, taking listeners on an engaging journey filled with quirky facts and surprising revelations. Whether you're a curious beginner or a lifelong science lover, this podcast offers a perfect mix of laughs, learning, and the unexpected wonders of the natural world.
Episodes
165 episodes
Nature’s Self-Destruct Button: When Death Means Survival
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-de...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 10
•
51:30
Swarms: Why Army Ants Are the Forest’s Most Ruthless Hunters
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 ...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 9
•
14:11
Seeds on the Move: How Plants Travel the World Without Legs
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 co...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 8
•
44:45
Swarms: Why Killer Bees Are So Scary (and So Misunderstood)
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 ...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 7
•
15:57
How Animals Navigate Without GPS (Magnetic Fields, Instinct & More)
Ever wonder how birds, eels, whales, or even bugs find their way without a GPS? In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole uncover the jaw-dropping science behind animal navigation.From locusts using sky maps an...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 6
•
57:27
Swarms: The Science Behind Biblical Locust Plagues
Subscribe if you love science, chaos, and bugs that are way too confident.In this Swarms Minisode, Katy dives into the desert locust, a grasshopper that transforms—literally—into one of the most devastating swarm c...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 5
•
13:32
Swarms: Why Thousands of Sharks Suddenly Gather
Subscribe and brace yourself—because this week, the swarm has teeth. 🦈In this second episode of our Swarms Minisode Series, Laura and Katy dive into a lesser-known swarm behavior: shark aggregations. From 1,400 bas...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 4
•
9:18
Why You Smell What You Smell: The Science of Scents, Skunks & Memory
Subscribe and let your nose lead the way. This episode stinks—in the best way possible.In this surprisingly deep dive into all things scent, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole explore how your sense of smell works, why it’s wildly ...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 3
•
41:31
Swarms: Why Starlings Move Like Liquid
Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. It’s time for Swarms.In the kickoff to our Swarms Minisodes, Katy and Laura dive into one of nature’s most mesmerizing spectacles: the murmuration of starlings. Thes...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 2
•
16:45
The Wildlife in Your Walls: Hidden Ecosystems Inside Your Home
Subscribe and let your inner science goblin move into its own weird little ecosystem. 🦠In the Season 12 kickoff of Wildly Curious, Katy and Laura reveal the bizarre—but very real—ecosystems thriving inside your house.<...
•
Season 12
•
Episode 1
•
38:09
The Volcano That Won’t Quite Sleep: Vesuvius’ Eruption History
Subscribe and let your brain go on a weekly field trip. No permission slip required.In this Volcano Minisode, Laura and Katy dive into the dramatic, deadly, and never-quite-dormant history of Mount Vesuvius, one of...
•
16:31
This Snail Built Its Own Metal Armor (Thanks, Volcanoes)
In this Volcano Minisode, Katy introduces one of the most extreme animals on Earth: the scaly-foot gastropod, a deep-sea snail that literally builds metal armor from volcanic hydrothermal vents. Found over a mile below th...
•
10:47
Obsidian: The Sharpest Rock on Earth (and in Surgery)
Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it.In this third Volcano Minisode, Katy digs into one of the coolest things a volcano has ever made: obsidian—a rock so sharp it's been shapin...
•
10:22
The Hidden Caves Beneath Antarctica’s Volcanoes
In this second Volcano Minisode, Laura dives deep (literally) into one of Antarctica’s strangest secrets: how volcanic heat has carved out entire networks of hidden ice caves—warm, alien worlds tucked under the frozen surface. 🧊🔥
•
10:09
A Volcano Buried the World’s Largest Pyramid?!
In the first Volcano Minisode of our season break, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole uncover one of the wildest stories you've probably never heard: how an active volcano in Mexico accidentally buried—and preserved—the world’s larg...
•
16:20
Volcanoes: Agents of Chaos or Planet Builders?
Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it.In this Season 11 finale of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole blow the lid off volcanoes—literally and figuratively. From earth-sh...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 12
•
41:36
Cosmic Critters: The Chimp Who Survived Space—and Changed Everything
In this out-of-this-world episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole tell the incredible—and deeply emotional—story of Ham the Chimp, the first hominid to survive spaceflight.🧠 How was Ham trained to per...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 11
•
20:01
Cosmic Critters: The Spiders Who Spun Webs in Space
In this out-of-this-world episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole unravel the story of two unexpected astronauts: Anita and Arabella, the garden spiders launched aboard Skylab 3 in 1973.🕸️ Can ...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 10
•
10:05
Why We Sleep, Dream, and Lose Our Minds Without It
Why do we sleep? What’s going on in our brains while we dream about flying bagels and dolphin taxis? In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole stay up late to explore the science of sleep, REM cycles, lucid d...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 9
•
54:41
Cosmic Critters: The Monkey-nauts Who Paved the Way for Space Travel
Before astronauts, there were monkeynauts. In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into the bizarre and often tragic history of the first primates sent to space—Albert I, II, III, and IV.<...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 8
•
16:24
Weather Gone Wild: Lightning, Haboobs, and Animal Rain—Oh My!
From sky-high lightning bolts that span hundreds of miles to walls of sand swallowing cities whole, extreme weather is wild—and sometimes, just plain weird. 🌩️💨 In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy and Laura break down some...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 7
•
1:01:47
Cosmic Critters: The Frogs That Went to Space
Frogs. In. Space. Yep, you read that right! In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole take you on a hilarious and mind-blowing journey into the weirdest space experiment you’ve probably never heard of—the Orb...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 6
•
16:32
Could You Train a Dinosaur? Science Says… Maybe!
Could dinosaurs be the next great delivery workers, pest control experts, or even search-and-rescue heroes? In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole take a deep dive into the wild world of dinosaur training—...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 5
•
1:18:36
Cosmic Critters: The Spacefaring Cat Who Defied Gravity
Blast off into the strange world of space-bound critters with Wildly Curious! In this episode, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole uncover the bizarre true story of Félicette—the first (and only) cat launched into space. From rigorous as...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 4
•
11:59
Dinosaurs Uncovered: Myths, Misconceptions, and Mind-Blowing Discoveries
In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy and Laura dive deep into the prehistoric past to separate dinosaur fact from fiction. From Hollywood myths to groundbreaking discoveries, they explore how our understanding of dinosaurs has evolv...
•
Season 11
•
Episode 3
•
1:09:34